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Level Playing Fields in International Financial Regulation
Author(s) -
MORRISON ALAN D.,
WHITE LUCY
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
the journal of finance
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 18.151
H-Index - 299
eISSN - 1540-6261
pISSN - 0022-1082
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-6261.2009.01460.x
Subject(s) - level playing field , multinational corporation , financial regulation , capital (architecture) , field (mathematics) , business , economics , regulator , monetary economics , industrial organization , finance , biochemistry , chemistry , mathematics , archaeology , gene , pure mathematics , history
We analyze the desirability of level playing fields in international financial regulation. In general, level playing fields impose the standards of the weakest regulator upon the best‐regulated economies. However, they may be desirable when capital is mobile because they counter a cherry‐picking effect that lowers the size and efficiency of banks in weaker economies. Hence, while a laissez faire policy favors the better‐regulated economy, level playing fields are good for weaker regulators. We show that multinational banking mitigates the cherry‐picking effect, and reduces the damage that a level playing field causes in the better‐regulated economy.