I would like to thank Vincenzo de Stasio, Maria Iride Vangelisti and participants at the Conference on “L’attuazione della seconda direttiva sui servizi di pagamento e ‘open banking’”, Bergamo, 18-19 October 2019 for comments and suggestions. All remaining errors are my own responsibility. Introduction The provision of payment services is one of the most important […]

Introduction In the last years, after decades of lethargy, the retail payment industry has started to thrive. Means of payment which were unthinkable of in the recent past are now available, and innovative services are offered by old and new players. The revolution in information and telecommunication technologies has taken some time to shake what […]

The Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) is the first pillar of the European Banking Union. The third issue of European Economy – Banks, Regulation, and the Real Sector examines the design  of the SSM, the major issues concerning its implementation, and the main future challenges ahead, focusing on how far the SSM is an effective enabler […]

Lending to the real economy is a fundamental ingredient to restore a sustainable growth path. Especially important is lending to Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs). This for two reasons. First because these firms account for a large share of GDP  in all advanced and emerging economies; second, because SMEs are fairly risky subjects and Basel III […]