The issue at hand is that concerning the position of sectional authorities and competition in regulation. Since they are both players in the regulation process they are involved both in the organisation of economic sectors and in the creation of standards. The field-work analysis of the...

The introduction of the market economy in Eastern Europe produced important dilemmas for public actors within the region : to introduce freedom of competition, is it sufficient to rely upon the market or, on the contrary, is it necessary to adopt competition laws ? If the adoption of such laws...

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...

The interchange fee applied in four-party card systems transfers incomes in the payment card business from merchants to cardholders. Assessment of the interchange fee and the interpretation of its role have prompted serious professional debate in recent years. Beyond the professional debate,...

Inspired by the creation of the new Competition Authority in Portugal, we consider the interplay between regulatory agencies with overlapping competencies; for example, a competition authority and a sectoral regulator. We analyse how authorities’ incentives are affected if they can decide...

Competition authorities must pay attention to many industries simultaneously. Sectoral regulators concentrate on their own industry. Often both types of authority may intervene in specific industries and there is an overlap of jurisdictions. We show how a competition authority’s resource...

As in other sectors, competition in finance matters for allocative, productive and dynamic efficiency. Theory suggests, however, that unfettered competition is not first best given the special features of finance. I review these analytics and describe how to assess the degree of competition in...

We review the enforcement of competition policy and the activities of Turkish Competition Authority during 1997-2000. Descriptive statistics are provided on the caseload handled, such as types of anti-competitive behavior investigated, breakdown of investigations by industry, violations found,...

The paper assesses the degree of banking competition and efficiency in Italy?over time as well as compared to that in other countries, such as France, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The paper finds competition in the Italian banking sector has intensified in loan and...