John Linarelli - Böcker

Poverty, inequality, and dispossession accompany economic globalization. Bringing together three international law scholars, this book addresses how international law and its regimes of trade, investment, finance, as well as human rights, are implicated in the construction of misery, and how international law is producing, reproducing, and embedding injustice and narrowing the alternatives that might really serve humanity.Adopting a pluralist approach, the authors confront the unconscionable dimensions of the global economic order, the false premises upon which they are built, and the role of international law in constituting and sustaining them. Combining insights from radical critiques, political philosophy, history, and critical development studies, the book explores the pathologies at work in international economic law today. International law must abide by the requirements of justice if it is to make a call for compliance with it, but this work claims it drastically fails do so. In a legal order structured around neoliberal ideologies rather than principles of justice, every state can and does grab what it can in the economic sphere on the basis of power and interest, legally so and under colour of law. This book examines how international law on trade and foreign investment and the law and norms on global finance has been shaped to benefit the rich and powerful at the expense of others. It studies how a set of principles, in the form of a New International Economic Order (NIEO), that could have laid the groundwork for a more inclusive international law without even disrupting its market-orientation, were nonetheless undermined. As for international human rights law, it is under the terms of global capitalism that human rights operate. Before we can understand how human rights can create more just societies, we must first expose the ways in which they reflect capitalist society and how they assist in reproducing the underlying terms of immiseration that will continue to create the need for human rights protection.This book challenges conventional justifications of economic globalization and eschews false choices. It is not about whether one is "for" or "against" international trade, foreign investment, or global finance. The issue is to resolve how, if we are to engage in trade, investment, and finance, we do so in a manner that is accountable to persons whose lives are affected by international law. The deployment of human rights for their part must be considered against the ubiquity of neoliberal globalization under law, and not merely as a discrete, benevolent response to it.

Since the beginnings of the GATT and the Bretton Woods institutions, and on to the creation of the WTO, states have continued to develop institutions and legal infrastructure to promote global interdependence. International lawyers are experts in understanding how these institutions operate in practice, but they tend to uncritically accept comparative advantage as the principal normative criterion to justify these institutions. In contrast, moral and political philosophers have developed accounts of global justice, but these accounts have had relatively little influence on international legal scholarship and on institutional design. This volume reflects the results of a symposium held at Tillar House, the American Society of International Law headquarters in Washington, DC, in November 2008, which brought together philosophers, legal scholars and economists to discuss the problems of understanding international economic law from the standpoints of rights and justice, in particular from the standpoint of distributive justice.

Since the beginnings of the GATT and the Bretton Woods institutions, and on to the creation of the WTO, states have continued to develop institutions and legal infrastructure to promote global interdependence. International lawyers are experts in understanding how these institutions operate in practice, but they tend to uncritically accept comparative advantage as the principal normative criterion to justify these institutions. In contrast, moral and political philosophers have developed accounts of global justice, but these accounts have had relatively little influence on international legal scholarship and on institutional design. This volume reflects the results of a symposium held at Tillar House, the American Society of International Law headquarters in Washington, DC, in November 2008, which brought together philosophers, legal scholars and economists to discuss the problems of understanding international economic law from the standpoints of rights and justice, in particular from the standpoint of distributive justice.

The reform of commercial law through harmonisation, unification, codification and other means remains one of the most important projects in developing the institutional architecture for the global economy. This edited collection engages with the challenges and contributes to a greater understanding of the problems faced by states, international organisations, and private sector actors in this ongoing reform project for commercial law. The volume takes stock of the project to date and looks towards a restructuring of the agenda to deal with new challenges. The primary aim of the collection is to understand the future of commercial law reform in a way that offers ideas and strategies for innovation as well as in methodologies for project selection and evaluation. In so doing, the collection informs the debate on the global reform of commercial law and will be of interest not only to academics, but also to those involved in the reform of commercial law around the world. The volume collects papers presented at the UK Society of Legal Scholars Annual Seminar 2017.

This book discusses the role of private law as an instrument to produce financial and social inclusion in a context characterised by the redefinition of the role of the State and by the financialisation of society. By depicting the political and economic developments behind the popular idea of financial inclusion, the book deconstructs that notion, illustrating the existence and interaction of different discourses surrounding it. The book further traces the evolution of inclusion, specifically in the European context, and thus moves on to analyse the legal rules which are most relevant for the purposes of bringing about the financialisation of the citizen. Hence, the author focuses more on four highly topical areas: access to a bank account, access to credit, over indebtedness, and financial education. Adopting a critical and inter-disciplinary approach, The Financialisation of the Citizen takes the reader through a top-down journey starting from the political economy of financialisation, to the law and policy of the European Union, and finally to more specific private law rules.

