The investor and capital market intermediaries: is the investor adequately protected?

Abstract

The core objectives of securities regulation are the protection of investors; ensunng fair, efficient and transparent and the reduction of systemic risk. 1 Of these three objectives, investor protection must be at the core of capital markets regulation which is particularly important for small investors (as opposed to institutional investors). The stability of capital markets hinges largely on investor confidence If events occur that shake the confidence of the investor community, money moves out of the market and share prices drop, triggering even more sales This condition is referred to as systemic risk and refers to the possibility that even minor shocks in the system may be magnified into a system wide calamity.