Financial Regulatory Governance in South Africa: The Move towards Twin Peaks

The Twin Peaks model of financial system regulation calls for the establishment of two, independent, peak regulatory bodies, one charged with ensuring safety and soundness in the financial system, the other with preventing market misconduct and the abuse of consumers in the financial sector. For reasons discussed elsewhere,' of the four models of financial system regulation,2 Twin Peaks is regarded as best suited to this task. The Twin Peaks model in general-and elements of the Australian version of Twin Peaks in particular-is currently undergoing implementation in South Africa. This article explores issues related to that implementation from the perspective of governance as it is employed in Australia. The article commences with a discussion and an analysis of the historical development of Twin Peaks, followed by a discussion of governance. Next is an analysis of key differences between Twin Peaks in Australia and Twin Peaks as it is to be deployed in South Africa. Finally there are concluding observations.