International Financial Law
Introduction

Updated: July 18, 2019 (Bibliography).
International Financial Law is a framework of rules, standards and practices that govern international financial markets and transactions. The objective of this framework is to create international financial stability. This stability has to be created in an environment of national jurisdictions, each pursuing their own national interest and governance standards, and is constantly threatened by the consequences of increasing globalization, technological development and financial innovation.
This Research Guide provides a starting point for research on the International Financial Law. It contains open access publications and legal materials available in the Peace Palace Library, both in print and electronic format. Books, articles, bibliographies, periodicals, serial publications and documents of interest are presented in the Selective Bibliography section including links to the PPL Catalogue when available. Special attention is given to our subscriptions on databases, e-journals, e-books and other electronic resources. Finally, this Research Guide features links to relevant websites and other online resources of particular interest.
Bibliography
Reference works
- Alexander, K. (ed.), Research Handbook on International Financial Regulation, Cheltenham, Elgar, 2012.
- Buckley, R.P., International Financial System: Policy and Regulation, Alphen aan den Rijn, Kluwer Law International, 2008.
- Bamford, C.G., Principles of International Financial Law (2nd ed.), Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2015.
- Conti-Brown, P., and R.M. Lastra (eds.), Research Handbook on Central Banking, Cheltenham, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2018.
- Gleeson, S., Gleeson on the International Regulation of Banking (3rd ed.), Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2018. [ToC]
- Lastra, R.M,International Financial and Monetary Law, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2015.
- Veil, R., European Capital Markets Law (2nd ed.), Portland, OR, Hart Publishing, 2017.
- Wood, P.R., Law and Practice of International Finance, London, Sweet and Maxwell, 2008.
Books
- Barton, U.A., Rethinking Regulation of International Finance: Law, Policy and Institutions, Alphen a/d Rijn, Wolters Kluwer, 2017.
- Boccuzzi, G., The European Banking Union: Supervision and Resolution, Basingstoke, Hampshire, Palgrave Macmillan, 2016.
- Brummer, C., Soft Law and the Global Financial System: Rule Making in the 21st Century (2nd. ed.), New York, NY, Cambridge University Press, 2015.
- Buckley, R.P., From Crisis to Crisis: the Global Financial System and Regulating Failure, Alphen aan den Rijn, Kluwer International, 2011.
- De Pascalis, F., Credit Ratings and Market Over-Reliance: An International Legal Analysis, Leiden, Brill Nijhoff, 2017. [e-book]
- Desierto, D.A., Public Policy in International Economic Law: the ICESCR in Trade, Finance and Investment, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2015.
- Ferran, E. (ed.), The Regulatory Aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2012.
- Fox, D., and W. Ernst (eds.), Money in the Western Legal Tradition: Middle Ages to Bretton Woods, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016.
- Geeroms, H. (et al.), The European Union and the Euro: How to Deal with a Currency Built on Dreams, Cambridge, Intersentia, 2014.
- Gleeson, S, and R. Guynn, Bank Resolution and Crisis Management: Law and Practice, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016.
- Grant, W., The Consequences of the Global Financial Crisis: the rhetoric of reform and regulation, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2012.
- Jackson, J.H., T. Cottier and R.M. Lastra (eds.), International Law in Financial Regulation and Monetary Affairs, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2012.
- Momani, B., and M.R. Hibben, What's Wrong with the IMF and how to Fix it, Cambridge, UK, Polity, 2018.
- Newman, A.L., and E. Posner, Voluntary Disruptions: International Soft Law, Finance, and Power, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2018. [e-book]
- Paterson, S., and R. Zakrzewski (eds.), McKnight, Paterson, and Zakrzewski on the Law of International Finance (2nd ed.), Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2017.
- Porter, T., Transnational Financial Regulation after the Crisis, London, New York, Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group, 2014.
- Schillig, M, Resolution and Insolvency of Banks and Financial Institutions, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016.
- Sciso, E., Accountability, Transparency and Democracy in the Functioning of Bretton Woods Institutions, Cham, Springer, 2017. [e-book]
- Randall Henning, C., Tangled Governance: International Regime Complexity, the Troika, and the Euro Crisis, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2017. [e-book]
- Tams, C.J. (et al.) (eds.), International Investment Law and the Global Financial Architecture, Cheltenham, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2017.
