Regulation of Canadian Capital Markets in the 1990s: The United States in the Driver's Seat

This Article looks at the regulatory techniques that have been adopted in a small but developed market, Canada, in response to the increasing integration of the North American economy and internationalization of capital markets. One of the most comprehensive experiments has been the Multijurisdictional Disclosure System (MJDS) implemented in Canada and the United States in 1991. Based on principles of reciprocal recognition, the MJDS has in fact created greater pressures for harmonization of the two regulatory regimes and, on the Canadian side, prompted regulatory innovations which have attempted to keep Canadian markets in the global game.