The Securities Industry Association, in conjunction with the Australian Financial Markets Association, the International Capital Market Association and the Investment Dealers Association of Canada, called on the WTO to removal of specific barriers to market access and other measures that discriminate against foreign suppliers in financial services.
After meetings in Hong Kong in December, the groups developed a collective request on financial services. The document includes a set of requests that will be submitted to individual countries.
The group said it welcomes the important progress made in the Doha Round since the conclusion of the Hong Kong Ministerial. Specifically, it said it is pleased that the “plurilateral” request process has resulted in requests in a number of key areas that will enhance the bilateral request/offer process. It is particularly appreciative of the efforts undertaken by WTO Members to develop a collective request for the financial services sector, the group said.
In this regard, the associations urge WTO members, consistent with sound domestic regulatory practice, to make improvements in their market access and national treatment commitments with respect to four capital markets related services – trading, underwriting, asset management, and financial advisory services.
The industry’s key goals are as follows:
1) Permit provision of cross-border services to sophisticated investors without the obligation to establish a local presence and without local authorization.
2) Enable consumers to travel outside their territories to obtain capital markets-related services.
3) Allow foreign service suppliers to establish and operate enterprises free from quantitative restrictions, economic needs tests, restrictions on corporate form, limits on foreign ownership, and measures that discriminate based on nationality.
4) Require members to: (i) propose regulations in draft form and provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on such draft regulations, where practicable; (ii) make publicly available the requirements that suppliers must meet in order to supply a service; and (iii) enforce laws and regulations according to fair and transparent criteria.
The associations seek an outcome to the services negotiations that reflects these objectives. We are ready to work vigorously with WTO Members in support of an outcome that benefits consumers and investors of financial products and services, while promoting economic development and growth, and job creation.