The Governance of Financial Regulation: Reform Lessons from the Recent Crisis

Ross Levine* July 2010 Abstract: There was a systemic failure of financial regulation: Senior policymakers repeatedly enacted and implemented policies that destabilized the global financial system. They maintained these policies even as they learned of the consequences of their policies during the decade before the crisis. The crisis does not primarily reflect an absence of regulatory power, unclear lines of regulatory authority, capital account imbalances, or a lack of information by regulators. Rather, it represents the unwillingness of the policy apparatus to adapt to a dynamic, innovating financial system. I propose a new institution to mprove the design, implementation, and modification of financial regulations. i