02061cas a2200265 a 4500 AALejournalIMF009182 230101c9999 xx r poo 0 0eng d 5.00 USD 9781451865899 1018-5941 BD-DhAAL BD-DhAAL Taylor, Michael. The Fear of Freedom : Politicians and the Independence and Accountability of Financial Sector Supervisors / Michael Taylor, Marc Quintyn, Silvia Ramirez. Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, 2007. 1 online resource (50 pages) IMF Working Papers <strong>Off-Campus Access:</strong> No User ID or Password Required <strong>On-Campus Access:</strong> No User ID or Password Required Electronic access restricted to authorized BRAC University faculty, staff and students Compared with the case of central bank independence, independence for financial sector supervisors remains more controversial. This paper analyzes changes in independence and accountability arrangements in a set of 32 countries that overhauled their legal and/or institutional frameworks for supervision in recent years. Despite improvements, there is strong evidence that the endorsement of independence remains half-hearted, which shows itself through either overcompensation on the accountability side, or resort to political control mechanisms. The latter could potentially undermine the agency's credibility. The results indicate that policymakers still need to be persuaded of the long-term benefits of independence for financial sector soundness, and of the potential for a virtuous interaction between independence and accountability, if the arrangements are well-designed. Mode of access: Internet Quintyn, Marc. Ramirez, Silvia. IMF Working Papers; Working Paper ; No. 2007/025 Full text available on IMF http://elibrary.imf.org/view/journals/001/2007/025/001.2007.issue-025-en.xml IMF e-Library