In this seminar we review the structure and operations (including enforcement) of regulation of financial markets--specifically securities, derivatives (or swaps), banking, and systems to inhibit money laundering and terrorist (or 'threat") financing. Although we will concentrate on United States regulatory systems, we will -- as we must-- examine the international regulatory regimes and the cross-border and extraterritorial effects of regulation. We will also spend some time reviewing the domestic regulatory regimes of selected non-U.S. jurisdictions. A major paper will be required at the end of the course. Course grades are determined by class participation and the paper.
Know it or not, or like it or not, regulation of financial markets touches and changes every aspect of our economic lives. (Paying a mortgage or rent and buying groceries and obtaining cash from an ATM and obtaining funding for nonprofit organizations are parts of those economic lives.) This course of study will either introduce or further explain the area. This is not a substitute for a securities regulation course but, then, securities regulation is not a prerequisite for this class. Consistently with a recognition that the topic has broad application, the course materials come from many sources (some of which may be surprising) and are in different media. That having been said, one requisite for the course--by no means a formal one, but a real requirement-- is that the students have an interest in learning about the area.