Banking Sector Liberalization and Reform in the Post-Communist Region after 1989: Assessing the Impact of Domestic Politics, International Conditionality, and Economic Development. IHS Political Science Series Paper No. 116, June 2008

This paper connects the literature on market liberalization in advanced industrialized countries and that on economic reform in transitional countries. It tests three important theoretical frameworks in the analysis of policy change—domestic politics, international pressures, and economic development—using time-series cross-section analysis of 25 post-communist states. The findings reveal a complex causal pattern where factors from all three theoretical frameworks are substantively important. On the domestic level, curbing corruption is strongly related to more banking sector liberalization. The higher the presence of foreign banks in the country, the more banking sector liberalization. On the international level, exposure to stricter IMF conditionality has a positive effect on the extent of banking sector liberalization. The analysis also confirms the salience of structural factors: Measures of economic development such as GDP per capita and stock market capitalization are important predictors of the extent of banking sector liberalization

The fall of Bulgaria’s government provides an opportunity to overcome the country’s persistent corruption problem

The Bulgarian parliament was dissolved on 6 August, with new elections being called for 5 October. As Aneta Spendzharova writes, one of the key precipitating factors in the Bulgarian government’s collapse was a scandal relating to one of the country’s largest banks. She argues that the banking crisis is indicative of wider corruption issues within Bulgaria and that the new elections will provide an opportunity for voters to break with the problems of the past

Banking Union under Construction: The Impact of Foreign Ownership and Domestic Bank Internationalization on European Union Member States’ Regulatory Preferences in Banking Supervision

What is the optimal scope of regulatory harmonization in European financial sector governance? I argue that the levels of foreign ownership and domestic bank internationalization are important determinants of the extent to which governments are prepared to endorse European solutions in banking supervision or prefer national ones. I test two hypotheses about the impact of foreign ownership and domestic bank internationalization on regulatory preferences. This article shows that being a host jurisdiction to foreign financial institutions constrains states’ ability to steer credit flows and tackle perceived threats to national financial stability. As a consequence, decision-makers seek to preserve some national regulatory autonomy. Especially during economic downturns, national supervisory authorities have strong incentives to pursue policies that minimize losses for domestic stakeholders and shift burdens to foreign ones

Explaining the EU’s Uneven Influence Across the International Regime Complex in Shadow Banking

This article shows that the EU has exerted uneven influence within the global regime complex in shadow banking. Why? We seek to explain the variation in the EU’s ability to exert influence across different elemental regimes—those on hedge funds and securitization—in the broader regime complex over time. In hedge funds regulation, the EU has pursued more stringent international rules, to no avail. In securitization, the EU has been more successful in promoting more lenient regulation at the international level. We focus on the EU’s internal cohesiveness (which can change over time) as the key explanatory variable

Banking sector liberalization and reform in the post-communist region after 1989: assessing the impact of domestic politics, international conditionality, and economic development

'Dieser Beitrag verbindet die Literatur zur Marktliberalisierung in fortgeschrittenen Industriestaaten mit derjenigen zur ökonomischen Reform in Transitionsländern. Dabei werden drei wesentliche theoretische Ansätze zur Untersuchung von politischen Reformprozessen auf der Grundlage einer kombinierten Quer- und Längsschnittuntersuchung von 25 postkommunistischen Staaten empirisch getestet - die Effekte nationaler politischer Prozesse, internationale Einflüsse und die Konsequenzen ökonomischer Entwicklungen. Die empirischen Befunde untermauern ein komplexes Verursachungsmuster, das wesentliche Effekte aller drei Argumente belegt. Auf der Ebene der nationalen Politiken tragen Erfolge im Kampf gegen Korruption zur Liberalisierung des Bankensektors bei. Je stärker ausländische Banken sich in einem Land engagieren, desto tiefgreifender wird dieser Sektor liberalisiert. Auf der internationalen Ebene trägt die strikte Konditionalität des IWF zur Liberalisierung des Bankensektors bei. Die Analyse bestätigt auch die Bedeutung struktureller Aspekte: Indikatoren der ökonomischen Entwicklung, etwa das BIP pro Kopf oder die Kapitalisierung der Aktienmärkte, sind wesentliche Einflussgrößen für die Liberalisierung des Bankensektors.' (Autorenreferat)'This paper connects the literature on market liberalization in advanced industrialized countries and that on economic reform in transitional countries. It tests three important theoretical frameworks in the analysis of policy change-domestic politics, international pressures, and economic development-using time-series cross-section analysis of 25 post-communist states. The findings reveal a complex causal pattern where factors from all three theoretical frameworks are substantively important. On the domestic level, curbing corruption is strongly related to more banking sector liberalization. The higher the presence of foreign banks in the country, the more banking sector liberalization. On the international level, exposure to stricter IMF conditionality has a positive effect on the extent of banking sector liberalization. The analysis also confirms the salience of structural factors: Measures of economic development such as GDP per capita and stock market capitalization are important predictors of the extent of banking sector liberalization.' (author's abstract)

Explaining the EU's Uneven Influence Across the International Regime Complex in Shadow Banking

This article shows that the EU has exerted uneven influence within the global regime complex in shadow banking. Why? We seek to explain the variation in the EU's ability to exert influence across different elemental regimes - those on hedge funds and securitization - in the broader regime complex over time. In hedge funds regulation, the EU has pursued more stringent international rules, to no avail. In securitization, the EU has been more successful in promoting more lenient regulation at the international level. We focus on the EU's internal cohesiveness (which can change over time) as the key explanatory variable

Disentangling derivatives: international policy reforms concerning central counterparties

After the 2008 financial crisis, international policy reforms were adopted on various aspects of derivatives markets, highlighting the need for precise and consistent rules. We examine the making of international rules concerning the resilience, recovery and resolution of central counterparties (CCPs), which form acritical global financial infrastructure. We argue that regulators played an important role in setting relatively precise and consistent international standards on CCPs over time. Facing common challenges, such as market fragmentation and interlinkages between issues, fostered a problem-solving approach in transgovernmental networks. We also identify the policy coordination tools used by regulators

Regulators and the Quest for Coherence in Finance::The Case of Loss Absorbing Capacity for Banks

After the international financial crisis, new financial regulation was adopted at the international, regional and national levels, raising the issue of how to promote regulatory coherence, defined as the consistency between the rules adopted at different governance levels and in a variety of policy venues. A major recent area of reform concerned the loss absorbing capacity (LAC) of banks. In practice, the lack of regulatory coherence concerning LAC hampers the effective resolution of large international banks in a timely manner, ultimately undermining financial stability. We examine the role of regulators in the quest for coherence on LAC, explaining the incentives they had and how they deployed their delegated competences at different levels to achieve coherent rules that ensure financial stability. Theoretically, we combine insights from the public administration and political economy literatures. Methodologically, we process trace the making of LAC rules on three governance levels and in multiple policy venues