Economic NotesPub Date : 2026-06-22DOI: 10.1111/ecno.70024
Paulo Morais Francisco, Eduardo Couto
{"title":"ESG Variations Across Banking Loan Types: Evidence From European Listed Banks","authors":"Paulo Morais Francisco, Eduardo Couto","doi":"10.1111/ecno.70024","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/ecno.70024","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Building on social-capital theory and transaction-cost theory, we examine whether European banks' rated ESG performance varies systematically with the composition of their loan portfolios. Merging Refinitiv ESG scores with Orbis Bank Focus loan-book data for 51 EU-listed banks over 2005–2022, we estimate pooled OLS, random-effects, fixed-effects, lagged-variable, and dynamic System-GMM specifications. The evidence points to one robust regularity and two more qualified patterns. First, banks with higher mortgage-loan shares tend to have lower ESG ratings: a one-standard-deviation increase in mortgage intensity is associated with an approximately three-point lower composite ESG score and up to five points lower environmental pillar score, and the negative mortgage association remains visible in the dynamic System-GMM models. Second, consumer-loan intensity is positively associated with ESG ratings in random-effects, fixed-effects, and lagged fixed-effects specifications, particularly for the environmental and social pillars, but this association is not statistically significant in the dynamic System-GMM models. Third, corporate-loan exposure shows no stable relationship with overall ESG ratings. We interpret these patterns as consistent with a trust-intensity mechanism: ESG commitments and lending technologies appear to align differently across collateral-rich, standardised lending and softer-information retail activities.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":44298,"journal":{"name":"Economic Notes","volume":"55 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148324293","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Economic NotesPub Date : 2026-06-22DOI: 10.1111/ecno.70022
Ivo J. M. Arnold
{"title":"Fragmentation Risk: What Is It and Should the ECB Care?","authors":"Ivo J. M. Arnold","doi":"10.1111/ecno.70022","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/ecno.70022","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In 2022, the ECB introduced a new policy tool, the Transmission Protection Instrument, to reduce the risk of financial fragmentation in the euro area, following the normalization of monetary policy. This paper aims to clarify what is meant by fragmentation risk, where it comes from, how it affects the real economy and what can be done about it. We propose a typology of fragmentation risks and examine their destabilizing potential within a monetary union by means of a small macroeconomic model. We next provide empirical evidence of fragmentation risk and discuss possible policy responses. We conclude that, although the risk of fragmentation is real, ECB intervention is not the only game in town to contain it.</p>","PeriodicalId":44298,"journal":{"name":"Economic Notes","volume":"55 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ecno.70022","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148324191","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Economic NotesPub Date : 2026-06-16DOI: 10.1111/ecno.70021
Salvatore Piccolo, Gabriel Baron, Jorge Padilla
{"title":"Stepping Stones or Stumbling Blocks? Domestic Mergers and Cross-Border Consolidation","authors":"Salvatore Piccolo, Gabriel Baron, Jorge Padilla","doi":"10.1111/ecno.70021","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/ecno.70021","url":null,"abstract":"<p>We build on empirical evidence showing that international acquisitions exhibit path dependence and often unfold as sequences of deals, and argue that domestic and cross-border mergers are not necessarily isolated events. Specifically, we ask whether blocking a domestic merger that reduces consumer surplus in the short run could inadvertently preclude a subsequent cross-border acquisition (by the same parties) that would raise consumer surplus in both the home and foreign markets. To address this question, we develop a Cournot model with increasing marginal costs and show that moderate, complementary synergies can make hybrid mergers—those combining domestic and cross-border elements—both profitable and beneficial for consumer surplus, even when each merger on its own would not be viable and/or would harm consumers. Our analysis suggests that, in settings where such complementarities are plausible, the interaction and sequencing of domestic and cross-border mergers may be relevant for assessing their long-run welfare implications.</p>","PeriodicalId":44298,"journal":{"name":"Economic Notes","volume":"55 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ecno.70021","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148269020","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Economic NotesPub Date : 2026-02-24DOI: 10.1111/ecno.70019
Marco Guerrazzi
{"title":"Private and Social Welfare Gains in the Diamond-Dybvig Model: A Rationale for the Existence of Banks","authors":"Marco Guerrazzi","doi":"10.1111/ecno.70019","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/ecno.70019","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In this paper, I evaluate the private and the social welfare gains that in the Diamond-Dybvig model of bank runs characterise the switch from a decentralised to a centralised equilibrium that may hold even in an atomistic environment with banking intermediation. Relying on logarithmic preferences, I show that such a social welfare gain is an increasing function of the discount rate of more patient agents. Moreover, I demonstrate that for each level of the discount rate of agents who are willing to postpone consumption, there is an optimal value of the proportion of these agents in the economy that maximises the social welfare gain.</p>","PeriodicalId":44298,"journal":{"name":"Economic Notes","volume":"55 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-02-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ecno.70019","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147320920","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Economic NotesPub Date : 2026-02-13DOI: 10.1111/ecno.70018
