Developing regional financial markets – the case of East Asia

"The paper explores the extent and benefits of financial integration in East Asia. It presents evidence that the extent of financial integration in East Asia is less extensive than the aggregate data suggests. The paper then addresses why some countries are integrated more than others and discusses the obstacles to regional financial integration. The paper points out that East Asia’s growth strategy has shaped bank centric financial systems. An important thesis presented in the paper is that reliance on bank-based intermediation has hindered financial integration. The prospects for regional financial integration would be improved greatly if governments would step back from the tradition of massive government involvement and allow market forces to play a greater role. The paper finally explores what can be done to improve the process of regional financial integration. A simple first step will be to harmonise the regulatory framework for non bank financial institutions." (author's abstract