Ethics in Finance and Financial Markets

Daniel Mminele: Ethics in finance and financial markets
Address by Mr Daniel Mminele, Deputy Governor of the South African Reserve Bank, to the South African Chapter of ACI – The Financial Markets Association, Johannesburg, 28 October 2014. * Introduction Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Thank you to ACI and Standard Bank for the honour and privilege to address you tonight, for creating an opportunity for us to exchange views, and for ACI members to cultivate their networks of contacts in the industry. As the ACI will be celebrating its sixtieth anniversary next year, it would only be proper to recall some of its important contributions to building a culture of professionalism and best practice in financial markets, especially the foreign exchange market. As you know, the ACI has over the years taken a leading role in not only bringing finance professionals together to seek ways of addressing the more pressing issues of the day, but also in enhancing the professionalism of its members, assisting in building-up of competence via its training programmes and examinations, and quite importantly, striving for high standards of ethical conduct in the industry. And it is on this latter point that I would like to share some thoughts and impressions today. Ethics in finance and financial markets has perhaps never been as relevant as it is today, and for that reason, it may not be so much of a surprise that the International Monetary Fund, at its conference on the future of finance during the Annual Meetings earlier this month, scheduled as its first session a two-hour panel discussion on the subject of Ethics and Finance. The importance of ethics for a sound financial environment I do not need to highlight to an audience such as this one the importance of ethical behaviour in financial markets, not just from a moral point of view, but equally from a point of view of economic efficiency. In an industry where the conclusion and enforcement of contracts is based on trust –...