Boris Johnson today renewed his attack on Labour "neo-socialists" for criticising the City.
The Mayor's comments follow Gordon Brown's conference speech which attacked the Tories over financial regulation.
It also comes after Mr Johnson's own remarks in his weekly Telegraph column in support of bankers. Today he said London could gain a transatlantic economic advantage if ministers resisted pressure to overregulate the City.
Mr Johnson said: "My own hunch is if we get this right and keep our nerve, we have the opportunity to come through this in good shape and perhaps in even better shape than New York.
"I'm very much concerned when I read attacks on greed and spivs and speculation, attacks by neo-socialists on the culture of bonuses.
"Of course there has been greed ... but [the City] is a great British industry and the last thing we want to do now is throw the baby out with the bathwater with some form of excessive regulation."
Mr Johnson said any short-term risk of going against public opinion was outweighed by the long-term benefits.
