Scandinavian Working Papers in Economics

Working Paper Series,
Sveriges Riksbank (Central Bank of Sweden)

No 210: Acquisition versus greenfield: The impact of the mode of foreign bank entry on information and bank lending rates

Sophie Claeys () and Christa Hainz ()
Additional contact information
Sophie Claeys: Research Department, Central Bank of Sweden, Postal: Sveriges Riksbank, SE-103 37 Stockholm, Sweden
Christa Hainz: Department of Economics, University of Munich, Postal: Akademiestr. 1/III, 80799 Munich

Abstract: Policy makers often decide to liberalize foreign bank entry but put limitations on the mode of entry. We study how different entry modes affect the lending rate set by foreign and domestic banks. Our model captures two essential features of banking competition in emerging markets: Domestic banks possess private information about their incumbent clients and foreign banks have better screening skills. Our model predicts that competition is stronger if foreign entry occurs through a greenfield investment and domestic banks' interest rates are thus lower. We find empirical support for this differential competition effect for a sample of banks from ten Eastern European countries for the period 1995-2003.

Keywords: Banking; Foreign Entry; Mode of Entry; Interest Rate; Asymmetric Information

JEL-codes: D40; G21; L31

70 pages, June 1, 2007

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