In the wake of the global financial crisis, investors have suffered significant losses as a result of breaches of conduct of business rules in the distribution of financial instruments. MiFID II introduced new disclosure, distribution and product governance rules to strengthen the protection of investors but, like MiFID I, did not harmonise the civil law consequences for their violation.This book asks whether, in spite of the silence of the EU legislators, the MiFID II conduct of business rules may produce civil law effects, enabling investors to enforce them against investment firms before national courts and alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms.Building on the case law of the CJEU, the book shows the conditions under which the breach of MiFID II conduct of business rules should give rise to a private law remedy, and what remedies would be compatible with EU law.MiFID II and Private Law is an essential contribution to academic research in EU and financial law and will be a key text for policy-makers and legal practitioners working in the field of investor protection regulation and mis-selling litigation.

The spate of mis-selling episodes that have plagued the financial services industries in recent years has caused widespread detriment to investors. Notwithstanding numerous regulatory interventions, curtailing the incidence of poor investment advice remains a challenge for regulators, particularly because these measures are taken in a ‘fire-fighting’ fashion without adequate consideration being given to the root causes of mis-selling.Against this backdrop, this book focuses on the sale of complex investment products to corporate retail investors by drawing upon the widespread mis-selling of interest rate hedging products (IRHP) in the UK and beyond. It brings to the fore the relatively understudied field concerning the different degrees of investor protection mechanisms applicable to individual retail investors – as opposed to corporate retail investors – by taking stock of past regulatory reforms and forthcoming regulatory initiatives as well as, more importantly, the conclusions reached by the judiciary in IRHP mis-selling claims. The conclusions are particularly interesting: corporate retail investors are in a vulnerable position when compared to individual retail investors. The former are exposed to a heightened risk of mis-selling, meaning that regulatory intervention should be targeted accordingly. The recommendations made as a result of these findings are further supported by insights emerging from behavioural law and economic theories.This book is aimed at researchers, lawyers and students with an interest in the financial regulation field who are keen to explore potential regulatory reforms to the investment services regime that address the root causes of mis-selling, and restore a level playing field amongst all retail investors.

This book focuses on the building of a crypto economy as an alternative economic space and discusses how the crypto economy should be governed. The crypto economy is examined in its productive and financialised aspects, in order to distil the need for governance in this economic space.The author argues that it is imperative for regulatory policy to develop the economic governance of the blockchain-based business model, in order to facilitate economic mobilisation and wealth creation. The regulatory framework should cater for a new and unique enterprise organisational law and the fund-raising and financing of blockchain-based development projects. Such a regulatory framework is crucially enabling in nature and consistent with the tenets of regulatory capitalism. Further, the book acknowledges the rising importance of private monetary orders in the crypto economy and native payment systems that do not rely on conventional institutions for value transfer. A regulatory blueprint is proposed for governing such monetary orders as 'commons' governance. The rise of Decentralised Finance and other financial innovations in the crypto economy are also discussed, and the book suggests a framework for regulatory consideration in this dynamic landscape in order to meet a balance of public interest objectives and private interests. By setting out a reform agenda in relation to economic and financial governance in the crypto economy, this forward-looking work argues for the extension of ‘regulatory capitalism’ to this perceived ‘wild west’ of an alternative economic space. It advances the message that an innovative regulatory agenda is needed to account for the economically disruptive and technologically transformative developments brought about by the crypto economy.

This book provides a detailed analysis of two UNCITRAL texts: the Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (MLETR) and the Model Law on the Use and Cross-border Recognition of Identity Management and Trust Services (MLIT). The MLETR is the legal tool that enables the use of trade documents such as bills of lading and promissory notes in electronic form. The book discusses core MLETR provisions such as those on scope of application, functional equivalence, and reliability standards. It illustrates national variations in enactment techniques and substantive content, including in France, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. The MLIT provides the legal framework to manage identity management and trust services, including electronic signatures. The book explains the different approaches to giving legal recognition and effect to identity management and trust services, both domestically and across borders. It discusses the legal framework to accommodate functions and needs of identity management, describes trust services against the background of pre-existing UNCITRAL texts, and takes into account the revised EU eIDAS Regulation. Providing an article-by-article commentary as well as an overview of implementation trends, the book is a fundamental resource for commercial, maritime and banking lawyers, digital economy policymakers, legislative drafters, supply chain management and paperless trade specialists, and for anyone interested in understanding the legal aspects of the transition from documents to data in trade.

