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Sovereign Debt Working Group of the Bretton Woods Committee , Debt transparency: the essential starting point for successful reform, Capital Markets Law Journal, Volume 17, Issue 3, July 2022, Pages 383–408, https://doi.org/10.1093/cmlj/kmac010
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This article—addressing the basic issue of market transparency—is the second publication in a series being prepared by the Bretton Woods Committee’s Sovereign Debt Working Group (SDWG). The goal of the SDWG is to develop concrete reform proposals for the sovereign debt market. The two motivations for the work of the SDWG are (i) the sharp, Covid-19-related buildup in sovereign borrowing that likely will require relief and restructuring during the next few years and (ii) the significant reforms that are needed to improve the efficiency, inclusiveness and effectiveness of sovereign liability management. As discussed in this analysis, establishing a broadly accepted and consistent information base regarding existing debt obligations is a foundational requirement for successful systemic reform—a need heightened by the dramatic shift in the number of funding sources since the Global Financial Crisis. This is far from the whole story, however. Beyond agreement on data sources, clarity—and predictability—regarding organizational and analytical aspects of setting the specific terms for debt relief will be vital. As a result, the key reform goal in this regard should be viewed as ‘procedural transparency’ in order to signal the breadth of the reforms that will be required for success, beyond simple ‘data transparency’.
