Blockchains and cryptocurrencies, open banking, virtual assets, and artificial intelligence have become the buzzword of this decade. This book focuses on these 'disruptive' financial technologies that provide alternatives to the traditional financial services typically offered by regulated financial institutions. Financial technologies are characterized by the innovative ways in which they initiate, support or extend traditional financial services or offer alternative financial pathways and products. However, these financial technologies also pose money laundering and terrorist and proliferation financing as well as cyber security risks that require mitigation. This edited volume addresses a range of regulatory and enforcement challenges related to financial technology and financial crime. The book responds to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, in particular in relation to economic development, employment, national security, law enforcement and social well-being. Fostering responsible financial innovation promotes long-term economic growth, inclusion, and improved living standards. This book explores how to promote financial innovation while mitigating risks in a way that ensures financial prosperity and social inclusion.

Understanding Unemployment Insurance Law forms part of the Juta's Pocket Companions series. Titles in this series explain key legislation in non-legalistic language, in an affordable accessible format. The book begins with a brief outline of the legislative history and then systematically explains the different pieces of legislation which provide protection to the unemployed. At the end of each chapter, key-points boxes provide the reader with concise summaries of the commentary and FAQs assist the reader by anticipating and answering potential questions. Understanding Unemployment Insurance Law deals with the scope of the insurance cover, the institutional framework, the duties and rights of contributors and employees, eligibility for benefits, dispute settlement and enforcement. Selected unemployment insurance forms are included for easy reference.

Examining the law of export credit insurance and export credit guarantees, this book clarifies the legal nature of ECI and ECGs as insurance and guarantees respectively by comparing their legal characteristics regarding contract formation process, terms and conditions, duty of fair presentation, claim handling process and subrogation and recoveries. It further explores why some export credit agencies provide export credit guarantees in addition to export credit insurance, notwithstanding that an ECG is a more client-friendly product and easier than ECI for banks to use. Analysing the legal principles applicable to export credit insurance and export credit guarantees reflected by English case authorities and statutory law, the book is a doctrinal study informed by substantive empirical research. It studies a large number of export credit insurance and export credit guarantee contractual terms, to propose several model clauses and scrutinise the influences of the Insurance Act 2015 on ECI. This book is an important reference for students, academics and practitioners in the field of commercial and insurance law. In particular, it seeks to provide guidelines for all potential parties who wish to arrange an ECI/ECG transaction, including export credit agencies, private credit insurers, brokers, banks, exporters and buyers, to correctly identify and choose the suitable cover.

Whether employers are self-administering their 403(b) plans, or are using a Third Party Administrator (TPA), the in depth information in this book will provide a guide to the regulations, and the tools needed to correctly operate the plan. Busy School Business Officials can use this guide with payroll or Human Resources personnel to train them in the proper day to day operation of the plan and avoid the pitfalls that would create plan violations. The material is invaluable in maintaining oversight of the TPA, and the providers of product and investments. SBOs using previous editions of the book have reported that its use has provided an "all in one" resource for a step by step program to a worry-free 403(b) plan that benefits both the employer and the employees in this time of concerns about basic pension and social security benefits." The 4th edition contains all available guidance at press time, including the IRS document approval program, and correction procedures for plan failures.

The Supreme Court ruling in Global Process System Inc. v Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Berhad (The Cendor MOPU) created a shock wave in the London marine insurance market, as the Supreme Court decision changed the boundaries of doctrine with respect to the meaning of 'perils of the sea' and 'inherent vice'. Both phrases play an important role in the insurance market, affecting both assureds and insurers and their respective interests under all classes of marine insurance policies. This book reviews the origin of the clauses 'perils of the sea' and 'inherent vice' by tracing back through the early cases in order to understand the origin and noting how and why the changes occurred. It will examine how the law has been developed in the recent cases and discuss whether the Supreme Court case The Cendor MOPU has overruled the previous cases in terms of the clauses 'inherent vice' and 'perils of the sea'. Considering the impact of The Cendor MOPU decision with respect to the Marine Insurance Act 1906, as well as the standard Institute Cargo Clauses, it evaluates whether the decision is consistent with these things and discusses the effect of the decision on recent cases and on the insurance market.

This book analyzes China's new foreign investment law which came into force in January 2020. The new law implemented sweeping changes and overhauled China's foreign investment law regime of the last four decades. The foreign investment law aims to make the business environment more investor-friendly and address some of the contentious issues between US and China in the ongoing trade war. The book explains how the law enhances regulatory transparency. It also outlines the new approval process, that is the pre-establishment negative list system which has replaced the former approval system for foreign investment projects. The book also analyzes China's series of anti-sanction laws. This book will help give readers a better understanding of major changes and benefits under the new law and will be the first of its kind looking at the implications of this important law.

