Economic theory predicts market failure in the market for early childhood education and care (ECEC) due to information asymmetries. We empirically investigate information asymmetries between parents and ECEC professionals in Germany, making use of a unique extension of the Socio-Economic Panel...

Die Handwerksordnung (HwO) ist die rechtliche Grundlage des handwerklichen Sektors in Deutschland. In Folge ihrer Novellierung im Jahr 2004 entfiel für die Hälfte der von der HwO regulierten Berufe die Meisterpflicht als Vorbedingung zur Unternehmensgründung. Während die...

Information asymmetries are important in theory but difficult to identify in practice. We estimate the empirical importance of adverse selection and moral hazard in a consumer credit market using a new field experiment methodology. We randomized 58,000 direct mail offers issued by a major South...

External finance is central for nascent entrepreneurs, people in the process of starting new ventures. We argue that nascent entrepreneurs use patents and prototypes in order to signal their ability to appropriate the returns from their innovation as well as the project´s feasibility. Our...

The capital structure of firms is known to be different not only due to firm characteristics but also to the sources of capital. Therefore, there is a need to understand the supply side effects on a firm´s capital structure. A small firm´s choice of financing sources may be limited by the...

Investments in R&D have been identified as a cornerstone for growth and competitive advantages of firms and whole economies. We investigate the role that a firm's main bank plays for its investment in R&D. Existing literature suggests that the inherent information asymmetries of R&D projects...

Microfinance has been heralded as an effective way to address imperfections in credit markets. From a theoretical perspective, however, the success of microfinance contracts has puzzling elements. In particular, the group-based mechanisms often employed are vulnerable to free-riding and...

The paper presents a model in which credit-constrained firms might delay the adoption of new and more productive technologies because of the very high external financing costs they face. Our point of departure is that the efficiency of the banking system can have a profound impact on real...

Information asymmetries seem to play an important role in monetary economics. We consider three forms of information transmission which can be used to alleviate these information asymmetries. First, if information is verifiable or the publication of information is in the central bank's interest,...

Insolvency proceedings are strategic for the competitiveness of a national economy. The new law, but also new financial situation of organizations affect the new normal of insolvency framework. In Europe, standards aimed at creating an efficient framework for corporate insolvency resolution are...