- Vasudev, P.M., and S. Watson (eds.), Global Capital Markets: A Survey of Legal and Regulatory Trends, Cheltenham, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2017.
- Weiss, F., and A.J. Kammel, The Changing Landscape of Global Financial Governance and the Role of Soft Law, Leiden, Brill Nijhoff, 2015.
- Wymeersch, E., K.J. Hopt and G. Ferrarini (eds.), Financial Regulation and Supervision: a Post-Crisis Analysis, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2012.
- Zimmermann, C.D., A Contemporary Concept of Monetary Sovereignty, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2013.
Articles
- Avi-Yonah, R.S. and Xu, H., “A Global Treaty Override? The New OECD Multilateral Tax Instrument and Its Limits”, University of Michigan Law School (March 17, 2017). [PDF]
- Azam, R., “Ruling the World: Generating International Tax Norms in the Era of Globalization and BEPS”, Suffolk University Law Review, 50 (2017), No. 4. [PDF]
- Barsan, I.M., “Legal Challenges of Initial Coin Offerings (ICP), Revue Trimestrielle de Droit Financier (RTDF), n° 3, 2017, No. 3, pp. 54-65. [PDF]
- Bianco, G., “How Neutral is the Law of Sovereign Debt Restructuring?”, European Society of International Law (ESIL) 2017, 13th Annual Conference & Research Forum (September 29, 2017. [PDF]
- Bradlow, D.D., “A Human Rights Based Approach to International Financial Regulatory Standards”, SouthViews, 171 (Oct. 2018). [PDF]
- Brummer, C., "How International Financial Law Works (and How It Doesn't)", Georgetown Law Journal, 99 (2010-11) pp. 257-327. [PDF]
- Buchheit, L.C., and G.M. Gulati, “Sovereign Debt Restructuring and U.S. Executive Power" (September 10, 2018), Capital Markets Law Journal, Forthcoming. [PDF]
- Chadwick, A., “Regulating Excessive Speculation: Commodity Derivatives and the Global Food Crisis”, International and Comparative Law Quarterly, 66 (2017), No.3, pp. 625-655. (e-article)
- Choi, S.J., (et al.), “Political Risk and Sovereign Debt Contracts”, Univ. of Chicago Institute for Law & Economics Olin Research Paper No. 583; U of Chicago, Public Law Working Paper No. 370, 2014. [PDF]
- Christians, A., and van Apeldoorn, L., “Taxing Income Where Value Is Created”, Florida Tax Review, 2018. [PDF]
- Feibelman, A., “Law in the Global Order: The IMF and Financial Regulation”, New York University Journal of International Law and Politics, 49 (2017), No. 3, pp. 687-745.
- Gortsos, C., “Legal Aspects of the European Central Bank (ECB) - The ECB within the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) and the European System of Financial Supervision (ESFS)”, April 2018. [PDF]
- Gortsos, C., “The Evolution of European (EU) Banking Law under the Influence of (Public) International Banking Law: A Comprehensive Overview” (January 31, 2019), National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. [PDF] May, 2019
- Jabotinsky, H.Y., and B. Yarkoni, “The Network Effects of International Financial Regulation”, Hebrew University of Jerusalem Legal Research Paper No. 19-04, 2018. [PDF]
- Kubota, T., “Financial Stability Concern of the Extraterritorial Impacts Caused by the Recent US Financial Sanctions on Foreign Banks”, Japanese Yearbook of International Law, 59 (2017), pp.229-250.
- Latino, A., “The New Development Bank: Another BRICS in the Wall?”, in E. Scisco (ed.), Accountability, Transparency and Democracy in the Functioning of Bretton Woods Institutions, Cham, Springer, 2017, pp. 47-69.
- Lehmann, M., “Global Rules for a Global Market Place? – The Regulation and Supervision of FinTech Providers” (July 18, 2019), Boston University International Law Journal, 37 (2019); European Banking Institute Working Paper Series 2019, No. 45. [PDF] July, 2019
- Lienau, O., “Law in Hiding: Market Principles in the Global Legal Order”, Hastings Law Journal, 68 (2017), No. 3, pp. 541-606; Cornell Legal Studies Research Paper 18-01. [PDF]
- Lupo-Pasini, F., “Financial Stability in International Law”, Melbourne Journal of International Law, 18 (2017), No. 1, pp. 45-70. [PDF]
- Lupo-Pasini, F., “Financial Disputes in International Courts”, Journal of International Economic Law, 21 (2018), No. 1, pp. 1-30. [e-article]
- Medhora, R.P., “Monetary Unions, Regional Financial Arrangements, and Central Bank Swap Lines: Bypasses to the International Monetary Fund?”, AJIL Unbound, 111 (2017), pp. 241-246.
