Global financial services companies are turning their attention to talent management and rewards beyond pay to help them attract, retain and engage top employees in the wake of new compensation regulations in the U.S., United Kingdom and other countries.

According to a Towers Watson poll of financial services executives, the global professional services company found that companies are evenly divided on the impact that the current regulatory environment is having on risk taking in the industry.

Several countries have enacted legislation to curb risk taking by large financial companies. The U.S. enacted both the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which require financial institutions to review and disclose whether their compensation programs encourage executives, traders and other employees to take "excessive" risks. Similar rules were adopted in many European companies following guidelines issued by the Financial Stability Board in 2009.