The present study investigates the role of institutional differences at the local level as determinants of firms' capital structure. Specifically, the aim is to empirically assess whether and to what extent SMEs' financial decisions are affected by local financial development - evaluating this...

The present study adds to the growing literature on the relationships between institutions and capital structure decisions. Specifically, it investigates capital structure determinants for small and medium sized firms in terms of institutional differences at the local level, taking into...

The paper deals with the effects of the new capital requirements (Basel II) on banking behaviour. Since the core of the new rules is the greater sensitivity of regulatory capital to the borrowers' risks, we investigated whether banks react to the new rules by differentiating their lending...