The 7th East Asia Research Salon
David Reitemeier
“Managing moral hazard and collective action problems in East Asian financial regionalism: End of the Road for the ASEAN-Way?”
March 10, 2015, 5pm
KWZ, Heinrich- Düker- Weg 14, CeMEAS Conference Room 0.701

Abstract:
The multilateralization of the Chiang Mai Initiative in 2009 in the wake of the global financial crisis marked an important step in the development of financial regionalism in East Asia.
Potential spill over effects in other areas of East Asian regionalism or a development towards an East Asian Monetary Fund have been topics of academic debate ever since. I argue, however, that not enough attention has been paid to moral hazard and collective action problems in this debate. How China and other East Asian countries deal with these challenges can tell us a great deal about the chances for further progress in East Asian regionalism and about the nature of the regional institutions. Coming from a historical institutionalist perspective I plan to further elaborate on this notion, focusing especially on regional surveillance and emergency lending mechanisms. Pending further research I argue that it is difficult for the East Asian region to manage moral hazard and collective action problems due to the nature of the ASEAN -Way and China’s role in the region. In the absence of successful management of these challenges, the regional financial institutions are in danger of becoming mere talking shops.

In his research David focuses on regionalism and regional instiutions in East Asia as well as on Chinese foreign and econmic policy and political decision making processes.
Since 2014: Research associate at the Department for East Asian Studies, University of Göttingen and PhD student at the University of Bochum. Working title of the dissertation: “Chinas contributions to the institution building process in East Asian Financial Regionalism under the APT Framework: Managing moral hazards and collective action problems”
2010 – 2013: MA in East Asian Politics, University of Bochum. Master thesis: “China and
Global Economic Governance: The influence of international institutions on global state
behaviour