Author/Editor: Martin Cihak, Wim Fonteyne.

Release Date:March, 2009

The proximity of the European Union, the prospect of membership, and actual entry by the New Member States (NMS) increased economic and financial integration in the region, leading to fast economic more...

Author/Editor: Jörg Decressin, Wim Fonteyne, Hamid Faruqee.

Release Date:September, 2007

By and large, EU financial integration has been a success story. Still, the reform agenda is far from finished. What are the remaining challenges? What are the gains of closer financial market more...

Author/Editor: Wim Fonteyne.

Release Date:July, 2007

This paper explains the continuing success of European cooperative banks through evolving comparative advantages. It points out that a cooperative is built around an intergenerational endowment more...