Does the GFC as a change agent of financial regulatory models and approaches in Europe provide lessons for Asia?

In Europe and Asia, there are a number of over-arching national financial regulatory models and sit under regulatory approaches. Model variants are rooted in national legal structure, while approaches are the “choice” of the national regulatory authority and sometimes inter-mixed. Options sit along a continuum from hard to soft. Post-global financial crisis (GFC), which has acted as a traumatic change agent in Europe, both models and approaches are in flux. A shift to a regulator-led, targeted risk-based approach, grounded upon rules and/or principles, has occurred. The government has been obliged to assume a deeper role, thus shifting model preference. Supra-national, regional, bilateral and ad hoc or even bespoke vehicles have emerged. No institutionalised global regulatory structure yet exists, although there is growing collaboration among international bodies. Macro-prudential policies geared to system-wide risks related to the economic cycle, market structures and to individual institutions have gained international prominence. Due to the globalised effects of the GFC and its aftermath in Europe, what are the lessons for Asia? Copyright Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014