The presence of possible distortions caused by a prolonged period of low interest rates indicates that policymakers should raise interest rates as soon as macroeconomic conditions allow. Low interest rates are good for macroeconomic stability in the short run, but could harm long-run financial...

Risk management is a process that needs to be strengthened, since it is aimed to reinforce banks’ stability and to prevent financial crises. For this reason, it should be embedded in business strategies and based on more severe evaluation techniques and stringent internal control systems

The Basel Agreements, designed to pursue financial stability, have been instead a cause of instability, revealing fundamental analytical and operational weaknesses. The idea to define a constant capital ratio through complex statistical models implies serious dangers. A radical change is...

The current financial crisis was not something unexpected, a «black swan», but rather an event caused by human action and inaction, and therefore predictable and avoidable. The analysis of the role of the financial system, regulation, business models and management systems leads to point out...

The new supervisory regulation on insurance companies (Solvency II) defines capital requirements in line with actual risks of the enterprise. The three pillars of Solvency II are aimed to develop a wider culture of risk and a higher logical consistency between actual risk and business decisions.

The Italian banking system has successfully faced the impact of financial crisis but will suffer the effects of the «real» crisis on firms’ solvency and, consequently, has to raise additional cash funds.The use of securitization is an effective alternative to facilitate the flow of funds to...

To overcome the crisis in a «real» and virtuous way, the preference should be accorded to measures to revive demand, increase the supply of goods and services provided by public administrations and keep markets open and competitive. The financial way to overcome the crisis is usually...

Many kinds of bad banks have already been launched in several countries following the financial crisis, producing successful results, reducing asymmetric information and market failures related to adverse selection and moral hazard. On the basis of the characteristics of these experiences, it is...

Basel 2 has dominant role in redefining financial markets regulation after the crisis, for which it provides relevant proposals: new rules for banks’ capital composition, measures to mitigate pro-cyclicality, the introduction of limits in the leverage ratio, measures to reduce systemic risk....

The financial crisis has highlighted the issue of compensation of managing directors. In Italy, the Central Bank has taken action to avoid banks’ crises in deep contrast with the high level of managers’ compensations. With specific rules the Bank of Italy has granted to the shareholders’...