The financing structure of the euro area economy has evolved since the global financial crisis with non-bank financial intermediation taking a more prominent role. This shift affects the transmission of monetary policy. Compared with banks, non-bank financial intermediaries are more responsive...

After a review of factors such as technology and the related policy toward financial liberalization that has affected financial institutions worldwide, this paper focuses on changes in Continental Europe. We identify and review three driving forces: (a) European integration, (b) the factors that...

This book provides the foundations for an additional perspective on optimal currency area theory (OCA). The links between financial and monetary integration (via financial intermediation and banking) offer another path towards understanding monetary transmission and, therefore, OCA theory. This...