Critically analyzing the substantive law of insolvency in the EU countries as a whole, this book carries out horizontal cross-cutting analysis of the data gathered from a study of national insolvency laws. It selects particular areas for detailed discussion and considers the pros and cons of particular legislative solutions. Using the US and Norway as comparator countries, the expert authors identify areas where disparities in national laws produce problems that have impacts outside national boundaries. They analyse these against key policy goals including; improving economic performance throughout the EU, Promoting a more competitive business environment, efficient asset allocation and building more stable and sustainable human capital in terms of support for entrepreneuers and responses to consumer overindebtedness. The book also considers possible reform and harmonisation measures situated against the wider contextual background of the Capital Markets Union and the Europe 2020 agenda of promoting jobs and growth. Discerning and practical, European Insolvency Law will appeal to academics in both insolvency and finance as well as Insolvency practitioners and lawyers. Its reform suggestions will be of interest to EU Member States' government departments as well as providing a useful reference for Consumer associations and Debt charities.

This book is, with some adjustments and additions, largely based on my PhD thesis on Property Rights in Investment Securities and the Doctrine of Speci?city, which I defended in London on 15 June 2007 with Professor Lars Gorton and Dr. Kern Alexander as examiners. The subject matter is the doctrine of speci?city and its non-conformity with the developments in the ?nancial markets. As this book shows, the requirement for speci?city in book-entry securities is closely linked to loss allocation. If we decided that the rights that the investor has against its intermediary shall be property rights (as opposed to claims), then, loss allocation is crucial. Should the intermediary become insolvent and there be ins- ?cient securities, the shortfall has to be distributed. Through segregation on des- nated accounts the level of protection for the investor can be increased. It can also be increased by a requirement that the intermediary should hold a suf?cient number of securities corresponding to its customers' securities. During the course of this work I have received valuable assistance from s- eral persons, for which I am very grateful. First of all, I am indebted to Tekn. dr. Marcus Wallenbergs Stiftelse for .. utbildning i internationellt industriellt for .. etagande and For .. etagsjuridik Nord & Co for the ?nancial support they have provided.

- Unique, practical text that gives step-by-step guidance in a growing area of legal practice - Supported by real-life examples, study questions, and multiple choice questions online. - Author is a practising attorney specialising in bankruptcy law, as well as an experience lecturer at a range of US institutions.

This book analyzes the issue of European fiscal State aid in order to provide insights into the related evolution prospects and legal problems. State aid has assumed a central position in the field of taxation, becoming the most important instrument of European legal integration, especially in the area of direct taxes. This is the result of major regulatory and interpretative development, which has altered the initial European and national balances in the face of globalization and the problems of the new economy. In this context, the scope and objectives of State aid have progressively broadened, encompassing a significant level of both positive and negative integration of European national tax systems.

This book explores the various considerations for achieving an effective regulatory strategy to improve financial access and usage in Nigeria and beyond. Gaps in the legal and institutional framework for digital financial services (DFS) as well as the barriers that contribute to financial exclusion are identified as are the policy changes needed to provide more extensive, accessible and sustainable financial inclusion value. In addition, the book covers divergent themes around the use of and insights for regulating industry financial services providers and challenger entities that herald industry disruption. The book adopts three research methods. The doctrinal research method is used to buttress the law and development analysis and the themes around regulation, adoption and usage of financial services. To elucidate the application of financial innovations, comparative case studies are drawn from selected jurisdictions including Kenya, South Africa, Ghana, The Philippines, Brazil, Mexico, Uganda, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh. Lastly, using the empirical research method, the author reports the burden experienced by the residents of a community without banks in accessing finance. Included in this discussion are the barriers to finance as well as the coping strategies adopted by the community residents to access formal and informal finance.

FinTech transformations have brought changes to the global financial markets and merit the attention of financial regulators across jurisdictions. This book is one of the first ones of its kind to look at open banking (OB). It examines regulatory approaches to OB by taking a broad view of comparative legal systems and through perspectives of transaction costs, public choice, and institutional design. The book looks at the legal implications by engaging in a two-tiered comparative analysis: comparing between compulsory and voluntary approaches to OB policies and comparing the legal systems between the West (i.e., the EU and the UK) and an Asian economy (i.e., Taiwan).

