The Liberalization of Capital Movements in Europe

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the process of capital liberalization in Europe from the time of the writing of the Treaty of Rome in the 1950s to the complete abolition of restrictions in the latter half of the 1980s and early 1990s in the run up to Economic and Monetary Union. The process is described mainly from an institutional angle, with special reference to the far-reaching discussions in the Monetary Committee and the role of the European Commission. Related topics such as monetary cooperation, the working of the European Monetary System, taxation and supervision issues are also dealt with. §The book highlights the motives which countries held with respect to maintaining or abolishing restrictions. Their eventual abolition had important consequences for the financial structure in member states and for the transition to the use of indirect instruments of monetary policy by the national central banks. §The book will be of outstanding interest for anyone who is professionally involved in European integration issues and in monetary and financial policy.