This book proposes a new way of thinking about the controversial and complex challenges associated with the regulation of high-cost credit, specifically payday lending. These products have received significant attention in both the media and political arena. The inadequacy of regulatory interventions has created ongoing problems with the provision of high-cost credit, particularly for consumers with lesser bargaining power and who are already financially vulnerable.The book tackles two specific gaps in the existing literature. The first involves inadequate analysis of the relevant philosophical concepts around high-cost credit, which can result in an over-simplification of what are particularly complex issues. The second is a lack of engagement in both the market and lived experience of borrowers, resulting in limited understanding of those who use these financial products.The Future of High-Cost Credit explores the theoretical grounding, policy initiatives and interdisciplinary perspectives associated with high-cost credit, making a novel and insightful contribution to the existing literature. The problems with debt extend far beyond the legal sphere, and the book will therefore be of interest to many other academic disciplines, as well as for those working in public policy and ‘the third sector’.

This book is the first detailed and comprehensive research of the history of the Cape Town Convention and its protocols. It critically engages with the challenges faced by the developers of this treaty, analyses thousands of pages of archived materials and derives important lessons for the development of transnational commercial law globally. The book is an invaluable addition to the existing literature on the Cape Town Convention. It also informs the debate about harmonisation of secured transactions regimes generally, and as such will be of interest to academics, legal practitioners and the judiciary involved in secured transactions law around the world. Practising lawyers will better understand the rationale behind the key provisions of the Cape Town Convention, while the treaty-making lessons will assist governmental officials, representatives of international organisations and legal advisors engaged in harmonisation of commercial law.The text covers all four protocols to the Cape Town Convention, including the MAC Protocol adopted on 22 November 2019 in Pretoria.

This book discusses the role of private law as an instrument to produce financial and social inclusion in a context characterised by the redefinition of the role of the State and by the financialisation of society. By depicting the political and economic developments behind the popular idea of financial inclusion, the book deconstructs that notion, illustrating the existence and interaction of different discourses surrounding it. The book further traces the evolution of inclusion, specifically in the European context, and thus moves on to analyse the legal rules which are most relevant for the purposes of bringing about the financialisation of the citizen. Hence, the author focuses more on four highly topical areas: access to a bank account, access to credit, over indebtedness, and financial education. Adopting a critical and inter-disciplinary approach, The Financialisation of the Citizen takes the reader through a top-down journey starting from the political economy of financialisation, to the law and policy of the European Union, and finally to more specific private law rules.

In the wake of the global financial crisis, investors have suffered significant losses as a result of breaches of conduct of business rules in the distribution of financial instruments. MiFID II introduced new disclosure, distribution and product governance rules to strengthen the protection of investors but, like MiFID I, did not harmonise the civil law consequences for their violation.This book asks whether, in spite of the silence of the EU legislators, the MiFID II conduct of business rules may produce civil law effects, enabling investors to enforce them against investment firms before national courts and alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms.Building on the case law of the CJEU, the book shows the conditions under which the breach of MiFID II conduct of business rules should give rise to a private law remedy, and what remedies would be compatible with EU law.MiFID II and Private Law is an essential contribution to academic research in EU and financial law and will be a key text for policy-makers and legal practitioners working in the field of investor protection regulation and mis-selling litigation.

This book is the first detailed and comprehensive research of the history of the Cape Town Convention and its protocols. It critically engages with the challenges faced by the developers of this treaty, analyses thousands of pages of archived materials and derives important lessons for the development of transnational commercial law globally. The book is an invaluable addition to the existing literature on the Cape Town Convention. It also informs the debate about harmonisation of secured transactions regimes generally, and as such will be of interest to academics, legal practitioners and the judiciary involved in secured transactions law around the world. Practising lawyers will better understand the rationale behind the key provisions of the Cape Town Convention, while the treaty-making lessons will assist governmental officials, representatives of international organisations and legal advisors engaged in harmonisation of commercial law.The text covers all four protocols to the Cape Town Convention, including the MAC Protocol adopted on 22 November 2019 in Pretoria.

