Why did European policy-makers introduce the Banking Union? Which are its main features? How does it affect banks and their customers? This book tries to answer these questions, by providing a clear description of the building blocks of the Banking Union, and by showing that several issues...

Does too much competition in banking hurt society? What policies can best protect and stabilize banking without stifling it? Institutional responses to such questions have evolved over time, from interventionist regulatory control after the Great Depression to the liberalization policies that...