We examine Iceland’s capital controls, which were imposed in October 2008 in order to prevent massive capital flight and a complete collapse of the exchange rate. The controls have not been lifted yet, primarily because of the risk of outflows of domestic holdings of the failed cross-border...

What is so special about banks that their demise often triggers government intervention? In this paper we show that, even ignoring interconnectedness issues, the failure of a bank causes a larger welfare loss than the failure of other institutions. The reason is that agents in need of liquidity...

We analyze the transmission of bank-specific liquidity shocks triggered by a credit rating downgrade through the lending channel. Using bank-level data for US Bank Holding Companies, we find that a credit rating downgrade is associated with an immediate and persistent decline in access to...

We study the role of fiscal policy in a complete markets model where the only friction is the non-pledgeability of human capital. We show that the competitive equilibrium is constrained inefficient, leading to too little risky investment. We also show that fiscal policy following a large...

We examine how the banking sector may ignite the formation of asset price bubbles when there is access to abundant liquidity. Inside banks, to induce effort, loan officers are compensated based on the volume of loans. Volumebased compensation also induces greater risk-taking; however, due to...

Over the past three quarters of 2014 the Russian banking sector encountered a constriction of growth in all of its key resource sources. Retail accounts and deposits and foreign liabilities contracted while growth in corporate customers dropped to low levels. Monetary authorities’ resources,...

In January–August 2014, growth in mortgage housing lending continued. As of September 1, 2014, Rb 1.07trillion worth of 619,026 mortgage housing loans was extended; that is 27.47% and 36.33% more in quantitative terms and monetary terms, respectively, as compared to the respective period of 2013....

We present new evidence on the structure of interbank connections in key markets: derivatives, marketable securities, repo, unsecured lending and secured lending. Taken together, these markets comprise two networks: a network of interbank exposures and a network of interbank funding. Network...

En la mayoría de los países de América Central, la liquidez de la banca comercial se encuentra por encima de los requisitos legales o prudenciales establecidos. Si bien ello beneficia la estabilidad financiera, los elevados montos de liquidez obstaculizan la profundización financiera y la...

Banks’ liquidity holdings are comfortably above legal or prudential requirements in most Central American countries. While good for financial stability, high liquidity may nonetheless hinder financial market development and monetary policy transmission. Using a panel of 96 commercial banks...