Ethics, fairness, trust, and freedom from corruption are parts of social capital,
and social capital matters in financial markets. Investors consider not only the
information they receive but also their trust in the accuracy of the information
and the fairness of the markets in which to trade. Deficiencies in ethics and
fairness mark all countries. But surveys of the perception among students and
finance professionals of the fairness of insider trading in eight countries
indicate that deficiencies are more pronounced in some countries than in others.
Five factors are discussed that affect social capital: culture, globalization,
income, education, and law enforcement.