If one cluster increases local competitiveness, can politicians, by interlinking clusters, achieve an even better effect at the state level? To answer this question, the paper analyzes the "Cluster Initiative" introduced in 1999 by the Bavarian State Government. The purpose of the initiative was...

Using unique micro-data on German firms, this paper estimates the effect of restrictive bank lending on innovation. In the German three-pillar banking system, comprised of commercial banks, credit unions, and savings banks, firms were differently affected in their ability to raise external debt...