The incentive-compatible design of deposit insurance and bank failure resolution : concepts and country studies

Deposit insurance schemes and bank failure resolution systems are asked to fulfill conflicting public policy objectives: on the one hand, they are supposed to protect small depositors and prevent contagion risks from bank runs; on the other hand, they are supposed to minimize aggressive risk taking by banks. Beck discusses the incentive-compatible design and interaction of both components of the financial safety net and describes and compares three countries with different safety net arrangements-Brazil, Germany, and Russia.Banks&Banking Reform,Insurance&Risk Mitigation,Financial Intermediation,Financial Crisis Management&Restructuring,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Financial Intermediation,Financial Crisis Management&Restructuring,Insurance&Risk Mitigation,Insurance Law,Banks&Banking Reform

Impediments to the development and efficiency of financial intermediation in Brazil

Reforms to improve both the level and the efficiency of financial inter-mediation in Brazil should be high on Brazilian policymakers'agendas, because of the financial sector's importance to economic growth. This means that Brazil must also improve the legal and regulatory environment in which its financial institutions operate. Brazil is weak in important components of such creditors, the enforcement of contracts, and the sharing of credit information among intermediaries. Recent reforms, such as the extension of alienacao fiduciaria to housing, the introduction of cedula de credito bancario, the legal separation of principal and interest, and improvements in credit information system, are useful steps in strengthening the framework. But more is needed. Reforms that will significantly increase the level and efficiency of financial inter-mediation, and have a positive impact on economic growth include: 1) A more efficient judicial sector and better enforcement of contracts. 2) Stronger rights for secured and unsecured creditors. 3) Stronger accounting standards and practices, to improve the quality of information available about borrowers. 4) The development of a legal and regulatory framework that facilitates the exchange among financial institutions of both negative and positive information about borrowers.Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Banks&Banking Reform,Environmental Economics&Policies,International Terrorism&Counterterrorism,Economic Theory&Research,Banks&Banking Reform,Environmental Economics&Policies,Economic Theory&Research,Financial Intermediation,International Terrorism&Counterterrorism

Bank competition and financial stability : friends or foes ?

Theory makes ambiguous predictions about the relationship between market structure and competitiveness of the banking system and banking sector stability. Empirical studies focusing on individual countries provide similarly ambiguous results, while cross-country studies point mostly to a positive relationship between competition and stability in the banking system. Where liberalization and unfettered competition have resulted in fragility, this has been mostly the consequence of regulatory and supervisory failures. The advantages of competition for an efficient and inclusive financial system are strong, and regulatory and supervisory policies should focus on an incentive-compatible environment for banking rather than try to fine-tune market structure or the degree of competition.Banks&Banking Reform,Access to Finance,Emerging Markets,Debt Markets,Labor Policies

Financial development and international trade : is there a link?

The author explores a possible link between financial development and trade in manufactures. His theoretical model focuses on the role of financial intermediaries in facilitating large-scale, high-return projects. Results show that economies with better developed financial sectors have a comparative advantage in manufacturing industries. He provides evidence for this hypothesis, first proposed by Kletzer and Bardhan (1987), using a 30-year panel of data for 65 countries. Controlling for country-specific effects and possible reverse causality, he shows that financial development exerts a large causal impact on the level of both exports and the trade balance of manufactured goods.Economic Theory&Research,Trade Policy,Environmental Economics&Policies,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Banks&Banking Reform,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,TF054105-DONOR FUNDED OPERATION ADMINISTRATION FEE INCOME AND EXPENSE ACCOUNT,Banks&Banking Reform,Inequality

New firm formation and industry growth - does having a market- or bank-based system matter?

