The institute conducts research across the full spectrum of financial law. In doing so, it centres on the interaction between theory and practice. Professor of Financial Law Danny Busch is director and one of the founders of IFR. He studied law in Utrecht from 1992, followed a master's degree in European law and comparative law in Oxford and obtained a PhD with a comparative law dissertation. In 2002, he consciously chose to go into practice, at law firm De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek. ‘I felt it was not enough to know the theory, I also wanted to experience the dynamics of the financial world.’ According to Busch, financial law consists of EU law for eighty percent. ‘More and more rules are coming from Brussels. That translates into directives and nowadays also directly applicable regulations. This Europeanisation is fertile ground for legal comparison. Financial contracts, for example, have been largely standardised in the EU. In legal disputes over such contracts, you see lawsuits arising and judgments being handed down in different member states. That is fantastic to see. All the ingredients that I love about comparative law and Europeanisation, I see reflected in financial law.’
I felt it was not enough to know the theory, I also wanted to experience the dynamics of the financial world
Sparring with part-time professors
IFR was founded in 2010, shortly after Busch was asked to become a professor in Nijmegen. ‘It might seem crazy to set up such an institute right here, far from the Zuidas and Beursplein 5. But Nijmegen had had the renowned Radboud Business Law Institute for years. That centre saw added value in an institute that would study financial law. My predecessor Christel Grundmann-van de Krol and I rolled up our sleeves and shaped IFR.’ It now employs 15 to 20 people. ‘The hard core consists of two professors - Arnoud Pijls and me - and associate professor and alumna Andrée Sikkema-Lenaerts.’ There are also several PhD candidates and a number of part-time professors, such as Bart Bierens (also working at Rabobank), Kitty Lieverse (former partner at Loyens & Loeff), Daan Doorenbos (partner at Stibbe), and Frits-Joost Beekhoven van den Boezem (general counsel at De Nederlandsche Bank). ‘Those part-time professors know exactly what is going on in practice. We basically act as each other's sparring partners.’
Handbooks as a survival strategy
The research projects carried out by IFR are initiated by the staff themselves. There are plenty of ideas and the two research focal points - sustainability and digitalisation - provide guidance in choosing topics. Busch himself likes to be guided by three sources of inspiration: practice, current affairs and comparative law. ‘I prefer to research current topics. I also look emphatically at what practice needs and how other countries deal with those topics.’ One of the most important results of the past 15 years is the Oxford EU Financial Regulation Series. This is a series of English-authored textbooks published by Oxford University Press. Thirteen volumes have now been published, on topics such as European banking union, prospectus liability and the governance of financial institutions. ‘They are critical reviews of new developments in our field. The volumes are very well received and updates appear regularly.’ Each volume involves fifty to sixty people, from academia and practice. ‘Financial law is far too broad to keep up on your own. And if you focus on one section, you can lose sight of the big picture. This series is a kind of survival strategy for us: because there are so many people with different areas of expertise contributing to it, we as academics can keep the overall picture.’ Besides research, IFR organises a symposium every year. The next edition will be on 7 February next year and will have the topic ‘Financial Law & Geopolitics’. ‘An exciting theme,’ says Busch. ‘Geopolitics is very topical, think for example of the European Union's sanctions against Russia. A Russian oligarch with an account in a Dutch bank, can now no longer access his money. So the financial sector plays an important role in enforcing sanctions legislation. Governments are therefore increasingly using that sector to achieve public goals. At the symposium, specialists will talk about current developments.’
Bachelor course as future aspiration
Through all these activities, the institute has built a solid reputation. ‘We have well proven our right to exist. Our solid position in the Netherlands and the rest of Europe is partly due to the flywheel effect of the Oxford Series. If you regularly initiate such projects, it increases your brand awareness and strengthens national and international contacts.’ And then, of course, there is the education. Financial Law is now its own department with a master's specialisation. In the long run, Busch would also like to teach an optional course in the bachelor's degree. ‘You only have to open a newspaper to see how important financial law is. So we can easily provide interesting, topical lectures. Yes, an bachelor's course is definitely a wish for the future.’
Banking institutions serving as tools of the government
Looking at that future, Busch expects the two research focal points - sustainability and digitalisation - to remain important. So will geopolitics. Another topic that has been on Busch's mind lately is the restriction of banks' freedom of contract. ‘That freedom has been constrained so much in recent years that banks have become hybrid institutions: commercial enterprises on the one hand, but increasingly an extension of the government on the other. I already mentioned the role of banks in sanctions legislation. In addition, banks are important in detecting money laundering - also a government task. The question is: isn't too much being demanded of them, isn't too much being demanded of them, isn't the government putting pressure on the financial sector too easily? I have just written a preliminary advice on this and think the topic will only become more important in the future.’ Busch has now been working in Nijmegen for 15 years and still feels at home. ‘I continue to find financial law enormously fascinating. And how nice is it, that you can decide for yourself what you want to research? There are still so many great subjects. Research questions rarely come up from outside, so you have to be self-propelling, but I love that. I want to continue with this for years to come.’
This article was originally published in the alumni magazine RadboudRechten. Read the full magazine (in Dutch) here.