Farzad Saidi
Title of research: Real Effects of Financial Development: Bank Scope and Informal Finance
My main set of projects analyses the deregulation of scope in financial intermediation. I argue that a lender’s scope of banking activities is crucial in determining its incentives to acquire information about a borrower. Universal banks are intermediaries with a wide scope and can, thus, be considered informed lenders. I am empirically evaluating (i) to what extent informed lending leads to a reduction in the size of loan syndicates and (ii) international spill-overs of the U.S. deregulation of bank scope. The second part of my current agenda looks at the development of informal financial institutions in a developing country context.
Research Update - Report March 2016
Research Update - Report September 2015