Bridging public and private law: the role of APEC in digital trade

Abstract

The fast growth o f virtual exchange demanding situations the conventional separation among public and personal regulation. This article explores how the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) serves as a bridge among intergovernmental cooperation and personal regulatory mechanisms in virtual exchange governance. Through its sofitregulation instruments, multi-stakeholder engagement, and norm diffusion practices, APEC implements a hybrid version that hyperlinks public worldwide norms with market-pushed standards. The study concludes that APEC exemplifies a new model o f governance in which public and private norms converge to facilitate digital trade while preserving national sovereignty and market flexibility.