The authors find no evidence for the superiority of either market-based or bank-based financial systems for industries dependent on external financing. But they find overwhelming evidence that industries heavily dependent on external finance grow faster in economies with higher levels of financial development, and with better legal protection for outside investors - including strong creditor and shareholder rights and strong contract enforcement mechanisms. Financial development also stimulates the establishment of new firms, which is consistent with the Schumpeterian view of creative destruction. Financial development matters. That the financial system is bank-based on market-based offers little additional information.Fiscal&Monetary Policy,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Banks&Banking Reform,Economic Theory&Research,Decentralization,Financial Economics,Economic Theory&Research,Achieving Shared Growth,Banks&Banking Reform,Governance Indicators

Which Households Use Banks? Evidence from the Transition Economies

This paper uses survey data for 29,000 households from 29 transition economies to explore how the use of banking services is related to household characteristics, bank ownership structure and the development of the financial infrastructure. At the household level we find that the holding of a bank account or bank card increases with income, wealth and education in most countries and also find evidence for an urban-rural gap, as well as for a role of religion and social integration. Our results show that foreign bank ownership is associated with more bank accounts among high-wealth, high-income, and educated households. State ownership, on the other hand, does not induce financial inclusion of rural and poorer households. We find that higher deposit insurance coverage, better payment systems and creditor protection encourage the holding of bank accounts in particular by highincome and high-wealth households. All in all, our findings shed doubt on the ability of policy levers to broaden the financial system to disadvantaged groups.Access to finance, Bank-ownership, Deposit insurance, Payment system, Creditor protection.

Stock markets, banks, and growth : correlation or causality?

The authors investigate the impact of stock markets and banks on economic growth using a panel data set for 1976-98 and applying recent generalized method of moments (GMM) techniques developed for dynamic panels. The authors illustrate econometrically the differences that emerge from different panel procedures. On balance, stock markets and banks positively influence economic growth--and these findings are not a result of biases induced by simulaneity, omitted variables, or inobserved country-specific effects.Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Economic Theory&Research,Financial Intermediation,Banks&Banking Reform,Health Economics&Finance,Economic Theory&Research,Achieving Shared Growth,Financial Intermediation,Governance Indicators,Health Economics&Finance

Legal institutions and financial development

A burgeoning literature finds that financial development exerts a first-order impact on long-run economic growth, which raises critical questions, such as why do some countries have well-developed growth-enhancing financial systems while others do not? The law and finance theory focuses on the role of legal institutions in explaining international differences in financial development. First, the law and finance theory holds that in countries where legalsystems enforce private property rights, support private contractual arrangements, and protect the legal rights of investors, savers are more willing to finance firms and financial markets flourish. Second, the different legal traditions that emerged in Europe over previous centuries and were spread internationally through conquest, colonization, and imitation help explain cross-country differences in investor protection, the contracting environment, and financial development today. But there are countervailing theories and evidence that challenge both parts of the law and finance theory. Many argue that there is more variation within than across legal origin families. Others question the central role of legal tradition and point to politics, religious orientation, or geography as the dominating factor driving financial development. Finally, some researchers question the central role of legal institutions and argue that other factors, such as a competitive products market, social capital, and informal rules are also important for financial development. Beck and Levine describe the law and finance theory, along with skeptical and competing views, and review empirical evidence on both parts of the law and finance view.Judicial System Reform,Legal Products,Gender and Law,Labor Policies,Legal Institutions of the Market Economy,Legal Products,Judicial System Reform,Legal Institutions of the Market Economy,National Governance,Gender and Law

Institution building and growth in transition economies

Drawing on the recent literature on economic institutions and the origins of economic development, the authors offer a political economy explanation of why institution building has varied so much across transition economies. They identify dependence on natural resources and the historical experience of these countries during socialism as major determinants of institution building during transition by influencing the political structure and process during the initial years. Their empirical analysis shows that countries that are more reliant on natural resources and spent a longer time under socialist governments are more likely to see former communists remain in power and to start the transition process with less open political systems, with negative repercussions for the development of market-compatible institutions. Using natural resource reliance and the years under socialism to extract the exogenous component of institution building, the authors also show the importance of institutions in explaining the variation in economic development and growth across transition economies during the first decade of transition.