The idea of a capital markets union in Asia has been on the table for almost two decades, but progress has been slow and often limited to the region’s more developed countries. This is understandable given that advanced financial markets such as Singapore occupy the same economic bloc as Myanmar, which had a dysfunctional financial system for most of the 50-year period of military rule that ended in 2011.
Pundits often cite the EU, which is itself working towards a capital markets union, as a template for Asia. But is this parallel fair or even useful?
