Introduction of the euro certainly represents a sea-change in the environment of modern global finance. In the three decades since the end of the Bretton Woods system in 1971, and against great odds, Europe has forged a platform that could ultimately emerge as a viable challenger to the United...

This study outlines the framework of high-performance financial systems and the parameters for financial firms operating in them. It begins with an intuitive structural model of financial intermediation, and then considers issues facing players in, and users of the financial system, with...