This significant and timely book explores a novel market mechanism, Stock Connect, which gives mutual market access to Chinese and international investors, and provides original analyses and fresh insights. This mechanism could become the new normal in future global financial integration.By examining this cross-border scheme from a regulatory perspective via a three-tiered analytical framework (investors, issuers and regulators), this book unearths the profound implications of Stock Connect to local and global financial markets and the legal impediments to its implementation. It covers a broad range of topics in this cross-boundary investment channel, including an overview of four existing connectivity arrangements (Shanghai-Hong Kong, Shenzhen-Hong Kong, Shanghai-London and China-Switzerland), the uniqueness of these connectivity arrangements, investor protection, regulations of connect issuers, regulatory cooperation and enforcement, the impacts on local and global financial markets, the implications for the world market connectivity as well as the challenges and future of Stock Connect.This pioneering study will appeal to a broad range of readers who are interested in the on-going reshaping of international financial systems and China’s emerging influence in the international financial order.

This significant and timely book explores a novel market mechanism, Stock Connect, which gives mutual market access to Chinese and international investors, and provides original analyses and fresh insights. This mechanism could become the new normal in future global financial integration.By examining this cross-border scheme from a regulatory perspective via a three-tiered analytical framework (investors, issuers and regulators), this book unearths the profound implications of Stock Connect to local and global financial markets and the legal impediments to its implementation. It covers a broad range of topics in this cross-boundary investment channel, including an overview of four existing connectivity arrangements (Shanghai-Hong Kong, Shenzhen-Hong Kong, Shanghai-London and China-Switzerland), the uniqueness of these connectivity arrangements, investor protection, regulations of connect issuers, regulatory cooperation and enforcement, the impacts on local and global financial markets, the implications for the world market connectivity as well as the challenges and future of Stock Connect.This pioneering study will appeal to a broad range of readers who are interested in the on-going reshaping of international financial systems and China’s emerging influence in the international financial order.

The spate of mis-selling episodes that have plagued the financial services industries in recent years has caused widespread detriment to investors. Notwithstanding numerous regulatory interventions, curtailing the incidence of poor investment advice remains a challenge for regulators, particularly because these measures are taken in a ‘fire-fighting’ fashion without adequate consideration being given to the root causes of mis-selling.Against this backdrop, this book focuses on the sale of complex investment products to corporate retail investors by drawing upon the widespread mis-selling of interest rate hedging products (IRHP) in the UK and beyond. It brings to the fore the relatively understudied field concerning the different degrees of investor protection mechanisms applicable to individual retail investors – as opposed to corporate retail investors – by taking stock of past regulatory reforms and forthcoming regulatory initiatives as well as, more importantly, the conclusions reached by the judiciary in IRHP mis-selling claims. The conclusions are particularly interesting: corporate retail investors are in a vulnerable position when compared to individual retail investors. The former are exposed to a heightened risk of mis-selling, meaning that regulatory intervention should be targeted accordingly. The recommendations made as a result of these findings are further supported by insights emerging from behavioural law and economic theories.This book is aimed at researchers, lawyers and students with an interest in the financial regulation field who are keen to explore potential regulatory reforms to the investment services regime that address the root causes of mis-selling, and restore a level playing field amongst all retail investors.

This book provides the first comprehensive treatment of creditor priority in European bank insolvency law.Following reform in the wake of the global financial crisis, EU law requires that Member States have in place bank-specific insolvency frameworks. Creditor priority—the order in which different creditors bear losses should a bank fail—differs substantially between bank-specific and general insolvency law. The bank-specific creditor priority framework aims to ensure that banks can enter insolvency proceedings without disrupting financial stability.The book provides a systematic and thorough account of the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive and other EU legislation that governs creditor priority in bank resolution and liquidation proceedings, and their interaction with national law. The framework is analysed from several perspectives, including comparison with creditor priority in English, German and Norwegian general insolvency law. Moreover, the book places the evolution of the framework and its justifications within the broader post-crisis shifts in bank regulation, and critically examines the assumptions that underlie these developments. Finally, the book discusses how this area of law could evolve in the future.

This book provides the first comprehensive treatment of creditor priority in European bank insolvency law.Following reform in the wake of the global financial crisis, EU law requires that Member States have in place bank-specific insolvency frameworks. Creditor priority—the order in which different creditors bear losses should a bank fail—differs substantially between bank-specific and general insolvency law. The bank-specific creditor priority framework aims to ensure that banks can enter insolvency proceedings without disrupting financial stability.The book provides a systematic and thorough account of the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive and other EU legislation that governs creditor priority in bank resolution and liquidation proceedings, and their interaction with national law. The framework is analysed from several perspectives, including comparison with creditor priority in English, German and Norwegian general insolvency law. Moreover, the book places the evolution of the framework and its justifications within the broader post-crisis shifts in bank regulation, and critically examines the assumptions that underlie these developments. Finally, the book discusses how this area of law could evolve in the future.

