Lessons Not Learned: 10 Steps to Stable Financial Markets

1. Have private, independent rating agencies.
2. Provide some government safety net but not so much that banks are not held accountable (""Too Big to Fail"")
3. Allow very little government ownership and control of national financial assets.
4. Allow banks to reduce the volatility of returns by offering a wide-range of services.
5. Require financial market players to register and be authorized.
6. Provide information, including setting standards, to enhance market transparency.
7. Routinely examine financial institutions to ensure that the regulatory code is obeyed.
8. Enforce the code and discipline transgressors.
9. Develop policies that keep the regulatory code up to date.
10. Encourage the creation of specialized financial institutions.

For each step the reader will find: the legislative and regulatory background on the existing rules; a review of academic research on the theory behind each step; and the facts and data connecting each step to the financial crisis of 2008.

Dr. Trimbath authored, edited and contributed chapters to five books, including Mergers and Efficiency (2002), Beyond Junk Bonds (2003), and Methodological Issues in Accounting Research (2006). Her media credits include appearances on national television and radio programs (CNBC's Power Lunch and NPR's Marketplace) and the Bloomberg report Phantom Shares. Dr. Trimbath's articles appear in the national publications US Banker, The International Economy, and The American Enterprise in addition to academic, peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Trimbath is a contributing editor at NewGeography.com.