Harvey Pitt, the former head of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, on Thursday delivered a measured, but trenchant indictment of his former employer over its “terrible failure” to spot the Ponzi fraud of Bernard Madoff, who on Monday was sentenced to 150 years in jail.

Mr Pitt, who was SEC chairman for 15 months between 2001 and 2002, confirmed that the regulator had been given evidence of alleged wrongdoing by Mr Madoff’s business at various points – in 1992, 1999, 2005 and 2006. “But during [my tenure], there was no indication whatsoever that Madoff was doing something wrong,” he said.