This paper considers the issue of forecasting financial fragility of banks and insurances using a panel data set of performance indicators, namely distance-to-default, taking unobserved common factors into account. We show that common factors are important in the performance of banks and...

We study the determinants of sovereign bond yield spreads across 10 EMU countries between Q1/1999 and Q1/2010. We apply a semiparametric time-varying coefficient model to identify, to what extent an observed change in the yield spread is due to a shift in macroeconomic fundamentals or due to...

A strong private equity market is a cornerstone for commercialization and innovation in modern economies. However, substantial differences exist in the relative amounts raised and invested in private equity across European countries. We investigate the macro-determinants of private equity...

We use futures instead of forward rates to study the complete maturity spectrum of the forward premium puzzle from two days to six months. At short maturities the slope coefficient is positive, but these turn negative as the maturity increases to the monthly level. Futures data allow us to...

We use futures instead of forward rates to study the complete maturity spectrum of the forward premium puzzle from two days to six months. At short maturities the slope coefficient is positive, but these turn negative as the maturity increases to the monthly level. Futures data allow us to...

Confronted with a different macroeconomic and financial environment, the ECB and the Fed monetary stances seem to be more and more on diverging paths. While the Fed has stopped its quantitative easing (QE) operations and has recently decided to raise the target range for the federal funds rate,...

Confronted with a different macroeconomic and financial environment, the ECB and the Fed monetary stances seem to be more and more on diverging paths. While the Fed has stopped its quantitative easing (QE) operations and has recently decided to raise the target range for the federal funds rate,...