This dissertation examines the role of financial institutions as they relate to foreign currency payments and financial stability. The first chapter of this dissertation examines how the foreign currency component of international payments can be costly for importers and exporters by studying...

Using an annual panel of US states over the period 1982-2014, we estimate the response of macroeconomic variables to a shock to the number of new firms (startups). We find that these shocks have significant effects that persist for many years on real GDP, productivity, and population. This...