Financial Conduct Authority staff are resigning at almost double the rate they did when the regulator was the Financial Services Authority.
Staff have been quitting the regulator at an annualised rate of 12% since it formed in April 2013, according to figures obtained by a Reuters Freedom of Information Act. By contrast, turnover in the final year of the Financial Services Authority was 6.9%.
Institute for Employment Studies HR research and consultancy director Peter Reilly said competing firms could see a period of transition as the perfect time to poach staff.
He said organisational change often caused staff to rethink their career path: "People may be more prepared to take a call from a head hunter than they were before."
In the long run, turnover rates were likely to drop back to more predictable levels, he added.
The FCA did not wish to comment.
The FCA lost 162 staff during its first six months of operation, most of which were replaced. High profile losses included compliance chief Julia Dunn and acting retail director Christina Sinclair to Nationwide and Barclays respectively.
The Prudential Regulation Authority also saw an increased staff turnover, with an annualised rate of 11%.
