Capital Neutrality and Coordinated Supervision: Lessons for International Securities Regulation from the Law of International Taxation and Banking

Part I of this article provides some background on the legal forces which have influenced globalization and internationalization of the world’s securities markets. Part II focuses on the international tax law principle of capital neutrality. Fundamentally, the principle of capital neutrality requires that regulations should not unintentionally direct the movement of capital. Part II analyzes the bases and parameters of the principle of capital neutrality, the experiences of international taxation in applying the principle to a globalizing economy, and the possibilities for applying the principle to international securities regulation. Part III focuses on the international banking law principle of coordinated supervision. The principle of coordinated supervision is that no bank should go unsupervised, and that the supervision of banks must be adequate. Part III examines the historical impetus for coordinated supervision, the development of the principle, and its recent application to problems caused by globalization. Part III concludes with suggestions for the possible application of the principle to securities law.