This paper reviews the literature on financial crises focusing on three specific aspects. First,
what are the main factors explaining financial crises? Since many theories on the sources of …

This paper analyzes the process of financial development over the last three to four decades
from the perspective of the fundamental frictions (agency and collective) to which economic …

This paper analyzes how financial systems and their regulation in African low-income
countries (LICs), still in their early stages of development, could be shaped to achieve …

With the United States grappling with the greatest economic downturn since the Great
Depression, questions are emerging about whether outsourcing contributes to the instability …

The global financial crisis brought government guarantees to the forefront of the debate.
Based on a review of frictions that hinder financial contracting, this paper concludes that the …

Designing a financial sector and its regulation, in a way that promotes development,
provides a particularly challenging area for policy design and research. The policy …

This paper discusses and critically appraises recent developments in the definition,
measurement, and regulation of systemic risks. Although the issue of systemic risks has …

There was limited experience in the use of macroprudential instruments before the crisis.
The most prominent examples are the use of loan-to-value (LTV) ratios in some Asian …

This paper examines the conceptual foundations of macroprudential policy by reviewing the
literature on financial frictions from a policy perspective that systematically links state …

Finance provides a particularly challenging area for policy design and research, especially if
placed in the context of those countries' needs for development. The policy challenges and …