Stock Return Volatility on Scandinavian Stock Markets and the Banking Industry

This paper investigates the evolution of the (conditional) volatility of returns on three Scandinavian markets (Finland, Norway and Sweden) over the turbulent period of the past decade, namely the overlapping periods of financial liberalisation, drastically changing macroeconomic conditions and banking crisis. We find that even over this relatively turbulent period volatility is in most cases successfully captured by past volatility and shocks to past volatility, ie by a (symmetric) GARCH process. In each country banking crisis has induced regime shifts in (unconditional) volatility. We also find evidence for cross-country volatility spillovers during the banking crisis episodes. The estimated volatility patterns suggest that even though the volatility of returns was of very high magnitude during the years of banking crisis, developments within the banking industry were not reflected in market uncertainty until all the damage had been done and the severe problems afflicting banks began to be realised in full.GARCH; conditional volatility; banking crisis; volatility spillovers

Monitoring and Market Power in Loan Markets

Whether or not banks are engaged in ex ante monitoring of customers may have important consequences for the whole economy. We approach this question via a model in which banks can invest in either information acquisition or market power (product differentiation). The two alternatives generate different predictions, which are tested using panel data on Finnish local banks. We find evidence that banks’ investments in branch networks and human capital (personnel) contribute to information acquisition but not to market power. We also find that managing customers’ money transactions enhances banks ability to control their lending risks.banks; information acquisition; market power; fixed costs; branch network; default costs

Geneses of labour market turnover: Job search and entrepreneurial aspirations on-the-job

In this paper we study the labour market behavior of employed individuals that have entrepreneurial aspirations in addition to aspirations to switch job. We analyze empirically these two “search processes” side-by-side and report three main findings: First, neither entrepreneurial aspirations nor aspirations to switch job are uncommon, but only few are engaged in both search processes. Second, the two processes are not alike: It is more difficult to empirically explain entrepreneurial aspirations than aspirations to switch job. Only few observable characteristics of the employed are related to both processes. Varied experience and job dissatisfaction are directly related to the probability of having entrepreneurial aspirations and aspirations to switch job, while job tenure is inversely related to them. Finally, the two processes are not conditionally independent. Unobservable heterogeneity common to many non-searchers drives this result.entrepreneurship, job search, experience, job satisfaction

Investor protection and business creation

We study the effects of investor protection on the availability of external finance, entrepreneurship, and creation of new firms in an equilibrium search model of private capital markets. In addition to search frictions, we examine contract frictions, specifically interim and ex post moral hazard problems stemming from entrepreneurs’ possibilities to expropriate financiers. In our model, the government chooses the level of investor protection that determines the transferability of match surplus between entrepreneurs and financiers. The results indicate that anything that increases (decreases) entrepreneurship also increases (decreases) the creation of start-ups. The effect of investor protection on the creation of start-ups thus hinges on the relative importance of various search and contract frictions. Only when investor protection has a sufficiently large impact on the ex post moral hazard problem relative to the interim moral hazard does strengthening investor protection enhance start-up creation. We also find that search frictions dilute the beneficial effect of investor protection and that contract frictions modify the standard Hosios condition for efficiency.investor protection; start-up financing; private equity market; entrepreneurship; corporate finance

Monitoring and Market Power in Credit Markets

No abstract.

Consumer awareness and the use of payment media: evidence from young Finnish consumers

In the market for payment media, some consumers use only one medium when paying for their point-of-sale transactions, while others use many. This pattern reflects the diffusion of new payment media, because a payment method innovation is typically first used simultaneously with the established methods. We study the use of multiple payment media by employing data on young Finnish consumers. We find that the use of multiple payment media is directly related to consumer awareness and that not controlling for the endogeneity of awareness can bias its effect downwards. These results suggest that increasing consumer awareness may have been underlying the rise of debit card use around the world. It could also speed up the adoption of new means of payment, such electronic money and mobile payments. To the extent that antitrust concerns in the market for payment media stem from the lack of information, improving consumer awareness could be a remedy.payment media; consumer awareness; adoption of financial technology

Multihoming in the market for payment media: evidence from young Finnish consumers

In the market for payment media, some consumers use only one medium when paying for their point-of-sale transactions, while others multihome and use many. As this pattern reflects the diffusion of new payment media, we take a look at the determinants of the adoption of new payment media through the window of multihoming. Using data on young Finnish consumers, we find that one key determinant of multihoming behaviour is consumer awareness. Our instrumental variable estimates indicate that the better informed use 1.2–1.3 times more payment media than the less informed. Because many payment method innovations are typically first used simultaneously with established methods, our results suggest that increasing consumer awareness could significantly speed up the adoption of new means of payment, such electronic money and mobile payments.payment media; multihoming; consumer awareness; adoption of financial technology

Enhancing Bank Transparency: A Re-assessment

Transparency regulation aims at reducing financial fragility by strengthening market discipline. There are however two elementary properties of banking that may render such regulation inefficient at best and detrimental at worst. First, an extensive financial safety net may eliminate the disciplinary effect of transparency regulation. Second, achieving transparency is costly for banks, as it dilutes their charter values, and hence it also reduces their private costs of risk-taking. We consider both the direct costs of complying with disclosure requirements and the indirect transparency costs stemming from imperfect property rights governing information and specify the conditions under which transparency regulation can (and cannot) reduce financial fragility.information disclosure; market discpline; bank transparency; deposit insurance; financial safety net

Investor protection and business creation

We study the effects of investor protection on the availability of external finance, entrepreneurship, and creation of new firms in an equilibrium search model of private capital markets. In addition to search frictions, we examine contract frictions, specifically interim and ex post moral hazard problems stemming from entrepreneurs’ possibilities to expropriate financiers. In our model, the government chooses the level of investor protection that determines the transferability of match surplus between entrepreneurs and financiers. The results indicate that anything that increases (decreases) entrepreneurship also increases (decreases) the creation of start-ups. The effect of investor protection on the creation of start-ups thus hinges on the relative importance of various search and contract frictions. Only when investor protection has a sufficiently large impact on the ex post moral hazard problem relative to the interim moral hazard does strengthening investor protection enhance start-up creation. We also find that search frictions dilute the beneficial effect of investor protection and that contract frictions modify the standard Hosios condition for efficiency.investor protection, start-up financing, private equity market, entrepreneurship, corporate finance

Law of finance: Evidence from Finland

Although it is widely acknowledged that the benefits of corporate governance reform could be substantial, systematic evidence on such reforms is scant. We both document and evaluate a contemporary corporate governance reform by constructing 18 measures of shareholder and creditor protection for Finland for the period 1980–2000. The measures reveal that shareholder protection has been strengthened whereas creditor protection has been weakened. We also demonstrate how the reform is consistent with a reorganisation of the Finnish financial market in which a bank-centred financial system shifted from relationship-based debt finance towards increasing dominance by the stock market. We find evidence that the development of shareholder protection has been a driver of the reorganisation, whereas the changes in creditor protection have mirrored market developments.corporate finance; financial intermediation; corporate governance