Reconciling U.S. Disclosure Policy with International Accounting and Disclosure Standards

In November of 1988, at a Melbourne, Australia meeting of the International Association of Securities Commissioners (IOSCO), the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released a policy statement entitled "Regulation of the International Securities Markets."' The statement identified three broad areas of regulation that should be addressed in an effective international securities mar- ket regulatory system: efficient structures, sound disclosure systems, and fair and honest markets. The Commission stated that: "To achieve those objectives, securities regulators in each nation should work closely with their foreign counterparts and seek coordinated in- ternational solutions to world market problems."2 Significantly, the SEC did not insist that its methods of regulation were the best or the only means of achieving the stated goals.