This book offers a comparative analysis of how post-crisis restructuring has affected the evolution and prospects of small, locally-oriented banks. The discussion focuses specifically on small European countries; that is, countries with diversified banking systems, with a strong presence of cooperative and other forms of local banks. Such countries include highly developed economies like Italy and emerging European economies, such as Poland. The authors stress the unique importance of local banks in generating credit for both households and firms, and hence in contributing to overall economic growth. Chapters cohere around the argument that although smaller banks fared better than their larger counterparts the recent financial crisis, they have been directly and indirectly discriminated against in post-crisis restructuring schemes, and, as such, face many operational and strategic challenges today. The contributors are a distinguished group of researchers with expert knowledge of the competitive positions of and opportunities for locally oriented banks, who combine theoretical and empirical perspectives on these topics.

Explores the role of small banks in lending activities for SMEs Focuses on Poland and Central and East European Countries (CEE) as well as other European countries with a strong presence of cooperative banks Presents new evidence on how competitive market structure and bank characteristics affect the stability and efficiency of banking sectors Written from the post-crisis perspective Features case studies from Poland and Finland

Autorentext
Ewa Miklaszewska is Professor in Banking and Finance at Cracow University of Economics and Jagiellonian University of Cracow, Poland. She was a visiting researcher in a number of universities, including New York University Stern School of Business (US) and the University of Wales at Bangor (UK). She has also worked in Polish regulatory institutions, including the Ministry of Finance and the National Bank of Poland. She serves on the management committee of the European Association of University Teachers of Banking and Finance (the Wolpertinger Group), and belongs to the group of founding members of the Center for Relationship Banking and Economics (CERBE) at LUMSA University in Rome, Italy. Her research interests are the strategic and regulatory developments in global banking; issues in corporate governance; and the role of ethics in banking.

Inhalt

Introduction: The role of institutional diversity in the banking markets; Paul Wachtel and Ewa Miklaszewska .- Chapter 1) The evolution of banking regulation in the post-crisis period: cooperative and savings banks' perspective; G. Ferri .- Chapter 2) The Role of Stakeholder Banks in European Banking Sector; P. Kalmi .- Chapter 3) Cooperative banks: is demutualization an answer? The experience of Building Societies in the UK; C. Akinsoyinu .- Chapter 4) Community banks and lending technologies: evidence from the Italian retail market; C. Milani .- Chapter 5) The competitive threats and strategic challenges to Polish cooperative banks: a post-crisis perspective; K. Kil, E. Miklaszewska .- Chapter 6) Does banking sector structure affect bank lending and its sensitivity to capital ratio? a cross country study; I. Kowalska, M. Olszak, F. witaa .- Chapter 7) The role of market structure and competitive framework for sound banking sectorin the EU-15 and the EU-12; M. Pawowska .- Chapter 8) Banking diversity and trust in banking services; M. Idzik .- Chapter 9) The role of market and cultural diversification in the evolution of the Polish banking sector; L. Kurkliski .