Financial Regulation presents an important restatement of the purposes and objectives of financial regulation. The authors provide details and data on the scale, nature and costs of regulatory problems around the world, and look at what sort of countries and sectors require special attention and policies. Key topics covered include: * the need to recast the form of regulation * incentive structures for financial regulation * proportionality * new techniques for risk management * regulation in emerging countries * crisis management * prospects for financial regulation in the future.

The reciprocal opening of markets for goods and financial services provides opportunities for foreign direct investment and its related fresh inflow of long-term capital, and developing countries must have sustained access to these markets in order to grow. Global integration efforts are essential in this process, but they need to be complemented by a certain degree of regional cooperation, which may include the provision of regional public goods and services essential for development that are not provided by markets of single nations. This report brings together the views of experts and policymakers on the benefits and limitations of regionalism. In dealing with the multiple issues of regionalism, the authors offer fresh insights and discuss ways in which Regional Development Banks (RDBs) may serve as catalysts for collective action. The authors also propose ways in which RDBs should modify current practices.