This book focuses on the building of a crypto economy as an alternative economic space and discusses how the crypto economy should be governed. The crypto economy is examined in its productive and financialised aspects, in order to distil the need for governance in this economic space.The author argues that it is imperative for regulatory policy to develop the economic governance of the blockchain-based business model, in order to facilitate economic mobilisation and wealth creation. The regulatory framework should cater for a new and unique enterprise organisational law and the fund-raising and financing of blockchain-based development projects. Such a regulatory framework is crucially enabling in nature and consistent with the tenets of regulatory capitalism. Further, the book acknowledges the rising importance of private monetary orders in the crypto economy and native payment systems that do not rely on conventional institutions for value transfer. A regulatory blueprint is proposed for governing such monetary orders as 'commons' governance. The rise of Decentralised Finance and other financial innovations in the crypto economy are also discussed, and the book suggests a framework for regulatory consideration in this dynamic landscape in order to meet a balance of public interest objectives and private interests. By setting out a reform agenda in relation to economic and financial governance in the crypto economy, this forward-looking work argues for the extension of ‘regulatory capitalism’ to this perceived ‘wild west’ of an alternative economic space. It advances the message that an innovative regulatory agenda is needed to account for the economically disruptive and technologically transformative developments brought about by the crypto economy.

This book analyses the legal regimes governing bank crisis management in the EU, UK, and US, discussing the different procedures and tools available as well as the regulatory architecture and the authorities involved.Building on a broad working definition of ‘bank crisis management’ and referring to several cases, the book explores the techniques and approaches employed by the authorities to deal with troubled banks on both sides of the Atlantic. The legal analysis distinguishes between procedures and tools aimed at liquidating the bank in crisis vis-à-vis those aimed at restructuring. In this regard, attention is paid to the rules allowing for the use of public money in handling banks in trouble as well as to the role that deposit insurance schemes can play. Considerations on the impact on banks of the current crisis provoked by the COVID-19 pandemic are advanced, primarily focusing on the expected surge of non-performing loans as well as on ways to effectively manage these assets. The book approaches these issues from a comparative law perspective, providing law and economics considerations and focusing on strengths and drawbacks of the rules currently in force. The book advances policy considerations as well as reform proposals aiming at enhancing the legal regimes in force, with particular reference to the Consultation promoted in 2021 by the European Commission on the adoption of a new bank crisis management and deposit insurance framework in the Union.

This book analyses the legal regimes governing bank crisis management in the EU, UK, and US, discussing the different procedures and tools available as well as the regulatory architecture and the authorities involved.Building on a broad working definition of ‘bank crisis management’ and referring to several cases, the book explores the techniques and approaches employed by the authorities to deal with troubled banks on both sides of the Atlantic. The legal analysis distinguishes between procedures and tools aimed at liquidating the bank in crisis vis-à-vis those aimed at restructuring. In this regard, attention is paid to the rules allowing for the use of public money in handling banks in trouble as well as to the role that deposit insurance schemes can play. Considerations on the impact on banks of the current crisis provoked by the COVID-19 pandemic are advanced, primarily focusing on the expected surge of non-performing loans as well as on ways to effectively manage these assets. The book approaches these issues from a comparative law perspective, providing law and economics considerations and focusing on strengths and drawbacks of the rules currently in force. The book advances policy considerations as well as reform proposals aiming at enhancing the legal regimes in force, with particular reference to the Consultation promoted in 2021 by the European Commission on the adoption of a new bank crisis management and deposit insurance framework in the Union.

This book proposes a new way of thinking about the controversial and complex challenges associated with the regulation of high-cost credit, specifically payday lending. These products have received significant attention in both the media and political arena. The inadequacy of regulatory interventions has created ongoing problems with the provision of high-cost credit, particularly for consumers with lesser bargaining power and who are already financially vulnerable.The book tackles two specific gaps in the existing literature. The first involves inadequate analysis of the relevant philosophical concepts around high-cost credit, which can result in an over-simplification of what are particularly complex issues. The second is a lack of engagement in both the market and lived experience of borrowers, resulting in limited understanding of those who use these financial products.The Future of High-Cost Credit explores the theoretical grounding, policy initiatives and interdisciplinary perspectives associated with high-cost credit, making a novel and insightful contribution to the existing literature. The problems with debt extend far beyond the legal sphere, and the book will therefore be of interest to many other academic disciplines, as well as for those working in public policy and ‘the third sector’.

