Massimiliano Caruso
Published: 2023-09-11
Total Pages: 10
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This book is an attempt to provide a systematic, comprehensive, and in-depth examination of the theories, policies, and practicalities of securities and capital markets regulation. It analyzes the regulation of the process of raising capital in public offerings and private placements of securities, which is governed primarily by the Securities Act of 1933, and the regulation of trading and trading venues, which is governed by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. It also focuses on market manipulation and insider trading as well as on issues of market structure. As other books that I wrote, it is designed to be neutral, current, functional, concise and clear. I believe this book will challenge your preconceptions, broaden your horizons, and leave you with a greater appreciation of the complexity of the subject, for, among others, the following reasons: (i) Rather than advocating for one particular viewpoint, after carefully researching and analyzing a wide range of sources, including the surrounding context of the most important cases, I have taken a neutral approach to ensure that the information presented is unbiased and trustworthy, making it an ideal starting point for anyone looking to gain a deeper understanding of the most disputed theories and views on the securities and capital markets regulation. (ii) The rise of crypto-assets offerings and decentralized finance, high-frequency trading, dark pools, and new sophisticated typologies of market manipulation and insider trading has brought new complexities and dramatic transformations, raises questions about market fairness, transparency, and accountability, and threatens to undermine the very foundations of securities and capital markets regulations. Crypto-assets and offerings of crypto-assets, in particular, have challenged and breathed new life into the importance of the Howey and Reves tests in assessing the nature of security (or non-security) of instruments, contracts, transactions and schemes. (iii) This book considers the economic principles that underpin the functioning of the capital market, including market efficiency, supply and demand dynamics, and pricing mechanisms, and in so doing allows a deeper understanding of the critical issues shaping the modern capital markets. It is in fact, to some extent, a mixture of law, public policy, and economics.