In the many studies that have been conducted on the provision of financial services for consumers, regulation has emerged as one of the most important factors. The impact of regulation on financial service industries is a major focus of this comprehensive bibliography of relevant source materials in the field of regulatory economics. The bibliography includes entries from the major economics and finance journals published over the past twenty years, major law and business journals,government documents, books, and doctoral dissertations--all indexed according to subject matter--as well as abstracts of many of the papers.The product of extensive research, Heggestad's work is invaluable to university libraries, regulatory agencies, financial institutions, and financial experts, and is an efficient and essential reference tool for anyone wishing to study specific markets and the impact of financial regulation on them.
In the many studies that have been conducted on the provision of financial services for consumers, regulation has emerged as one of the most important factors. The impact of regulation on financial service industries is a major focus of this comprehensive bibliography of relevant source materials in the field of regulatory economics. The bibliograp
Staff Discussion Notes showcase the latest policy-related analysis and research being developed by individual IMF staff and are published to elicit comment and to further debate. These papers are generally brief and written in nontechnical language, and so are aimed at a broad audience interested in economic policy issues. This Web-only series replaced Staff Position Notes in January 2011.
Financial services, financial firms and financial markets are regulated to a greater extent than most other products and services. In this radical book Professor George Benston provides a comprehensive critique of the justifications for financial services regulation, and provides an innovative proposal for reform. Executive Summary: Financial services, financial firms and financial markets are regulated to a greater extent than most other products and services. Financial service regulation goes back centuries. It provides benefits to governments (for example, from direct and indirect taxation of banks) and to regulated financial institutions (which gain where entry is restricted). Consumer protection is a common reason given for financial regulation. But consumers in financial markets are probably less subject to fraud, misrepresentation, discrimination and information asymmetry than consumers of other products. Concern about 'negative externalities' (costs born by others) is another argument for regulation. However, on examination it is clear there are few genuine externalities. Regulations on externality grounds is justified only for financial institutions which hold government-insured deposits; for insurance companies which provide government-mandated non-contracting third party insurance ) for instance, for cars); and for companies which underwrite long-term life insurance and annuities. Financial regulation incurs costs, borne by consumers and taxpayers, which probably exceed the benefits they receive. There are substantial unintended costs (such as reduced diversification of financial institutions and the absence of less costly and more innovative products because of restrictions on entry to financial markets). An 'optimal' regulatory system' for banks would involve substantial capital requirements, periodic reporting of assets, liabilities and capital and a 'structured early intervention' system for the authorities. For government-mandated third party liability insurance, life insurance and annuities, insurance companies should be subject to capital requirements similar to those for banks. If governments wish to protect consumers of financial products the best procedure is to establish an Ombudsman to which consumers who feel they have been mistreated can go. The proposed regulatory system 'would be almost costless to taxpayers, the regulated companies and consumers of their products and services.' Compared with existing regimes, it has the great advantage of not restricting entry to financial markets nor the introduction of new products
As an experiment in reconnecting academia to the broader democracy, this work is designed to invigorate public policy debate by rededicating academic work to the pursuit of solutions to society's great problems.
Provides an in-depth overview of the Federal Reserve System, including information about monetary policy and the economy, the Federal Reserve in the international sphere, supervision and regulation, consumer and community affairs and services offered by Reserve Banks. Contains several appendixes, including a brief explanation of Federal Reserve regulations, a glossary of terms, and a list of additional publications.
