This paper contributes to the debate on the adequate regulatory treatment of non-bank financial intermediation (NBFI). It proposes an avenue for regulators to keep regulatory arbitrage under control and preserve sufficient space for efficient financial innovation at the same time. We argue for a...

An important question in banking is how strict supervision affects bank lending and in turn local business activity. Supervisors forcing banks to recognize losses could choke off lending and amplify local economic woes. But stricter supervision could also change how banks assess and manage...

From the 1980s onwards the banking sectors in all the industrialised countries have been experiencing intense restructuring, aggregation and consolidation, radically changing their ownership structures and geography. Whatever the reasons behind such restructuring processes, the globalisation of...

This paper examines the developments of the Italian banking system during the Nineties from two related points of view: net external position and degree of internationalisation, i.e. branches and subsidiaries abroad. These themes seem particularly interesting in the light of the widespread...

The paper examines the relationship between banking and securities activities in the light of financial market developments (securitisation, institutionalization of investment, emergence of complex financial instruments, conglomeration and consolidation), with particular reference to Europe. The...

In the 1990s the banks established in the Italian South have reduced their cost-income ratios and improved their ability to screen customers, increasing profitability. The spread between the loan rates in the South and North has narrowed substantially. Taking into account differences in the size...

We employ a proprietary transaction-level dataset in Germany to examine how capital requirements affect the liquidity of corporate bonds. Using the 2011 European Banking Authority capital exercise that mandated certain banks to increase regulatory capital, we find that affected banks reduce...

Increased interdependencies across countries have led to calls for greater harmonization of regulations to prevent local shock from spilling over to other countries. Using the rulemaking process of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), this paper studies the process through which...

We exploit the establishment of a supranational supervisor in Europe (the Single Supervisory Mechanism) to learn how the organizational design of supervisory institutions impacts the enforcement of financial regulation. Banks under supranational supervision are required to increase regulatory...

We exploit the establishment of a supranational supervisor in Europe (the Single Supervisory Mechanism) to learn how the organizational design of supervisory institutions impacts the enforcement of financial regulation. Banks under supranational supervision are required to increase regulatory...