Dirk Schoenmakert, (2016), “The impact of the legal and operational structures of euro-area banks on their resolvability”,  Bruegel, 6 December Following the financial crisis, the question of how to handle a big bank’s collapse has come to the fore. This Policy Contribution evaluates the obstacles to resolvability that the legal and operational structures of the large euro-area banks could pose to the European Union’s new resolution regime. Relevant Posts De Groen, Willem …Read More

Vives, Xavier, (2016), “Banking regulatory reform: The way forward”, VoxEu, 6 December As with previous systemic crises, the 2007-2009 crisis has created regulatory reform, but is it adequate? This column argues that prudential regulation should consider interactions between conduct – capital, liquidity, disclosure requirements, macroprudential ratios – and structural instruments, and also coordinate with competition policy. Though recent reforms are a welcome response to the recent crisis, we do not know …Read More

Cournède, Boris, Denk, Oliver, Garda, Paula, Hoeller, Peter, (2016), “Enhancing Economic Flexibility: What Is in It for Workers?”, OECD Economi Policy Paper No. 19, November Reforms that boost growth by enhancing economic flexibility often meet strong opposition related to concerns that they may imply adverse consequences for categories of workers. This study investigates how making product or labour market regulation more flexible changes workers’ risks of moving out of employment …Read More

Thomadakis, Apostolos, (2016), “Nothing ventured, nothing gained: How the EU can boost growth in small businesses and start-ups”, CEPS, 30 November Venture capital can be a lifeline to innovative and growth-oriented start-ups and small businesses in need of external capital. In this ECMI Research Report, the author argues that the recently proposed changes to the Regulation on European Venture Capital Funds (EuVECA) fail to address three important issues that could further …Read More

Chavaz, Matthieu, Flandreau, Marc, (2016), “Liquidity in government bonds – from the British Empire to the Eurozone”, VoxEu, 1 December Between 1870 and 1914, 68 countries – both sovereign and British colonies – used the London Stock Exchange to issue bonds. This column argues that bond prices and spreads in this period show that the colonies’ semi-sovereignty lowered credit risk at the price of higher illiquidity risk, and further worsened liquidity …Read More

Lehmann, Alexander, (2016), “Can public support help Europe build distressed asset markets?”, Bruegel, 29 November Distressed asset investors can relieve banks of their NPL overhang and offer valuable restructuring expertise, although banks will need to realise a further valuation loss. Regulators could do a lot to support the growth of this market. Relevant Posts Panagiotarea, Eleni, (2016), “The Political Economy of NPLs resolution: Ownership and conditionality”, Hellenic Observatory LSE, 13 October …Read More

Demertzis, Maria, B.Wolff, Guntram, (2016), “What impact does the ECB’s quantitative easing policy have on bank profitability?”, Bruegel, 30 Νοεμβρίου This Policy Contribution shows that the effect of the ECB’s QE programme on bank profitability has not yet had a dramatically negative effect on bank operations. Relevant Posts Hüttl, Pia, Merler, Silvia, (2016), “An update: Sovereign bond holdings in the euro area – the impact of QE”, Bruegel, 22 November S. Blattner, Tobias. A. …Read More

Buti, Marco, Rodríguez Muñoz, Lucía, (2016), “Why we need a positive fiscal stance for the Eurozone and what it means”, VoxEu, 28 November With growth still weaker than is desirable and challenges originating from geopolitical developments further complicating the economic outlook, responsible growth-friendly fiscal policy needs to play a bigger role in supporting demand in the Eurozone today. This column presents a new European Commission Communication on Eurozone fiscal policy, …Read More

Buti, Marco, Carnot, Nicolas, (2016), “Fiscal space and low interest rates: A Eurozone perspective”, VoxEu, 28 November The European Commission has just called for a fiscal stance that is more supportive of the recovery and of monetary policy in the Eurozone. This column argues that the case is strong for spending now on investment and other targeted programmes supporting growth and employment. However, fiscal space is heterogeneously distributed across the …Read More

Darvas, Zsolt, (2016), “Income inequality has been falling in the EU”, Bruegel, 23 November The properly measured EU-wide Gini coefficient of disposable income inequality shows that inequality in the EU as whole declined in 1994-2008, after which it remained broadly stable. However, within the EU, there are large differences in income inequality which require policy action. Relevant Posts Marzinotto, Benedicta, (2016), “Income Inequality and Macroeconomic Imbalances under EMU”, LSE, May Marzinotto, Benedicta, (2016), …Read More