Based on a review of the analytical underpinnings of the effects of the NSFR on banks' choices, this paper attempts to relate banks' strategies to developments in the value of the ratio in the euro area. In spite of a not-so-near implementation date, the evidence is that the NSFR already matters...

We find evidence of a bank lending channel for the euro area operating via bank risk. Financial innovation and the new ways to transfer credit risk have tended to diminish the informational content of standard bank balance-sheet indicators. We show that bank risk conditions, as perceived by...