In this article we analyse the effects of different regulatory schemes (price cap and profit sharing) on a firm's investment of endogenous size. Using a real option approach in continuous time, we show that profit sharing does not affect a firm's start-up decision relative to a pure price cap...

In this paper we review and extend the theory of quality regulation and of self-regulation and try to see to what extent the present theoretical literature can help to direct the regulatory reform of Italian financial markets. In financial markets, several countries have heavily relied upon self...

Restructuring firms in a transition economy produces a sort of network externality, in that the profitability of restructuring depends on the number of firms that already adopted this strategy. We investigate under what conditions a ''critical mass'' exists, i.e. a situation in which such...

In this paper we analyse a common agency model in which agents can choose with how many principals they want to work, while principals cannot condition contracts on the agent's decision to accept other contracts. In this case of "non-intrinsic" common agency we characterise the equilibrium....

This paper shows that the introduction of a minimum quality standard can have repercussions on market structure, opening the possibility of predatory behaviour. The predatory equilibrium exists independently of whether or not adjustment costs are present. Moreover, whenever predation is an...

This paper analyses in a hidden characteristic set-up the design of the optimal price for a firm which is a monopolist at home but competes abroad against foreign firms. As long as diseconomies of scope are not too strong, the optimal price is identified. The price rule depends on the sign of...

We examine the issue of whether two monopolists which produce substitutable goods should be regulated by one (centralization) or two (decentralization) regulatory authorities, when the regulator(s) can be partially captured by industry. Under full information, two decentralized agencies - each...