Using the Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS), a large micro-level dataset on households' wealth in fifteen euro area countries, this paper explores how households allocate their assets. We derive stylized facts on asset participation as well as levels of asset holdings and...

Using the first wave of the Eurosystem Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS), a large micro-level dataset on households? balance sheets in 15 euro area countries, this paper explores how households allocate their assets. We derive stylised facts on asset participation as well as levels...

Using the first wave of the Eurosystem Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS), a large micro-level dataset on households’ balance sheets in 15 euro area countries, this paper explores how households allocate their assets. We derive stylised facts on asset participation as well as...

This paper investigates trends in Italian households� saving and wealth in the last twenty years, with a special emphasis on the period immediately following the financial crisis in 2008. The analysis is based on data from the Italian Survey on Household Income and Wealth (1991-2010). The...

This paper examines the impact of financial constraints on innovation for established firms. We make use of a direct measure of the existence of financial constraints obtained thanks to a specific survey addressed to French established firms. This is a distinctive feature of this paper as most...

The paper presents the main results of the Eurosystem�s Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS) with an emphasis on the data for Italy in the international context. The paper examines households� socio-demographic characteristics, assets and income distribution, participation...

Which households use consumer credit? This paper addresses the question using harmonized data from Eurostat�s EU-SILC survey for nine European countries in the period 2005-08. There is wide heterogeneity in participation in the consumer credit market, ranging from 15 to 46 per cent across...

This report analyses the main developments in housing finance in the euro area in the decade, covering the period from 1999 to 2007. It looks at mortgage indebtedness, various characteristics of loans for house purchase, the funding of such loans and the spreads between the interest rates on...

This book highlights the achievements and challenges of the ongoing process of financial integration in Europe.   This unique collection will be of great interest to economists and experts in the fields of financial markets and European integration from central, commercial and investment...

The financial crisis that started in August 2007 has led to a worsening in the conditions of credit supply to customers. Since the second half of 2008, several measures have been adopted in order to sustain access to credit for both firms and households, such as debt moratoria, provisions of...