This paper examines determinants of corruption across Russian regions. Key contributions include: (i) a formal study of economic corruption determinants across Russian regions; (ii) comparisons of determinants of perceived corruption versus those of actual corruption; and (iii) studying the...

This paper investigates the effects of focus versus diversification on bank performance using data on Chinese banks during the 1996-2006 period. We construct a new measure, economies of diversi-fication, and compare the results to those of the more conventional focus indices, which are based on...

This paper provides a modelling framework for evaluating the exchange rate dynamics of a target zone regime with undisclosed bands. We generalize the literature to allow for asymmetric one-sided regimes. Market participants' beliefs concerning an undisclosed band change as they learn more about...

This paper examines the impacts of the 2005 shift in Russian exchange rate policies from single-currency to bi-currency basket targeting on domestic interest rates and sovereign risk premium dynamics. The policy shift disconnected domestic interest rates from US dollar-denominated interest...

This paper investigates stock market reaction to debt arrangements in Russia. The analysis of the valuation of debt arrangements by stock markets provides information about the use of debt by Russian companies. We apply the event study methodology to check whether debt announcements lead to...

This paper examines how the introduction of deposit insurance influences the relationship between bank cap-ital and liquidity creation. As discussed by Berger and Bouwman (2009), there are two competing hypothes-es on this relationship which can be influenced by the presence of deposit...

This paper studies the wealth channel in China. Using the structural vector autoregression method, we find that a loosening of China.s monetary policy indeed leads to higher asset prices, which in turn are linked to household consumption. However, the importance of the wealth channel as a part...

This paper develops an open-economy DSGE model with a housing-market sector and a borrowing constraint. Contrary to standard conventions, domestic households are allowed to invest in foreign housing and vice versa. Using Bayesian methods, the model is applied to data for Hong Kong. The results...

The aim of this paper is to investigate whether Islamic banks have greater market power than con-ventional banks. An Islamic bank, for example, might enjoy enhanced market power if a captive clientele adhering to religious principles permits it to charge higher prices. To measure market power,...

The aim of this paper is to analyze bank competition in Russia by measuring the market power of Russian banks and its determinants over the period 2001-2007 with the Lerner index. Earlier studies on bank competition have focused on developed countries whereas this paper contributes to the...