This book examines good faith in non-marine insurance and takaful (Islamic insurance) contracts in Malaysia, and proposes holistic law reform of the same. The first two-thirds of the book comprise an extensive comparative legal analysis of the issues between Malaysia, Australia and the United Kingdom, with the final third dedicated to a socio-economic analysis of law reform and suggestions for law reform particularly suited to Malaysia. The book evaluates whether the duty of utmost good faith (the cornerstone of insurance and takaful contracts) is effectively regulated and, in turn, observed by insurers (and takaful operators) and insureds alike in Malaysia. The adequacy of the Insurance Act 1996 (Malaysia), the Takaful Act 1984 (Malaysia), the Financial Services Act 2013 (Malaysia) and the Islamic Financial Services Act 2013 (Malaysia) is evaluated, along with the supporting infrastructure and oversight measures introduced by the Malaysian government. In doing so, The book examines the duty of utmost good faith from both a doctrinal and a social science perspective, in order to propose suitable legal reform.

This work argues that current cryptocurrency regulation, particularly in the areas of enforcement and compliance, is inadequate. It proposes reflexive regulation as an alternative approach. This book provides strategies for a reflexive regulation approach to cryptocurrencies, developed through the identification of the internal self-regulatory mechanisms of the cryptocurrency system. Apportioning blame for current problems to the regulators' failure to take into account the inherent technical features of cryptocurrencies, the work promotes reflexive regulation in which the law acts at a subsystem-specific level to install, correct, and redefine democratic self-regulatory mechanisms. It provides strategies for this approach, developed through the identification of the internal self-regulatory mechanisms of the cryptocurrency system. These are identified as imbedded in the technical functionality of computer code and consensus-based distributive governance mechanisms respectively. In addition to providing a technical, historical and legal overview of cryptocurrencies, the book concludes by providing recommendations aimed at redirecting code and consensus towards achieving regulatory goals. In this way, it draws from the theory of reflexive law, in order to provide both a substantive and jurisprudential perspective on the regulation of cryptocurrencies and to illustrate how Financial Technology (Fintech) regulation can only be effective once regulators consider both the 'Fin' and the 'tech' in their regulatory approaches. The book will be of interest to researchers, academics and policy-makers working in the areas of Financial Regulation and Jurisprudence, Financial Crime, Banking Regulation, Information Systems, and Information Technology.

How was the Banking Union, the most advanced legal and institutional integration in the single market, created? How does European law impact European integration? To answer these questions, this book provides a sweeping account of the evolution of European law. It identifies five integration periods of the single financial market, intertwined with the development of global finance, from its origins, through its expansion and crisis, to the Banking Union. Each period is defined by innovations to deepen integration, such as the single passport for financial services, soft governance and comitology, agencies, or a single rulebook. Providing a far-reaching explanation of the legal and institutional rationality of the European Banking Union, this book demonstrates that the Banking Union is not an accident of history or simply the product of the existential crisis of the Monetary Union. It has deep roots in the evolutionary process of European law and its drive towards supranational integration.

This book consists of the proceedings of the most recent Oxford Law Colloquium which was concerned with the global regulation of the securities market. It is particularly topical in the light of recent regulatory failures in financial markets, notably the collapse of Barings Bank. The contributors to this volume, experienced lawyers and economists from the USA and the UK, have produced essays which review and analyse recent developments and approaches to the legal and regulatory challenges.

This Research Handbook is quite timely in its broad coverage of most, if not all, main aspects of SWFs, which have become such important players in the international investment arena. Thanks to the contribution of specialists with a diverse background in law, taxation, international economics, relations and governance, this book offers a comprehensive picture of their structure, functions, governance and practices. The analysis includes the impact that SWFs have both in individual host states where they invest and as agents of development in the global economy.' - Giorgio Sacerdoti, Bocconi University, ItalyResearch into the role of sovereign investments in a time of crisis is still unsatisfactory. This timely Research Handbook investigates the juridical foundation of sovereign wealth funds and investments and extends our frontier of understanding in this important area. Current research surrounding sovereign wealth funds is focused on investment flows and trends that are grounded in economics, neglecting to consider the role of law and governance in the investigation. From a legal perspective, the Handbook narrates a 'passive' side of sovereign wealth funds and state owned companies, exploring how and to what extent the legal constraints imposed by host States act as barriers to investments. Additionally, the active side is also discussed and the influence of ethical principles, treaty re-negotiations and sovereign immunity practices on state investments considered. A comprehensive reference on a complex area of research, the Handbook will be a valuable addition to the library of scholars and students interested in investment law, central banks, international economics and governance. Contributors: G. Adinolfi, F. Bassan, M. Castelli, L. Cata Backer, A. De Luca, S. Ghahramani, K. Gordon, L. Hsu, A.Lee, F. Munari, J. Pohl, B.J. Richardson, P. Rose, F. Scacciavillani, M. Vellano, A. Viterbo, T. Weiler, E. Whitsitt

