In today’s global economy, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a core component of corporate strategy. Due in part to financial scandals, losses, and the diminished reputation of the affected listed companies, CRS is emerging as a crucial instrument for minimizing conflicts with...

This study comprises an introductory section and three essays analysing Russia’s economic transition from the early 1990s up to the present. The papers present a combination of both theoretical and empirical analysis on some of the key issues Russia has faced during its somewhat troublesome...

The paper investigates the existence and extent of economies of scale in depository and settlement systems. Evidence from 16 settlement institutions across different regions for the years 1993–2000 indicates the existence of significant economies of scale. The degree of such economies,...

In recent years, demutualized stock exchanges have increasingly engaged in M&A and alliance activities. To shed light on this topic, we investigate short-run share price responses to the formation of 110 stock exchange M&As and alliances in the period 2000–2008. Our findings show that the...

This is the first paper that examines economies of scale in stock exchanges. The data employed in the study include cost and output statistics for 37 stock exchanges in four continents around the world for the year 1997. I estimate two traditional cost functions and find that ray (overall) scale...

This paper investigates the existence and extent of economies of scale and scope among stock exchanges. Evidence from 38 exchanges in 32 countries and 4 continents around the world for the years 1989-1998 indicates the existence of significant economies of scale and scope. The degree of such...

This paper provides an explanation of technical inefficiencies of financial exchanges in Europe as well as an empirical analysis of their existence and extent. A single-stage stochastic cost frontier approach is employed, which generates exchange inefficiency scores based on a unique unbalanced...

This paper uses entrepreneurs’survival expectations around the time of market entry and subsequent venture exits to study entrepreneurial optimism. Using data on a large number of nascent entrepreneurs in the US and start-ups in Finland, we find that new entrepreneurs survival beliefs are on...

We examine the connection between the number of bank relationships and firms’ performance using a unique data set on Italian small firms for which banks are a major source of financing. Our evidence indicates that return on equity and return on assets decrease as the number of bank...

Whether or not banks are engaged in ex ante monitoring of customers may have important consequences for the whole economy. We approach this question via a model in which banks can invest in either information acquisition or market power (product differentiation). The two alternatives generate...