Roles, missions and business models of public financial institutions in Europe

In Europe, the balance between publicly owned and privately owned financial institutions varies through time and from country to country. Historically, nationalisations and privatisations have moved the balance backwards and forwards. So has the recent financial crisis. Mathias Schmit, Laurent Gheeraert, Thierry Denuit and Cédric Warny from the Solway Brussels School of Economics and Management have carried out a huge research project in which they analyse the roles and missions of financial institutions with public ownership and involvement in 32 European countries. They have published their results in the report: Public Financial Institutions in Europe, European Association of Public Banks, Brussels, March 2011.