Central banks can operate with negative equity, and many have done so in history without undermining trust in fiat money. However, there are limits. How negative can central bank equity be before fiat money loses credibility? We address this question using a global games approach motivated by...

This paper draws lessons on the central bank underpinnings of money from the rise and fall of the Bank of Amsterdam (1609–1820). The Bank started out as a “stablecoin”: it issued deposits backed by silver and gold coins, and settled payments by transfers across deposits. Over time, it...

This paper investigates the impact of the “unconventional” monetary policy measures taken by the Eurosystem on both the unsecured and the secured money markets. Furthermore, we provide insight into the shifts between the unsecured and secured markets. We provide a euro area overview and a...

Money markets play a central role in monetary policy implementation. Money market functioning has changed since the financial crisis. This arguably reflects the interaction of two forces: Changes in monetary policy, and changes in regulation. This interaction is not yet well understood. We focus...

This paper develops a methodology, based on Furfine (1999), to identify unsecured interbank money market loans from transaction data of the most important euro processing payment system, TARGET2, for maturity ranging from one day (overnight) up to three months. The implementation has been...

This paper takes stock of European banks’ accumulated losses since 2007 and relates these to bank characteristics. In line with previous studies, we find that large, market-oriented banks were particularly hit by the 2007-2009 global financial crisis whereas smaller, retail-oriented banks...

The recent financial crisis has led to the introduction of contingent convertible instruments (CoCos) in the capital framework for banks. Although CoCos can provide benefits, such as automatic recapitalization of troubled banks, their inherent risks raise questions about whether they increase...

Private trade credit insurance - covering the risk of non-payment - plays an important role in facilitating domestic and international trade, especially within Europe. Due to lack of data, however, very little is known about the influence of shocks on the market for private trade credit...

We estimate a panel error correction model for loan loss provisions, using unique supervisory data on flow of funds into and out of the allowance for loan losses of 25 Dutch banks in the post-2008 crisis period. We find that these banks aim for an allowance of 49% of impaired loans. In the short...

If monetary policy is to aim also at financial stability, how would it change? To analyze this question, this paper develops a general-form, axiomatic framework. Financial stability objectives are shown to make a monetary authority more aggressive. By that we mean that in reaction to negative...