This book critically examines the theoretical foundations and legal framework for macroprudential policy, its tools and governance in the UK, the US, and the EU. It goes deeper into a normative discussion of the legitimacy of macroprudential policy in these jurisdictions, where the mandate for maintaining financial stability has been delegated to independent authorities.The Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2008 reopened debates regarding legitimacy of the independent regulatory state, given its democratic deficit. The response to a perceived legitimacy gap has been to increase political oversight in financial policymaking and regulation. The book posits that the real problem is not a lack of democracy, but rather a lack of social justice. Across the globe, there is growing dissatisfaction with a financial system and regulatory process that appear depersonalised and perpetuate inequalities. Citizens are calling for more socially just systems of governance and the future success of financial policymakers and regulators will hinge on this. Given the marked distributional effects that have been noted in some macroprudential policy tools, the book questions whether macroprudential policy should be solely based on highly rationalised and strongly quantitative reasons.By proposing that macroprudential policymakers should have a social justice mandate alongside their financial stability mandate, as well as legal mechanisms for operationalising the added authority, the book contributes to the growing discourse on the role of social justice in public policy.

This book critically examines the theoretical foundations and legal framework for macroprudential policy, its tools and governance in the UK, the US, and the EU. It goes deeper into a normative discussion of the legitimacy of macroprudential policy in these jurisdictions, where the mandate for maintaining financial stability has been delegated to independent authorities.The Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2008 reopened debates regarding legitimacy of the independent regulatory state, given its democratic deficit. The response to a perceived legitimacy gap has been to increase political oversight in financial policymaking and regulation. The book posits that the real problem is not a lack of democracy, but rather a lack of social justice. Across the globe, there is growing dissatisfaction with a financial system and regulatory process that appear depersonalised and perpetuate inequalities. Citizens are calling for more socially just systems of governance and the future success of financial policymakers and regulators will hinge on this. Given the marked distributional effects that have been noted in some macroprudential policy tools, the book questions whether macroprudential policy should be solely based on highly rationalised and strongly quantitative reasons.By proposing that macroprudential policymakers should have a social justice mandate alongside their financial stability mandate, as well as legal mechanisms for operationalising the added authority, the book contributes to the growing discourse on the role of social justice in public policy.

This book poses the question: do we need a new body of regulations and the constitution of new regulatory agents to face the evolution of money in the Fourth Industrial Revolution?After the Global Financial Crisis and the subsequent introduction of Distributed Ledger Technologies in monetary matters, multiple opinions claim that we are in the middle of a financial revolution that will eliminate the need for central banks and other financial institutions to form bonds of trust on our behalf. In contrast to these arguments, this book argues that we are not witnessing a revolutionary expression, but an evolutionary one that we can trace back to the very origin of money.Accordingly, the book provides academics, regulators and policy makers with a multidisciplinary analysis that includes elements such as the relevance of intellectual property rights, which are disregarded in the legal analysis of money. Furthermore, the book proposes the idea that traditional analyses on the exercise of the lex monetae ignore the role of inside monies and technological infrastructures developed and supported by the private sector, as exemplified in the evolution of the cryptoassets market and in cases such as Banco de Portugal v Waterlow & Sons.The book puts forward a proposal for the design and regulation of new payment systems and invites the reader to look beyond the dissemination of individual Distributed Ledger Technologies such as Bitcoin.

This book poses the question: do we need a new body of regulations and the constitution of new regulatory agents to face the evolution of money in the Fourth Industrial Revolution?After the Global Financial Crisis and the subsequent introduction of Distributed Ledger Technologies in monetary matters, multiple opinions claim that we are in the middle of a financial revolution that will eliminate the need for central banks and other financial institutions to form bonds of trust on our behalf. In contrast to these arguments, this book argues that we are not witnessing a revolutionary expression, but an evolutionary one that we can trace back to the very origin of money.Accordingly, the book provides academics, regulators and policy makers with a multidisciplinary analysis that includes elements such as the relevance of intellectual property rights, which are disregarded in the legal analysis of money. Furthermore, the book proposes the idea that traditional analyses on the exercise of the lex monetae ignore the role of inside monies and technological infrastructures developed and supported by the private sector, as exemplified in the evolution of the cryptoassets market and in cases such as Banco de Portugal v Waterlow & Sons.The book puts forward a proposal for the design and regulation of new payment systems and invites the reader to look beyond the dissemination of individual Distributed Ledger Technologies such as Bitcoin.