The growth of financial conglomerates, offering a range of services hitherto unprecedented, has caused problems for regulators. While conglomerates bring with them many economic benefits (diversification of risk, economies of scope, etc), they also impose costs (systemic risk and conflict of interest abuses). This book explores ways in which regulators can ensure that the regulation imposed is sufficiently strong to eradicate these abuses, but at the same time sufficiently flexible to allow the benefits of conglomeration to be secured. The Chinese Wall-a regulatory mechanism aimed at stemming the flow of information from one department in a firm to another, and reconciling conflicts of interest more generally-is singled out for special treatment. The legal position of the device, which has become all the more important in the wake of the recent Law Commission inquiry into the relationship between the Financial Services Act 1986 (and the rules made under it) and the general law, is considered in detail. The author argues that an effective Chinese Wall will, in most cases, be legally sufficient to absolve a firm from potential liability at general law, but that there are situations where Chinese Walls are not satisfactory. Here the conglomerate will have to suffer the commercial disadvantages of being a fiduciary by adopting a different, albeit more restrictive, regulatory option.

The last couple of years, financial conglomerates have been established all over Europe. This horizontal diversification has not only attracted a great deal of attention in the banking and insurance sector but has also alarmed the supervisory authorities and the European Commission. Although the benefits of financial conglomerates are straightforward, it is clear that quite a number of potential risks can not be ignored. Since the phenomenon of "financial conglomeration" is rather new, the regulators do not possess a great deal of objective, scientific reference bases on which to construct the necessary regulations. Moreover the complexities and specific char acteristics of the financial conglomerates do not permit a simple extrapolation of the rules for industrial conglomerates. Even the extrapolation of banking regula tions to insurance groups and vice versa poses a lot of difficult questions. These observations lie at the origin of the research carried out at the Erasmus Finance and Insurance Centre (EPIC at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam), in collaboration with the Impulse Centre for Financial Services and Insurance (ALEA at the Vlerick School of Management of the University of Ghent). To confront the research results with the expertise of the business world and the supervisory authorities a workshop was organised in Rotterdam (1994). This publication is partly based on these research results and the workshop discussions. Three main blocs can be distinguished: the definition of financial conglomerates; the potential risks and the regulatory aspects; the strategic issues.

The Research Handbook on Fiduciary Law offers specially commissioned chapters written by leading scholars and covers a wide range of important topics in fiduciary law. Topical contributions discuss: various fiduciary relationships; the duty of loyalty and other fiduciary obligations; fiduciary remedies; the role of equity; the role of trust; international and comparative perspectives; and public fiduciary law. This Research Handbook will be of interest to readers concerned with both theory and practice, as it incorporates significant new insights and developments in the field.

This work offers a comprehensive examination of the development and structure of the provisions for the control of international financial markets. It explores the background to the major financial crises of the late 20th-century and the nature of the global response.

This book arises out of the second Anglo-German Law Conference in Oxford,held under the auspices of the Oxford Law Faculty and with the support of two leading law firms. The law regarding takeovers has recently taken on a new dimension in Europe, and nowhere more so than in England and Germany. These two jurisdictions have had to consider a number of issues, including the ramifications of the Vodafone/Mannesmann takeover, the proposed Takeover Act in Germany, and the impact of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 in England. This collection examines the law regarding takeovers in England and Germany, taking account of these new developments, among others. It also deals specifically with the issues arising from cross-border mergers between the two jurisdictions. This collection will be indispensable to practising lawyers and in-house counsel whose practice touches on Anglo-German business affairs. It will also be of real interest to legal academics in this field.

A pioneering reference essential in any financial library, the Encyclopedia of Alternative Investments is the most authoritative source on alternative investments for students, researchers, and practitioners in this area. Containing 545 entries, the encyclopedia focuses on hedge funds, managed futures, commodities, and venture capital. It features

It is a sine qua non of legal practice that lawyers should not allow themselves to act for two clients whose interests may,potentially, conflict. However, this principle is being placed under increasing pressure, the main reasons for this being increased demand for specialist legal services, the globalisation of commerce, a dramatic growth in the size of leading law firms, and significantly greater mobility within the legal profession. As a result, there is a growing trend, especially within the commercial legal environment, for solicitors to face conflicts of interest which have no easy solution. Increasingly, conflicts are being 'managed', rather than avoided altogether. This is a field within which the Law Society's own rules are flouted on a daily basis, and in which these rules appear increasingly at odds with the common law. Based on extensive interviews with lawyers and their clients, this book provides the first thorough consideration of how conflicts of interest are handled within law firms. It will be essential reading to all those who have an interest in professional legal ethics, including law students, legal scholars, practitioners, and regulators.

Conflicts of interest arise naturally in all walks of life, particularly in business life. As general and indeed inevitable phenomena, conflicts of interest should not be prohibited but properly managed. This book presents indepth analysis of such management in three areas of corporate governance where the conflict-of-interest problems are particularly acute: executive compensation, financial analysis, and asset management. ""Conflicts of Interest"" presents the results of a two-year-long research project bringing together academics and practitioners in both law and finance from Europe and the.

Market necessity for large concentrations of capital and the growing number of legal obligations placed upon those who handle other people's money have made conflict of interest and duty issues increasingly important in recent years