We examine the impact of eurozone membership on sovereign creditworthiness over the period 1996-2017. We find that: (a) membership significantly improved sovereign creditworthiness, on average by well over one ratings notch, over this period; (b) the ratings boost was significantly higher in the...

In this paper, we examine the impact of eurozone membership on sovereign creditworthiness over the period 1996-2017 and the underlying channels through which the impact operates. We find that: (a) eurozone membership improved sovereign credit ratings, on average by over one notch; (b) the...

Using a comprehensive dataset from German banks, we document the usage of sovereign credit default swaps (CDS) during the European sovereign debt crisis of 2008-2013. Banks used the sovereign CDS market to extend, rather than hedge, their long exposures to sovereign risk during this period....

In summer 2011, elevated sovereign risk in Eurozone peripheral countries increased the solvency risk of Eurozone banks, precipitating a run on their short-term debt. We assess the effectiveness of different European Central Bank (ECB) interventions that followed – lender of last resort vs....

The ECB’s Outright Monetary Transactions (OMT) program, launched in summer 2012, indirectly recapitalized periphery country banks through its positive impact on the value of sovereign bonds. However, the regained stability of the European banking sector has not fully transferred into economic...