Death of a bank - Ice-cool Bank Austria chairman Gerhard Randa in January snatched away Creditanstalt from almost certain union with First Austrian and EA-Generali. The takeover, steeped in Austria's left-right politics, threatens Creditanstalt with extinction but may be Vienna's best shot at competing in euros. Was this fair play or foul?

E-payments and cash management - Survival of the slickest - Efficient e-payments have little appeal for banks, since they're expensive to install and go against their own interests. But can they afford to be passive by-standers?

Shirreff, David, (2001)

German bank mergers: Dance of the cobra - Dramatic change in Germany's banking industry has long been predicted but very little has been achieved. Cobra's attempt to increase its stake in Commerzbank provoked the bank into frantic merger negotiations with Dresdner. But once again the deal failed. Where now for Germany's banks?

Shirreff, David, (2000)

Central and eastern European banks: Grand masters of opacity - The rescue of Investicni a Postovni Banka in Prague was dramatic and highly controversial. So is the bank's entire history - an essay in how not to privatize. Was the solution a political stitch-up, or did the Czech authorities finally do the right thing?

Shirreff, David, (2000)