So six out of 10 directors want Sarbanes-Oxley scrapped or overhauled according to Korn/ferry International's latest Board of Directors Study. The directors say the regime has made boards too cautious and risk-averse.

All this is hardly surprising with $14 billion being spent to date on Sarbanes-Oxley compliance according to AMR Research estimates. Spending on SOX technology is expected to be up 28 per cent this year.

All this adds momentum for the moves to unwind SOX, even if the costs are a pittance compared to the money companies are paying their CEOs, according to former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Richard Breeden.

"The cost of 404 in the aggregate, from every single public company, is probably one ten-millionth of the cost of executive compensation. I don't hear anybody saying we should get rid of executive compensation."