Finance and Investment: The European Case

Low growth, low investment, insufficient spend on infrastructure, weak bank lending to the corporate sector, and funding deficiencies of small and medium-sized enterprises are all causes of concern in Europe. To many, they point to fundamental problems in the financing of European companies and in Europe's financial systems. Are these concerns valid and do the structure and performance of the financial system lie at their heart? If so, what should be done to address them, and have the right policy prescriptions been identified to date?

A product of the Restarting European Investment Finance research programme, Finance and Investment: The European Case brings together leading researchers to consider the causes of the persistently low level of investment in Europe. It examines the extent to which the financial system is a contributory factor and identifies possible remedies, considering the relation of finance to corporate sector investment, the lending behaviour of banks, the provision of equity financing, and the role of public sector institutions, regulation, and taxation.

Finance and Investment provides one of the most comprehensive and thorough analyses of any financial system undertaken to date. It reflects a large body of research using new and existing data sets, employing advanced empirical tools, and exploiting the unique insights provided by the tumultuous events of financial and sovereign debt crises. Together, they comprise an exceptional body of knowledge to advance academic thinking and guide policy formulation.

Contributors:

Viral V. Acharya- C.V Starr Professor of Economics, New York University Stern Business School, USA
Albert Banal-Estanol- Associate Professor in Economics and Fiance, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain; Affiliated Reader, City University, London, UK; Research Fellow, DIW, Berlin, Germany; Research Fellow, IESE Business School, Barcelona, Spain
Francesco Barbiero- Research Analyst, European Central Bank, Frankfurt, Germany
Enrique Benito- Fellow, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, UK; Adjunct Professor, UPF Barcelona School of Management, Spain
Marcello Bianchi- Deputy Director General, Assonime, Rome, Italy
Paola Bongini- Full Professor of Banking and Finance, University of Milan-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
Brunella Bruno- Tenured Researcher, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy
Philipp-Bastian Brutcher- Economist, European Investment Bank, Luxembourg
Claire Célérier- Assistant Professor of Finance, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Canada
Fabrizio Coricelli- Professor of Economics, Paris School of Economics, France
Alexandra D'Onofrio- Economist, Assonime, Rome, Italy; Research Fellow, Arcelli Center for Monetary and Financial Studies, Luiss Guido Carli University, Rome, Italy
Gilles Duruflé- Independent Consultant
Alexander Eisele- Quantitative Analyst, UBS Asset Management, London, UK
Tim Eisert- Assistant Professor of Finance, Erasmus School of Economics, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Marcela Eslava- Professor of Economics, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
Christian Eufinger- Assistant Professor, IESE Business School, Barcelona, Spain
Annalisa Ferrando- Advisor, European Investment Bank, London, UK; Principal Economist, European Central Bank, Frankfurt, Germany
Dario Focarelli- Director General, ANIA, Rome, Italy
Xavier Freixas- Professor, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain; Research Fellow, CEPR
Marco Frigerio- Research Fellow of Banking and Finance, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
Matteo Gargantini- Official, CONSOB, Rome, Italy
Alberto Giovannini- Chairman, MTS SpA, Rome, Italy; Chairman, Salini Impregilo SpA, Rome, Italy
Thomas Hellmann- Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Saïd School of Business, University of Oxford, UK
Christian Hirsch- Postdoctoral Researcher, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
Vasso Ioannidou- Professor of Finance, Lancaster University, UK; Research Fellow, CEPR
Dmitry Khametshin- Graduate Student, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
Thomas Kick- Head, Stress Testing Section, Banking Supervision Department, Deutsche Bundesbank, Frankfurt, Germany
Atanas Kolev- Senior Economist, European Investment Bank, Luxembourg
José María Liberti- Clinical Professor of Finance, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, Evanston, US; William M. Scholl Professor of Finance, DePaul University, Chicago, US
Giuseppe Lusignani- Deputy Chairman, Prometeia, Milan, Italy; Professor of Economics of Fianancial Intermediaries, University of Bologna, Italy
Immacolata Marino - Post-Doctoral Reseach Fellow, Department of Economics and Statistics, Federico II University, Naples, Italy; Research Fellow, Center for Studies in Economics and Finance, Naples, Italy
Thomas Mosk- Assistant Professor of Finance, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
Giacomo Nocera- Associate Professor, Audencia Business School, Nantes, France
Marco Onado- Senior Professor, Department of Finance, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy
José-Luis Peydró- ICREA Professor of Economics, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
Alexander Popov- Senior Economist, European Central Bank, Frankfurt, Germany
Andrea Resti- Professor, Bocconi University, Milan
Debora Revoltella- Director, Economics Department, European Investment Bank, Luxembourg
Emanuele Rossi- Associate Professor of Corporate Finance, University of Milan-Bicocca, Italy
Sergio Schmukler, Lead Economist, Development Economcs Research Group, World Bank
Enrico Sette- Principal Economist, Bank of Italy
Maria Soledad (Sole) Martinez Peria- Chief, Macro-Financial Division, International Monetary Fund Research Department, Washington, US
Jason Sturgess- Assistant Professor of Finance, Driehaus College of Business and Kellstadt Graduate School of Business, DePaul University, Chicago, US
Karen Wilson- Senior Fellow, Bruegel, Brussels, Belgium
Marcin Wolski- Economist, European Investment Bank, Luxembourg