Issue link: http://clhia.uberflip.com/i/821274
12 7.0 Building Relationships Following the 2008 global financial crisis, with the international focus on improving the regulation and oversight of the financial services sector, multiple jurisdictions turned to Canada for leadership. Canada's reputation for sound and transparent regulatory policy set it above many of its peers. Since that time, regulatory cooperation has become a major focus for the financial services sector. Many modern FTAs contain mechanisms to foster regulatory cooperation, which are useful tools in the development of a transparent and coherent regulatory environment. While important, there are other methods for fostering regulatory cooperation and improving dialogue than those imbedded in trade agreements. For example, Canada has launched Financial Sector Policy Dialogues (FSPDs) with a number of jurisdictions including China, Indonesia and India. These dialogues are important mechanisms for the development and maintenance of good relations between financial regulators. They also foster deeper collaboration between financial institutions and can help with the identification of regulatory best practices. Trade missions are also an important avenue to foster positive relations and build business opportunities. When properly designed to address strategic priorities and when relevant stakeholders are adequately engaged, trade missions can be invaluable tools to foster growth. For example, the September 2016 mission to China included participation by senior representatives from the Canadian business community and served to unlock $1.2 billion in business deals and provided additional opportunities for both countries. Recommendation 6: Initiatives such as FSPDs and trade missions are invaluable tools and should continue to be given high priority. In order to ensure success, the business community should be fully consulted and given advanced notification of upcoming trade missions, state visitors and FSPDs.