Financial Services and Emerging Markets

This study addresses the organization and strategy of firms in emerging markets with an explicit application to financial services. Given the relevance of a well-functioning financial system for economic growth, understanding the organization and strategy of firms contributing to the development of sound financial services appears of utmost importance for emerging markets. Throughout the study, two main providers of financial services are distinguished, namely banks and stock markets, which are examined in the emerging market context of Central and Eastern Europe and China, respectively.

For banking, the general focus is on the adopted strategies of multinational banks to expand across the Central and Eastern European region. The main findings indicate that, based on the degree of host market uncertainty and competition, multinational banks adopt different expansion strategies. Furthermore, it appears that multinational banks expand most effectively by establishing new subsidiaries in countries adjacent to a country where the bank already has a presence. For stock markets, the central theme is how the decision of mainland Chinese firms on where to list their shares reflects the attractiveness of the stock markets within the financial centers of Shanghai, Shenzhen and Hong Kong. The findings suggest an increasing segregation in the strategic listing decisions that mainland Chinese firms make, which indicates that the financial centers of mainland China and Hong Kong have become more specialized and complementary over time.