Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping the financial sector. This column introduces the seventh report in The Future of Banking series, which examines the fundamental transformations induced by AI and the policy challenges it raises. It focuses on three main themes: the use of AI in financial intermediation, central banking and policy, and regulatory challenges; the […]
Safe assets are financial instruments that maintain a stable value even after adverse macroeconomic shocks. This column explores how banks supply safe assets through securitisation and evaluates the consequences for financial stability. As safe assets become scarcer, banks increasingly rely on securitisation to produce safe assets, relaxing screening standards in the process. This lowers loan […]
Imagine your favorite open-air market. Stalls hustle for customers, prices fall, and shoppers win—until one fragile roof gives way and everyone scrambles. Banking is similar. Lean rivalry makes credit cheaper; cut-throat rivalry slashes margins so deeply that lenders may gamble to survive. Finding the sweet spot is not guess-work. A new World Bank working paper – Navigating […]
Foreign stock exchange listings have become increasingly popular during the last 80 years. This column examines companies that were governed and listed in London during 1869-1929 but operated in Latin America and asks how this separation affected the firm value. The findings suggest that the location of governance for the firm has a more material […]
In 2018, after 3 years of droughts, the city of Cape Town in South Africa faced severe water shortages. Dam reservoir capacity had dropped to critical levels and the city was fast approaching “Day Zero” of no water availability. Desalination, new dams, strict water usage limits – all solutions were on the table. Solving the […]
Global housing markets have come under scrutiny for a number of concerns, including affordability, homelessness, and the contribution of housing to growing inequality. This column introduces a conceptual framework that integrates the consumption, capital, and locational aspects of housing to highlight how housing both reflects and drives inequality. The authors suggest numerous areas in which […]
