In the past decade, most of the EU New Member States experienced a severe credit-boom bust cycle. This paper argues that the credit boom-bust cycle was to a large extent the result of factors external to the region (“bad luck”). Rapid credit growth followed from a high liquidity in global...

Export credit agencies (ECAs) have played a critical role in financing for developing countries in recent years, and officially supported export credits have been growing in volume. The current export credit exposure to developing countries and economies in transition has reached almost half a...

This technical note analyzes the competition in the banking sector in Denmark. It reveals that Denmark has a fairly competitive and efficient banking sector. Measured by various indicators, efficiency of banking intermediation has been improving in recent years. The banking sector has become...

This paper describes a financial system that should be adopted for the 21st century. The paper highlights that the financial crisis of 2008 has raised fundamental questions about how the financial industry is structured, managed, and regulated. The paper discusses that a well-functioning...

This paper surveys the foreign exchange markets, money and secondary government security markets, and stock exchanges in 107 smaller economy countries. The underdevelopment of these markets impedes risk transfer, monetary policy, corporate financing, and the capacity to absorb capital inflows....

This technical note discusses the structure of the Danish capital market and related issues. The focus is on the organization and functioning of domestic securities markets. The note provides a regional perspective on these markets. It reviews the prudential framework for capital markets, and...

This Selected Issues paper on Uganda discusses the progress toward harmonization of capital account regulations and capital market integration. A unified East African Community financial market would offer several benefits to the regional economy. It would expand the opportunities for savings...