I want to spend the rest of my time today outlining these and other challenges facing the funds management industry. Challenges One of the most important challenges raised by a disclosure-based regime is that it places a significant premium on financial literacy.
The current, bearish climate in equity markets appears to be delaying further integration through the creation of integrated networks which can facilitate cross-border trading. The introduction of the euro is also providing new impetus to competition between financial institutions. Wholesale banking markets have been integrated for some time now, but retail markets remain fragmented.