The basic worldwide financial safety net architecture provides for a system of similar institutions: a lender of last resort, deposit insurance, and prudential regulation. In countries whose banking systems suffer seriously from negative capital positions and overbanking, such as in some Latin...

What are the reasons for and the costs of Latin America's volatility? Because there is no consensus on these fundamental questions, there is no consensus on the appropriate policy response to macroeconomic volatility in Latin America, and other shock-prone countries. This paper provides new...

This paper complements previous studies by arguing that the low private savings ratio in Latin America can be associated with the limited confidence of households and businesses in domestic financial institutions. Previous studies have established a relationship between private savings and...

This paper raises fundamental questions about how banks in Latin America ought to be supervised. The concentration of wealth holders in Latin America and the equity markets' resulting illiquidity permit investors who control banks to subvert the intent of capital requirements, even when the bank...

This paper analyzes the consequences of alternative financial structures for financial efficiency and stability. The focus is on the organizational structure of banks. Alternative bank structures range from "narrow banks" to broad "universal banks". Each banking structure is assessed in its...

This book is based on a conference entitled "Regional Public Goods and Regional Development Assistance", held in Washington, D.C. on November 6-7, 2002. It examines how the IDB and the ADB support the provision of regional public goods (RPGs) in Latin America and Asia, respectively. RPGs are...

Throughout the twentieth century, there was a notable population shift in the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, from rural living situations to urban centers. In 2000 there were 49 cities with populations of over one million, four of them among the 10 largest cities in the world....