PACIFIC BASIN ECONOMIC COUNCIL
MAIN PAGE | EVENTS & PROGRAMS | 1999 | FINANCIAL SERVICES

Regional Reform in Financial Services: Building a Better System Thursday, May 20, 1999 Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre Hong Kong, China   Mr. John Strickland, Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (Ret.), Mr. Dean O'Hare, The Chubb Corporation, and Mr. Roberto De Ocampo, former Philippine Secretary of Finance, open the symposium. Dr. Sung-Hee Jwa, President of the Korean Economic Research Institute, discusses financial services regulatory reform in the Pacific Rim. The Honorable Roberto De Ocampo, Secretary of Finance (Former), The Republic of The Philippines, Senior Advisor, SGV & Co., discusses oversight of international financial markets. On May 20, 1999, The Pacific Basin Economic Council (PBEC) Working Committee on Services sponsored a symposium entitled "Regional Reform in Financial Services: Building a Better System." Convened in the Hong Kong Convention Centre the day after PBEC's 1999 International General Meeting, the symposium brought together top business executives and senior public officials to review and discuss the key challenges in strengthening the financial services industry in the Pacific Rim through regulatory reforms and institutionalization. Issues explored at the conference include the role of the private sector and multilateral institutions, such as APEC, in supporting governments as they develop and implement complicated regulatory reform, the challenge of increasing international oversight of financial markets and capital flows without creating systems that restrict commerce, and what an economy needs to build a modern, competitive financial services sector. The symposium was timely and informative. Governments in the Pacific Rim are now faced with the urgent need to implement regulatory reforms that promote transparency, establish structures for prudent financial market supervision, and allow for increased competition. These steps to rebuild the financial sector in economies affected by the Asian crisis are necessary to restoring confidence and creating an environment conducive to private investment and capital flows. With WTO GATS negotiations on the horizon, changes taking place today are certain to affect the scope and content of future discussions and future agreements. The PBEC Working Committee on Services was honored to have the Honorable Roberto De Ocampo, Former Secretary of Finance of the Republic of the Philippines, deliver the opening address on the Challenges and Benefits of Financial Services Regulatory Reform. Other featured speakers included Mr. Dean O'Hare, Chairman of the PBEC Working Committee on Services and Chairman and CEO of The Chubb Corporation, Mr. Victor Chu, Chairman of the Far Eastern Investment Group, Dr. Sung-Hee Jwa, President of the Korean Economic Research Institute, and Mr. Milton Kim, Chairman and CEO of Good Morning Securities Company, Ltd. In closing the symposium, Dean O'Hare emphasized there is still much to do in the coming months to promote the strengthening of pro-competitive regulatory reform in the region. The PBEC Mid-term Meeting in Auckland in September 1999 and the World Services Congress (WSC) in Atlanta in November are opportunities for the private sector to formulate an approach to these issues in the lead-up for the WTO Ministerial and beyond. Contact: Tim Jobe PBEC United States Member Committee E-Mail: tjobe@pbecus.org