Tax Avoidance and the Law is a helpful guide for undergraduate and postgraduate students who want a thorough understanding of this dynamic area of law. The book is written in a way which is easy to follow and conveniently summarises complex case law on tax avoidance. Tax Avoidance and the Law explores the evolution of the UK's General Anti- Abuse Rule. It provides a useful comparison with other Western jurisdictions' anti-avoidance legislation, including the United States of America, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and the EU. The underlying theme of the book rests on the notion that the taxpayer's subjective motives, intentions or purposes are irrelevant when assessing tax liability. The book enables students to gain a good grasp of the fundamental issues in tax avoidance in a clear manner.

Since its establishment in 2011, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has become a pivotal actor in EU financial market regulation and supervision. Its burgeoning influence extends from the rule-making process to supervisory convergence/coordination to direct supervision. Reflecting the now critical importance of ESMA to how the EU regulates and supervises financial markets, and with ESMA at an inflection point in its evolution, particularly in light of the Commission's 2017 proposals to reform ESMA and the UK's withdrawal from the EU, The Age of ESMA maps, contextualises, and examines ESMA's role and the implications for EU financial market governance.

These are the papers from the 2014 Cambridge Tax Law History Conference revised and reviewed for publication. The papers fall within six basic themes. Two papers focus on colonialism and empire dealing with early taxation in colonial New Zealand and New South Wales. Two papers deal with fiscal federalism; one on Australia in the first half of the twentieth century and the other with goods and services taxation in China. Another two papers are international in character; one considers development of the first Australia-United States tax treaty and the other development of the first League of Nations model tax treaties. Four papers focus on UK income tax; one on source, another on retention at source, a third on the use of finance bills and the fourth on establishment of the Board of Referees. Three papers deal with tax and status; one with the tax profession, another with the medical profession and a third with aristocrats. The final three papers deal with tax theorists, one with David Hume, another focused on capital transfer tax scholarship and a final paper on the tax state in the global era.

There is increasing regulatory interdependence amongst Central, East and South East Asia, European and North American financial markets, and these markets account for over one-third of the world's population and global financial markets. As these Asian markets become more integral to global financial economy, more cohesive, compatible and integrated insolvency and restructuring laws are essential. This two-volume work reviews why we should internationalise current cross-border insolvency and how we could restructure laws to address inadequacies. The two-volume work evaluates international regulatory reforms directed at detecting and managing cross-border insolvency and restructuring crises across the entire economy including financial markets. The authors call for schemes of arrangements and letters of comfort to be formally accepted as international legal tools. The work also assesses recent, but as yet unregulated developments in financial agreements, namely, the use of close-out netting provisions. They are a significant preventative legal mechanism, protecting debtors, creditors and employees among others, before a declaration of insolvency. The book discusses international arbitration, data protection and artificial intelligence in cross-border insolvency and restructuring. Finally, it seeks a meaningful balance between self-regulation through financial contracts and other party practices, and regulation imposed by governments and international financial regulators. This extensive work will be a useful reference for legal practitioners, policy makers and scholars working on financial regulation and international financial laws.

There is increasing regulatory interdependence amongst Central, East and South East Asia, European and North American financial markets, and these markets account for over one-third of the world's population and global financial markets. As these Asian markets become more integral to global financial economy, more cohesive, compatible and integrated insolvency and restructuring laws are essential. This two-volume work reviews why we should internationalise current cross-border insolvency and how we could restructure laws to address inadequacies. The two-volume work evaluates international regulatory reforms directed at detecting and managing cross-border insolvency and restructuring crises across the entire economy including financial markets. The authors call for schemes of arrangements and letters of comfort to be formally accepted as international legal tools. The work also assesses recent, but as yet unregulated developments in financial agreements, namely, the use of close-out netting provisions. They are a significant preventative legal mechanism, protecting debtors, creditors and employees among others, before a declaration of insolvency. The book discusses international arbitration, data protection and artificial intelligence in cross-border insolvency and restructuring. Finally, it seeks a meaningful balance between self-regulation through financial contracts and other party practices, and regulation imposed by governments and international financial regulators. This extensive work will be a useful reference for legal practitioners, policy makers and scholars working on financial regulation and international financial laws.