0000000000643162
AUTHOR
Rainer Haselmann
showing 4 related works from this author
Portfolio performance and the Euro: Prospects for new potential EMU members
2008
Abstract Entering the EMU removes currency risk for assets originating in the Euro area while diversification opportunities are likely reduced. Taking the perspective of an investor in one of the 12 countries that joined the EU in 2004–2007, we contrast actual optimal composition of international equity holdings against two artificial scenarios: costless hedging against exchange rate risk and presuming the local market to be part of the EMU. State specific optimal portfolios are determined from realized covariances for the period 2000–2006. Optimized risk is found smaller under currency unification and implied Sharp ratios signal significant benefits of EMU participation.
How Law Affects Lending
2006
A voluminous literature seeks to explore the relation between law and finance, but offers little insights into dynamic relation between legal change and behavioral outcomes or about the distributive effects of law on different market participants. The current paper disentangles the law-finance relation by using disaggregate data on banks’ lending patterns in 12 transition countries over a 8 year period. This allows us to control for country level heterogeneity and differentiate between different types of lenders. Employing a differences-in-differences methodology in an exclusive ”laboratory” setting as well as unique hand collected datasets on legal change as well as changes in bank ownersh…
Risk Taking by Banks in the Transition Countries
2007
The banking sectors of the transition countries have progressed remarkably in the last 15 years. In fact, banking in most transition countries has largely shaken off the traumas of the transition era. At the start of the 21st century banks in these countries look very much like banks elsewhere. That is, they are by no means problem free but they are struggling with the same issues as banks in other emerging market countries. There have been a surprisingly large number of studies that have told us about the performance of these banks but we know very little about their risk taking behaviour and how the banking environment influences it.
The introduction of the Euro and its effects on portfolio decisions
2010
Abstract Examining investment behavior related to the Euro introduction, we address the relevance of different investment determinants. With the advent of the currency union two potential sources of portfolio reallocation can be distinguished: First, the diminishment of exchange rate risk and transaction costs within the EMU. Second, the increase of correlation of EMU returns so that diversification benefits decreased. We test for structural breaks in the holdings of German investors and estimate a market model to account for the two effects. A significant decrease in national and an increase in EMU and rest-of-the-world investments can be observed. Comparing the observed holdings with benc…