Market transparency should be a priority
Nick Sherry
The United Kingdom’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) and London Stock Exchange (LSE) have commended the Federal Government on its efforts to manage market volatility, but agree that more needs to be done to boost market transparency.
FSA chairman Sir Callum McCarthy and LSE chairman Chris Gibson-Smith met with the Australian Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law, Nick Sherry, late last week to discuss existing and potential regulatory responses to ongoing issues in global financial and securities markets.
Sherry said that although McCarthy and Gibson-Smith agreed the Australian regulatory model is “robust”, improving market transparency, in relation to covered short selling for example, should be made a priority.
“US sub-prime issues, the impact of some types of short selling, views on stock lending and the actions of the central banks on market liquidity were all on the agenda.”
Insider trading, and UK and Australian efforts to eliminate it, were also discussed.
“I reinforced to the FSA and LSE that Australia is committed to working with the UK and also the US on stamping out insider trading. In the coming months, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and Treasury will submit detailed work to me as Corporate Law Minister on insider trading,” Sherry said.
“The Rudd Government is not going to tolerate market manipulation of any kind.”
The UK’s plans to improve the transparency of equity derivatives trading, the impact of multiple stock exchanges on market supervision, financial product disclosure standards and the Federal Government’s forthcoming Green Paper on Financial Services Reform were also on the agenda.
“I also discussed the ASIC restructure and the goal of bringing the regulator closer to the market,” Sherry said.
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