Men and women differ when it comes to ownership of financial products. This is reflected in various analyses as well as in survey data for the European Union. Based on the latter, several interesting patterns can be observed. [more]

The Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) that 11 EU members – including Germany, France, Italy and Spain – are planning to implement in January 2014 is misguided, counterproductive and badly designed. Most importantly, at a time when the cost and availability of capital in the EU is sometimes problematic, the FTT would raise it for households, firms and even states. [more]

The development of bank funding before and during the crisis has highlighted its importance for financial intermediation and credit provision in an economy. Given its importance for banks and households, mortgage finance is of particular importance here, not least with an eye to financial stability issues. This paper provides an overview of banks’ funding of residential mortgages in Europe, taking a close look at the structure of funding instruments and their potential effects on financial stability. [more]

Substituting bank lending has been a recurring theme in connection with corporate bond issuance during the last few years and explains part of the recent peaks. At first sight, corporate bond issuance in EMU’s periphery has kept up with EMU’s core countries. However, below the surface lies a strikingly different pattern that suggests that companies in the periphery receive much less support from bond markets. [more]

The political dynamics in Europe have shifted against universal banks in recent months. This is a dangerous development that threatens the key role such banks play in modern economies and risks eliminating many of the advantages universal banks have to offer: in a “one-stop shop”, they provide their customers with a broad range of tailor-made services, higher volumes of credit and lower funding costs than narrower “specialist banks”. In addition, thanks to the diversification of their operations and the potential to leverage revenue and cost synergies, universal banks tend to be more stable than specialist banks. They also provide for diversity in bank business models and are better positioned to monitor the financial health of specific clients as well as to spot unsustainable risk accumulation across financial markets. [more]