Bulgaria and Romania are neighbouring countries, which have always been rivals. Following the decision on EU enlargement to include Bulgaria and Romania (late 1999) and with membership negotiations already started (2004), the race between the two countries gained momentum and comparisons of...

The paper examines the efficiency of Bulgarian banks and its determinants over the period 1999-2007. The levels of technical, allocative, and cost efficiency are estimated using a non-parametric methodology and then regressed upon a number of bank-specific, institutional, and EU-related factors....

This paper traces the origins of the different monetary regimes adopted in Bulgaria and Romania in 1996-97 and examines their performance during the EU accession. The findings indicate that the constraints of the currency board in Bulgaria shifted economic activity towards the private sector,...