Shadow banking is a broad concept. A possible definition is that it comprises non-bank institutions which undertake bank-like activities. Another characteristic is that the sector is overall less regulated. Therefore there are still shortcomings in systematic collection of information of the sector.

In a survey of more than 600 economists, most respondents prefer their central bank to have an explicit inflation target. Roughly half want the central bank to keep its current target. Two thirds of the rest want to raise the target, with a median preferred change of one percentage point. In a...

The optimal level of banks' capital requirements has been a key research topic since at least the introduction of the Basel rules in the late 1980s. In this paper, we review the literature, focusing on recent findings from quantitative structural macroeconomic models. While dynamic stochastic...

We survey 149 leading academic researchers on bank capital regulation. The median (average) respondent prefers a 10% (15%) minimum non-risk-weighted equity-to-assets ratio, which is considerably higher than the current requirement. North Americans prefer a significantly higher equity-to-assets...

The empirical work of this study consists of three parts: a time series analysis of the Finnish FOX stock index, Monte Carlo simulation of the theoretical index option prices and a comparison of the performance of the standard option pricing models with that of the simulation model applied.

The goal of the paper is to rationalize the observed persistent underpricing in the Finnish stock index futures market.It is shown that under a binding short-selling restriction on stocks the observed futures "underpricing" can be a result of strategic motives of the Finnish industrial and...

We present a model of risky debt in which collateral value is correlated with the possibility of default.The model is then used to study: 1) the expected amount of debt recovered in the event of default as a function of collateral; and 2) the amount of collateral needed to mitigate the riskiness...

The purpose of this paper is to provide an explanation for relative pricing of futures contracts with respect to underlying stocks using a model incorporating short sales constraints and informational lags between the two markets.In this model stocks and futures are perfect substitutes, except...

This paper discusses some potential implications - both intended and unintended - of The New Basel Accord, which is to be finalized by the end of 2001.Our focus is on the reforms of the rules for determining minimum capital requirements for credit risk.The discussion is divided into effects at...