S/FIN/28  
 
29 October 2013  
(13-5975)  Page: 1/2  
   
 
 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON TRADE IN FINANCIAL SERVICES  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRAD E IN SERVICES (2013) 
Since its previous Annual Report to the Council for Trade in Services1, the Committee on Trade in 
Financial Services held three formal meetings, respectively on 5 December 2012, 20 March 2013 
and 19 June 2013.2  In addition, it met informally on 5 February 2013 and 23 May 2013.  
1  ACCEPTANCE OF THE FIFT H PROTOCOL TO THE GATS 
The Committee continued to monitor the status of acceptance of the Fifth Protocol to the GATS, 
which has yet to be accepted by Brazil.  
2  MACROPRUDENTIAL POLICY AND REGULATION - MEMBERS' EXPERIENCE Following a proposal by Ecuador, the Committee held a dedicated discussion at its March meeting 
on Members' experiences with macroprudential po licies and regulation. Many Members, some of 
whom had circulated statements or presentations beforehand, participated. The debate made evident that the recent global financial crisis had prompted a reassessment of financial regulation 
and supervision, showing in particular the need to focus on macroprudential policy as a 
complement to the hitherto almost exclusive emphasis on a microprudential approach. The diversity of experiences shared by Members suggested that no "one-size-fits-all" model was 
available for the implementation of macroprudent ial policies and regulation. While some Members 
entrusted a single agency with additional responsi bilities regarding macroprudential policy, others 
focused on coordination be tween different agencies.  
Many delegations referred to the need to avoid th e build-up of excessive leverage in the banking 
system. The macroprudential instruments used were diverse and included, inter alia , counter-
cyclical capital buffers, sectoral capital requirements, liquidity requirements, loan-to-value ratios, and large exposure limits. Some Members made reference to the instability brought about by 
extensive and volatile capital flows and the need  to apply capital flow management measures. 
Some Members considered that the Committee should be kept abreast of developments regarding prudential regulation, so as to better understand the effects of these regulations and policies on 
trade in financial services. 
3  TRADE IN FINANCIAL SE RVICES AND DEVELOPMENT 
At the December 2012 meeting, China made a presen tation on the availability and organization of 
microcredit, followed by another presentation in  March 2013 on the access of small and medium-
sized enterprises to financial services. 
At the meeting held in June, Norway and Pakistan made presentations on mobile banking services 
in the latter country. The presentations were followed by a focused discussion, which touched upon 
not only various issues involved in mobile banking services like regulation, business models, 
interoperability of platforms, data security, pa yment risk management and consumer protection, 
but also the broader issue of access to financial services. 
                                               
1 S/FIN/25, dated 5 December 2012. 
2 The reports of the formal  meetings are contained in documents S/FIN/M/75 to 77, and should be read 
in conjunction with this report. S/FIN/28 
 
- 2 - 
 
  4  REGULATORY ISSUES IN FINANCIAL SERVICES 
At its June meeting, the Committee discussed regulatory issues in financial services, on the basis 
of a Secretariat Note on these issues, contained in document S/WPDR/W/48. The section on financial services is to be found in paragraphs 185 to 195 of the document. The Committee agreed 
to revert to this agenda item at the following meeting, so as to give Members another opportunity 
to comment. 
5  TECHNICAL ISSUES (CLASSIFICATION ISSUES) 
The Committee continued with its consideration of classification issues in financial services.  As 
agreed by Members, the discussions were held in informal mode.   
__________