- Meier, J.-M.A., “Regulatory Integration of International Capital Markets”, London Business School, Department of Finance, 2017. [PDF]
- Oei, Shu-Yi, “The Offshore Tax Enforcement Dragnet”, Emory Law Journal, 67 (2018), Forthcoming; Tulane Public Law Research Paper No. 17-2. [PDF]
- Ortino, M., “The Governance of Global Banking in the Face of Complexity”, Journal of International Economic Law, 22 (2019), No. 2, pp. 177-204. [e-article] July, 2019
- Paech, P., “Introduction: International Financial Law”, London School of Economics - Law Department, 2017. [PDF]
- Ringe, W.-G., “The Irrelevance of Brexit for the European Financial Market”, Oxford Legal Studies Research Paper No 10/2017, 2017. [PDF]
- Shaffer, G., and M. Waibel, “The Rise and Fall of Trade and Monetary Legal Orders: From the Interwar Period to Today’s Global Imbalances”, in G. Mallard and J. Sgard (eds.), Contractual Knowledge: One Hundred Years of Legal Experimentation, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2016, pp. 289-323. [PDF]
- Stefano, C. de, “Reforming the Governance of International Financial Law in the Era of Post-Globalization”, Journal of International Economic Law, 20 (2017), No. 3, pp. 509-533. [e-article]
- Tsang, Chen-Yun, “Balancing the Governance of the Modern Financial Ecosystem: A New Governance Perspective and Implications for Market Discipline”, Houston Journal of International Law, 40 (2017-2018 ), No. 2, pp. 531-612. [e-article]
- Wuerth, I.B., “Immunity from Execution of Central Bank Assets”, in T. Ruys (et al.) (eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Immunities and International Law, Forthcoming, 2018. [PDF]
- Young, K., ”Finance: Risk and Progress”, in T. Hale and D. Held (et al.), Beyond Gridlock, Cambridge, Polity Press, 2017, pp. 28-47.
Documents
Periodicals, serial publications
- Butterworths Journal of International Banking and Financial Law
- International Financial Law Review
- Journal of International Banking Law and Regulation
- Journal of International Economic Law
Bibliographies
New titles
Librarian's choice
Conti-Brown, P., and R.M. Lastra (eds.), Research Handbook on Central Banking, Cheltenham, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2018.
View this title in our discovery serviceThis book focuses on global central banks as institutions and not abstractions, providing historical and practical detail about how central banks work and the challenges they face. The book offers the most interdisciplinary treatment of global central banks published to date by addressing key questions regarding where they come from, how they have changed, and the challenges they face during uncertain times. Divided into two parts, the Research Handbook firstly takes readers on a global tour, covering central banks in the US, Latin America, Europe, Eastern Europe, Japan, China, Africa, and more. In the second part, authors delve into themes of broad application, including transparency, independence, unconventional monetary policy, payment systems, and crisis response. The interdisciplinary mix of contributors include some of the most prominent names in central banking as well as a new generation of scholars who are shaping the conversation about central banks and their role in global politics, economics, and society at large.
Momani, B., and M.R. Hibben, What's Wrong with the IMF and how to Fix it, Cambridge, UK, Polity, 2018.
View this title in our discovery serviceThe IMF stands at a crossroad. Derided as increasingly irrelevant in the first decade of the new millennium, the Fund has had its power and prestige restored by the fallout from the 2008 global financial crisis. But will the resurgent IMF assert a more just and sustainable macroeconomic model and provide a voice for poor and marginalized people around the globe? Or will enduring weaknesses within the IMF mean it fails to address these issues? In this book, the authors dissect the variables and institutional dynamics at play in IMF governance, surveillance, lending, and capacity development to expose the fundamental barriers to change. Identifying four areas that could fix the IMF, they show how these genuine and workable solutions can give the IMF the effectiveness and legitimacy it needs to positively shape twenty-first-century global governance and push back against volatile and regressive forces in the international political economy.
