| Authors |
Pascali |
| Journal |
Review of Economics and Statistics |
| Year |
2016 |
| Type |
Published Paper |
| Abstract |
Are differences in local banking development long lasting? Do they affect economic performance? I answer these questions by relying on a historical development that occurred in Italian cities during the Renaissance. A change in Catholic doctrine led to the development of modern banks in cities hosting Jewish communities. Using Jewish demography in 1500 as an instrument, I provide evidence of extraordinary persistence in the level of banking development across Italian cities and substantial effects of local banks on per capita income. Additional firm-level analyses suggest that banks exert large effects on aggregate productivity by reallocating resources toward more efficient firms. |
| Keywords |
Banking development, religion, Jewish, economic productivity, long-lasting differences |
| URL |
https://doi.org/10.1162/REST_a_00481 |
| Tags |
Archival Empirical |
Investment Decisions (Institutional)
|