An Interest Stabilisation Mechanism to Unburden the ECB

Following the twin crises of sovereign debt and COVID-19, the ECB risks being stuck in a situation of fiscal dominance, in which monetary policy is subordinated to the needs of finance ministers. A strong post-COVID-19 recovery may increase inflationary pressures, requiring a shift towards a less accommodative monetary policy stance. A tightening of monetary policy may, however, lead to a widening of interest rate spreads and new bond market tensions in the euro area. This article argues that the credibility of the ECB is undermined if it is perceived as aiming to close interest spreads. Interest spreads between euro countries arising from fiscal concerns should be a matter of fiscal policy, not monetary policy. The establishment of an interest stabilisation mechanism would allow the ECB to restore monetary dominance and to focus on maintaining price stability.

Unlimiting Unlimited Liability: Legal Equality for Swedish Banks with Alternative Shareholder Liability Regimes, 1897–1903

This article examines the aftermath of the 1897 Riksbank Act in Swedish banking. The act placed banks with unlimited liability and those with limited liability on equal footing, removing the note-issuing privileges of the former. We consider whether changes in risk preferences occurred subsequent to the act, or whether extended liability was a sufficient deterrent. We conclude that when legal differences were removed, lower transaction costs for unlimited liability banks (ULBs) spurred aggressive competition, reflected in narrower interest spreads relative to limited liability banks (LLBs). ULBs also took on greater leverage and held less liquidity, which supports the Coasean interpretation that the shareholder liability regime mattered little. After 1897, ULB shareholders continued to receive higher dividends, enjoyed substantially superior returns on equity, and maintained an array of corporate governance controls to shield themselves against their additional risk.

Analysis of the Impact of Interest Rate Liberalization on Financial Services Management in Chinese Commercial Banks

With the advancement of China's interest rate marketization reform, commercial banks' net interest margin has narrowed. This paper selects 16 representative listed banks as the research object and conducts an empirical analysis from the two dimensions: profit level and profit structure. The study finds that the marketization of interest rates promoted the narrowing of net interest margins caused by the narrowing of net interest margins, and the profitability of commercial banks was suppressed. The narrowing of net interest spreads forced commercial banks to actively expand their intermediate business activities and adjust business structure correspondingly. The narrowing of net interest spreads has different impacts on the profitability of commercial banks of different sizes.

Macroeconomic and Bank-Specific Determinants of Non-Performing Loans: Evidence from Nepalese Banking System

This paper aims to evaluate the macroeconomic and bank-specific determinants of non-performing loans (NPL) in the Nepalese banking system using both static and dynamic panel estimation approaches. The study considers 30 Nepalese commercial banks over the period 2003-2015 and uses 7 bank-specific and 5 macroeconomic variables to assess the impact of banking management and economic indicators on NPL. The findings show that NPLs have significant positive relationship with the export to import ratio, inefficiency, and assets size and a negative relationship with the GDP growth rate, capital adequacy, and inflation rate. The results of the empirical study indicate low economic growth as the primary cause of high NPLs in Nepal and suggest that efficient management and effective financial policies are required for a stable financial system and economy. This is the first complete study in the Nepalese banking system and also the first study that has evaluated the effects of remittance, public debts and interest spreads on NPL. The findings of this study will be helpful in designing the macroprudential and fiscal policies in Nepal.