The Korean Financial Crisis of 1997—A Strategy of Financial Sector Reform


Book Description

After years of strong performance, Korea’s economy entered a crisis in 1997, owing largely to structural problems in its financial and corporate sectors. These problems emerged in the second half of that year, when the capital inflows that had helped finance Korea’s growth were reversed, as foreign investors—reeling from losses in other Southeast Asian economies—decided to reduce their exposure to Korea. This paper focuses on the sources of the crisis that originated in the financial sector, the measures taken to deal with it, and the evolution of key banking and financial variables in its aftermath.




Financial Sector Crisis and Restructuring


Book Description

An IMF paper reviewing the policy responses of Indonesia, Korea and Thailand to the 1997 Asian crisis, comparing the actions of these three countries with those of Malaysia and the Philippines. Although all judgements are still tentative, important lessons can be learned from the experiences of the last two years.




Korean Bank Regulation and Supervision:Crisis and Reform


Book Description

This work identifies the continuing structural weaknesses of the Korean banking system, which were thrown into sharp relief by the 1997 financial crisis, and focuses on the need for reform in order to achieve financial stability. The study centres around three central questions: Who should be the regulator? What substantive standards of supervision should be applied? Administratively, in what manner should these standards be applied? The book argues that the Korean banking system, characterised as a `governmental control system' for credit allocation, should be removed from undue governmental and political interference, thus allowing the involvement of banks in commercially oriented practices without exposure to the significant risks incurred by governmental policy directed lending. The author calls for a high degree of transparency and accountability, for a clear, realistic timetable for restructuring, and for an effective exit policy for troubled commercial banks. This book will be of value to practitioners, researchers and academics working in the field of banking law, particularly those with a special interest in the Asia-Pacific region.




The Regulatory Responses to the Global Financial Crisis


Book Description

We identify current challenges for creating stable, yet efficient financial systems using lessons from recent and past crises. Reforms need to start from three tenets: adopting a system-wide perspective explicitly aimed at addressing market failures; understanding and incorporating into regulations agents’ incentives so as to align them better with societies’ goals; and acknowledging that risks of crises will always remain, in part due to (unknown) unknowns – be they tipping points, fault lines, or spillovers. Corresponding to these three tenets, specific areas for further reforms are identified. Policy makers need to resist, however, fine-tuning regulations: a “do not harm” approach is often preferable. And as risks will remain, crisis management needs to be made an integral part of system design, not relegated to improvisation after the fact.




Regulatory Cycles: Revisiting the Political Economy of Financial Crises


Book Description

Financial crises are traditionally analyzed as purely economic phenomena. The political economy of financial booms and busts remains both under-emphasized and limited to isolated episodes. This paper examines the political economy of financial policy during ten of the most infamous financial booms and busts since the 18th century, and presents consistent evidence of pro-cyclical regulatory policies by governments. Financial booms, and risk-taking during these episodes, were often amplified by political regulatory stimuli, credit subsidies, and an increasing light-touch approach to financial supervision. The regulatory backlash that ensues from financial crises can only be understood in the context of the deep political ramifications of these crises. Post-crisis regulations do not always survive the following boom. The interplay between politics and financial policy over these cycles deserves further attention. History suggests that politics can be the undoing of macro-prudential regulations.




Aligning Financial Supervisory Structures with Country Needs


Book Description

This publication contains the proceedings of an international conference on the regulation of financial institutions and supervisory structural reforms, held in Washington D.C., United States in December 2003 and involving participants from 52 countries. It considers case studies of experiences of regulatory reform approaches adopted in a number of countries including Australia, South Africa, Ireland, Sweden, Hungary and Estonia.




Financial Market Regulation and Reforms in Emerging Markets


Book Description

"In the wake of the global financial crisis that began in 2008, offers a systematic overview of recent developments in regulatory frameworks in advanced and emerging-market countries, outlining challenges to improving regulation, markets, and access in developing economies"--Provided by publisher.




Financial Markets in Korea


Book Description

The Korean economy has achieved outstanding development not only in its real economy but also in the financial sector. Driven by the expansion in economic size and by the government’s policies to foster the capital markets and increase their openness, the Korean financial market has grown by more than 17 times over the past two decades since the 1990s. Financial market quality has also been greatly enhanced due to efforts to develop the financial infrastructure and improve the transaction techniques. As a result, global interest in the Korean financial market has increased significantly. In reflection of this upgraded international standing of the Korean financial market, the Bank of Korea now publishes this English edition of ?Financial Markets in Korea? for the first time. Initially published in 1999, this book has been revised every two to three years. This English edition is published along with the 2012 revision. Although its arrival is somewhat late, we hope that it will serve readers as a solid introduction to the overall Korean financial market. This book provides an overview of the Korean financial market structure, and of recent developments related to the individual markets. Chapter 1 introduces the structure and size of the financial market as a whole, while Chapters 2 through 4 describe the funding, capital and financial derivatives markets respectively, covering their trading terms and conditions, participants,transaction mechanisms and recent developments. Detailed explanations of recent major issues concerning the financial markets, including notable developments and institutional changes, are also available in the Boxes included throughout the text. It is hoped that this book will provide readers good guidance for a better understanding of Korea’s financial markets. Money markets Ⅰ. Overview Ⅱ. Call market Ⅲ. Repurchase agreement (RP) market Ⅳ. BOK repurchase agreement (RP) market Ⅴ. Certificate of deposit (CD) market Ⅵ. Commercial paper (CP) market Capital markets Ⅰ. Overview Ⅱ. Bond market Ⅲ. Monetary Stabilization Bond market Ⅳ. Asset-backed securities (ABS) market Ⅴ. Stock market Financial derivatives markets Ⅰ. Overview Ⅱ. Equity derivatives market Ⅲ. Interest rate derivatives market Ⅳ. Foreign exchange derivatives market Ⅴ. Credit derivatives market Ⅵ. Derivatives-linked securities market




Lessons of the Financial Crisis for Future Regulation of Financial Institutions and Markets and for Liquidity Management


Book Description

This paper seeks to draw lessons for financial sector regulation and supervision and central bank liquidity management from the ongoing crisis, focusing principally on implications for the future rather than on immediate crisis management policies. Inadequacies in macroeconomic policies and the design of the international financial architecture exposed in the crisis will also have to be addressed to make the suggested changes in the regulatory framework effective.




Banking's Final Exam


Book Description

Spurred by the success of the first stress test of US banks toward the end of the global economic crisis in 2009, stress testing of large financial institutions has become the cornerstone of banking supervision worldwide. The aim of the tests is to determine which banks are adequately capitalized under severe economic shocks and to order corrective measures for those that are vulnerable. In Banking’s Final Exam, one of the world’s leading experts on banking regulation concludes that the tests administered on both sides of the Atlantic suffer from fundamental weaknesses, leading to a false sense of reassurance about the safety and soundness of the banking system. Some weaknesses can be corrected within the existing bank-capital regime, but others will require bold reforms—including higher minimum capital requirements for the largest and most systemically-important banks. The banking industry is likely to resist these reforms, but this book explains why their objections do not hold water.