Catherine Georgiou, Athanasios P. Fassas
{"title":"Spotting the Predictive Dynamics of Cyclically-Adjusted Financial Ratios in the US Stock Market","authors":"Catherine Georgiou, Athanasios P. Fassas","doi":"10.1111/ecno.70018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/ecno.70018","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Predicting returns is a timeless and important economic topic. Fundamental analysts see identifying time-varying predictive factors as a key goal in asset pricing. This paper provides strong evidence of time-varying return predictability of the S&P 500 Index from 1929 to 2020, by proposing the construction of altered versions of the classical dividend-price (dp) and earnings-price (ep). Our study's primary objectives are to introduce a cyclical adjustment to the simple dp and ep, which would smooth dividends and earnings, to compare the predictive dynamics of these new ratios with their simple counterparts and to modify all ratios based on long-run equilibrium relationships that arise between the examined variables. We provide solid evidence that the cyclically-adjusted ratios perform better than the simple predictors in all forecasting horizons, both in and out of sample, and the modified variables capture more predictive components in returns. Through certain robustness checks including multivariate regression settings and evidence on excess and real return predictability, we thoroughly present the predictive components identified in our data set.</p>","PeriodicalId":44298,"journal":{"name":"Economic Notes","volume":"55 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2026-02-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ecno.70018","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146680370","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Economic NotesPub Date : 2025-10-26DOI: 10.1111/ecno.70016
T. Raja Rupa, G. Parimalarani
{"title":"“From Savings to Security: The Impact of Self-Help Group Micro Savings on Financial Stability and Development—A Literature Analysis”","authors":"T. Raja Rupa, G. Parimalarani","doi":"10.1111/ecno.70016","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/ecno.70016","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>This literature review examines the impact of micro-savings, particularly through Self-Help Groups (SHGs), on economic development, with a specific focus on Asian and developing countries. The review investigates how increased savings, especially in rural areas and among women, contribute to economic growth by facilitating investment and empowering individuals. A variety of studies employing diverse methodologies to explore the relationship between savings, financial inclusion, and economic growth are assessed. The findings suggest that access to savings services and financial inclusion measures significantly and positively influence economic growth, particularly in contexts where informal savings are prevalent. The role of SHGs in promoting savings and microenterprise development is also highlighted.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":44298,"journal":{"name":"Economic Notes","volume":"54 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2025-10-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145406511","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Economic NotesPub Date : 2025-07-29DOI: 10.1111/ecno.70013
Prince PIVA. Asaloko, Itchoko Montande Mwa Ndjokou Mondjeli
{"title":"The Digital Divide and the Financial Inclusion of Women: Evidence From African Countries","authors":"Prince PIVA. Asaloko, Itchoko Montande Mwa Ndjokou Mondjeli","doi":"10.1111/ecno.70013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/ecno.70013","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>This article analyzes how the digital divide affects women's financial inclusion in 36 African countries from 2011 to 2022. Employing the quantile regression estimation technique, the main finding shows that the digital divide severely impedes financial inclusion. The negative finding is robust with respect to the use of women's financial inclusion sub-indexes and alternative measures of the digital divide. The negative relationship is robust to OLS, Tobit, censored Poisson and truncated negative binomial estimators. Furthermore, we find that income inequality amplifies the negative effect of the digital divide on women's financial inclusion, whereas human capital mitigates the effect of the digital divide and improves women's financial inclusion. Above certain human capital thresholds, the digital divide no longer has a negative impact on the financial inclusion of women. Based on the quantiles, on average, about 10 years of schooling of the population is required to compensate for the unfavourable effect of the digital divide on the financial inclusion of women. Policy implications are discussed.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":44298,"journal":{"name":"Economic Notes","volume":"54 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144716585","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}