Goldmann, M., and S. Steininger (eds.), Democracy and Financial Order: Legal Perspectives, Berlin, Springer, 2018. [e-book]
View this title in our discovery serviceThis book discusses the relationship between democracy and the financial order from various legal perspectives. Each of the nine contributions adopts a unique perspective on the legal and political challenges brought to the fore by the Global Financial Crisis. This crisis and the ensuing sovereign debt crisis in Europe are only the latest in a long series of financial crises around the globe in recent decades. By their very existence, but also as a result of the political turmoil they have created, these financial crises testify to the well-known tensions between democracy and a market-based economic and financial order. However, what is missing in this debate is an analysis of the role of law for reconciling democracy with a market-based financial order. To fill this lacuna, the book focuses on the controversy surrounding the concept of law, thereby adding another variable to the debate on the relation between democracy and capitalism. Each chapter addresses the concept of law from a particular theoretical angle, be it a full-grown legal theory or an approach in political economy that has a particular view of the law.
Newman, A.L., and E. Posner, Voluntary Disruptions : International Soft Law, Finance, and Power, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2018. [e-book]
View this title in our discovery serviceThis book argues that international soft law is deeply political, shaping the winners and losers of globalization. Some observers focus on soft law's potential to solve problems and coordinate market participants. Voluntary Disruptions widens the discussion, shifting attention to the ways soft law provides new political resources to some groups while not to others and alters the sites of contestation and the actors who participate in them. Highlighting two mechanisms - legitimacy claims and arena expansion - the book explains how soft law, typically viewed as limited by its voluntary nature, disrupts and transforms the politics of economic governance.
Database
Blogs
Vultures Swooping on Debt Carcasses
Vulture funds are an aspect of sovereign debt, which has become an increasingly important topic in the aftermath of the current crisis. In this third blog in a series of Peace Palace Library Blogs about the Global Financial Crisis, I will highlight the ‘problem’ of vulture funds. What happened with vulture funds in the Argentina case and will it set a precedent for the rest of the (developing) world? Why do these vultures like debt carcasses so much?
Read moreTax Havens: Sunny Islands?
‘A tropical, sunny island’, like Cayman, is the first thing that pops on our minds when we think of tax havens. Tropical islands are well-known for secrecy jurisdictions. But are they the only players in the so called ‘secrecy game’? And do tax havens influence the current global financial crisis? Are they worth a holiday?
Read moreCyprus Crisis: Troika go Home?
Lately everyone is turning their eyes to Cyprus. The small Mediterranean country is the latest victim of Europe’s debt crisis, in which several members of the Eurozone were brought to the brink of bankruptcy by a combination of highly indebted banks and unsustainable sovereign debts. Last month, a troika of the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund agreed on a rescue plan in respond to Cyprus’ need for a bailout.
Read moreP.R.I.M.E. Finance : Open for business!
On 16 January 2012, the P.R.I.M.E. Finance Foundation has started its activities with an opening conference followed by seminars on Dispute Resolution in the Financial Markets in the Peace Palace in The Hague. The Foundation oversees the activities of its Panel of Recognized International Market Experts in Finance (P.R.I.M.E. Finance), chosen for their relevant experience in financial market practice or […]
Read moreGermany and Liechtenstein: Tax Evasion Dispute!
The German Federal Intelligence Service paid an informant some 5 million euros for a list with the names of account holders from a Liechtenstein Bank. German investigations thereupon revealed a massive tax evasion scandal! Hundreds of people in Germany are suspected of having stashed away millions of euro in Liechtenstein to escape taxes in Germany.
The tiny Alpine principality of Liechtenstein, a major European tax haven, accused the Germans of attacking its sovereignty and of breaking the law by buying secret (stolen) data and sending in spies to uncover the scandal.
The OECD in Paris criticized the Liechtenstein practice of allowing foreigners to open trusts there anonymously by registering them through a local attorney or trustee.
The policy of “excessive” secrecy of banks in Liechtenstein might have attracted many rich people and more countries are interested in the data bought by the German intelligence agents.Interestingly a lot of literature on Liechtenstein is about financial matters, trusts, anti-money laundering issues and the transparency of its fiscal regime. Read more on Liechtensteinand its special place in Europe.
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