Laufenburg, a small, non-descript town of some 2000 people, straddling the Swiss-German border, is not likely to be familiar to the average derivatives market regulator, but it offers a cautionary tale that could have proved useful over the past few years.
In 2003, the authorities in Laufenburg decided to build a bridge over the river Rhine, which bisects the town. Construction was started on both banks, but as the structure neared completion, it became clear that someone had blundered – the two sections of the bridge did not neatly meet in the middle. In fact, one was a full half-metre higher than the other, forcing an embarrassing rebuild on the German side.
