INSIDE-OUT ECONOMICS / FRAUD / CRACK 01 OF 06
FRANKENBANK
Does banking fraud come from bad people?
Build ONE fictional banker, then test what the bank makes them do.
01 / THE POLLTHE CLASS MAKES THE MONSTER
THE BAD APPLE DEFENCE

Which trait
creates the most
dangerous banker?

Every class vote changes Frankenbanker's DNA. Not just the winning answer.

THE RULE: More votes mean a more extreme trait. The four vote totals create one composite monster.
VOTE: WHAT WOULD WORRY YOU MOST?
Use +/− to enter class votes, or try the sample class. All four results affect the banker.
0 votes counted
INSIDE-OUT ECONOMICS / FRAUD / CRACK 02 OF 06
FRANKENBANK
Class votes have created one fictional banker.
Now test the difference between character and incentives.
02 / THE CREATIONTHE POLL IS THE DNA
THE POLL BUILT THE BANKER

Meet your creation.

The class vote sets all four traits. These stay fixed for the rest of the experiment.

More votes = stronger traits. All outcomes remain hypothetical, not personality forecasts.
LAB SPECIMEN / 001● GENE EDITING COMPLETE
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BARON BONUSCLASS-ENGINEERED PROFILE
CLASS
CREATED
One fictional banker, not the whole bank.
INSIDE-OUT ECONOMICS / FRAUD / CRACK 03 OF 06
FRANKENBANK
You regulate one fictional banker. How much misconduct will you prevent, and what will tighter supervision cost the bank?
03 / THE TRADE-OFFONE REGULATORY SETTING
BANKER UNDER SUPERVISION● ALIVE
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BARON BONUSSame banker, whatever policy you choose.
BANKER
NO. 001
THE REGULATORY DILEMMA

How tightly should banking be regulated?

One slider raises detection and penalties, but cannot guarantee either perfect detection or zero fraud. Intense supervision also consumes resources.

REGULATORY INTENSITY45%
LIGHT TOUCHTARGETEDMAXIMUM
TARGETED OVERSIGHTBalanced monitoring and proportionate sanctions.
DETECTION PROBABILITY—Even at maximum, not 100%
LOSS IF CAUGHT—Personal financial equivalent
LEGITIMATE SERVICES—Completed per 100 enquiries
THE TRADE-OFFExpected punishment: —
Sector-wide effects are not predicted here. “Services” is a stylised bank-activity index: safeguards may increase confidence, while excessive checks can slow business.
Set one policy, then test it without changing the banker.
INSIDE-OUT ECONOMICS / FRAUD / CRACK 04 OF 06
FRANKENBANK
TEST 1: One banker in a bank with modest bonuses.
Can regulation deter false reporting?
04 / FIRST TESTONE BANKER · REPEATED DECISIONS
TEST ONE / MODEST BONUS● ALIVE
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BARON BONUSControls locked for the next test.
BANKER
NO. 001
TEST 1 / MODEST BONUS / SAME REGULATION

Did regulation work?

One banker faces 65 hypothetical reporting decisions and 35 advice decisions. See whether your original regulatory setting deters fraud before management changes the incentives.

EVERY DECISION HAS ONE OUTCOME
Honest/suitable
Fraud caught
Fraud missed
Unsuitable sale
A detected offence is not a prevented offence.
INSIDE-OUT ECONOMICS / FRAUD / CRACK 05 OF 06
FRANKENBANK
You now play the bank’s management.
Same banker, same regulation; different rewards and targets.
05 / THE BOARDROOMMANAGEMENT SETS THE REWARDS
THE BOARDROOM / CHANGE THE BANK

Can bonuses beat enforcement?

Raise the bonus or targets to encourage false reporting; obscure products to increase unsuitable advice. The banker and regulation stay fixed.

💷 PERSONAL BONUS AT STAKE£40k
£0k£150k
⏱️ PERFORMANCE TARGETSNormal
🕶️ PRODUCT TRANSPARENCYClear
LIVE / 65 REPORTING + 35 ADVICE DECISIONS

How did the banker respond?

SAME BANKER · SAME REGULATION · DIFFERENT COMMERCIAL INCENTIVES
Same individual, unchanged enforcement. Only bank incentives change.
INSIDE-OUT ECONOMICS / FRAUD / CRACK 06 OF 06
FRANKENBANK
The regulator counted detected misconduct. But what went unnoticed?
One banker · unchanged personality · unchanged regulation.
06 / THE HIDDEN AUDITDETECTION IS NOT PREVENTION
FILE A / THE REGULATOR'S DASHBOARD

Case closed?

This is the visible enforcement record. It tells you how many fraudulent reports were caught, not how many were attempted.

OFFICIAL COMPLIANCE REPORT ● FILED
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FRAUDULENT REPORTS DETECTEDOut of 65 opportunities for this one banker
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LEGITIMATE SERVICES COMPLETEDHypothetical bank activity per 100 enquiries
THE TRAPIf fraud is detected, has it been prevented? And could more be hidden?
The missing piece of the case
FILE B / THE UNSEEN DECISIONS

What really happened?

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RECORDS SEALED

Reveal the decisions the regulator could not fully observe. The banker's behaviour has already been determined by your earlier choices.

A model of 100 decisions by one fictional banker. Results are illustrative, not predictions.