Adopting the European single currency is reevaluated amid changing environment of the existing euro area. In this paper we are mapping those divergences among member countries that challenge the optimal currency area (OCA), at least from a theoretical perspective. Nevertheless, the decision to...

For several years prior to 2010, countries in the euro area periphery engaged in heavy borrowing from foreign private investors, allowing domestic spending to outpace incomes. Now these countries face debt crises reflecting a loss of investor confidence in the sustainability of their finances....

In the current debate on the reasons and implications of the Greek and Irish euro crisis, the intra-European current account imbalances have gained rising attention. Whereas Greece and Ireland struggle for austerity in private and public spending, Germany is urged to reduce its current account...

This paper first reviews the developments in the size and composition of the European banking sectors' balance sheets since the Global Financial Crisis, and then assesses the impact of foreign currency loan conversion programs on systemic risk. Aggregate data from 2009Q1 to 2019Q3 indicate three...

In the current debate on the reasons and implications of the Greek and Irish euro crisis, the intra-European current account imbalances have gained rising attention. Whereas Greece and Ireland struggle for austerity in private and public spending, Germany is urged to reduce its current account...