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Lost diversity: Business lending in the centralised banking system of the UK

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Flögel, F., Gärtner, S. Lost diversity: Business lending in the centralised banking system of the UK. Vierteljahrshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung, 87(4), 67-85. https://doi.org/10.3790/vjh.87.4.67
Flögel, Franz and Gärtner, Stefan "Lost diversity: Business lending in the centralised banking system of the UK" Vierteljahrshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung 87.4, , 67-85. https://doi.org/10.3790/vjh.87.4.67
Flögel, Franz/Gärtner, Stefan: Lost diversity: Business lending in the centralised banking system of the UK, in: Vierteljahrshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung, vol. 87, iss. 4, 67-85, [online] https://doi.org/10.3790/vjh.87.4.67

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Lost diversity: Business lending in the centralised banking system of the UK

Flögel, Franz | Gärtner, Stefan

Vierteljahrshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung, Vol. 87 (2018), Iss. 4 : pp. 67–85

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Franz Flögel, Institut Arbeit und Technik der Westfälischen Hochschule Gelsenkirchen Bocholt Recklinghausen (IAT).

  • Franz Flögel, Dr., has been a research associate at the Institute for Work and Technology (Westfälischen Hochschule Gelsenkirchen) since 2010. He works in the Spatial Capital research department. He studied human geography, economics, and political science at the University of Potsdam, Humboldt University of Berlin, and the University of Nottingham. In 2017, he completed his PhD at the professorship of Economic Geography at the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt. In his PhD thesis he compared the lending processes of regional and large banks in SME finance. His key research interest lies in finance and regional development.
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Stefan Gärtner, Institut Arbeit und Technik der Westfälischen Hochschule Gelsenkirchen Bocholt Recklinghausen (IAT).

  • Stefan Gärtner, Dr., (banker, Dipl.-Ing. in spatial planning, urban planner) is the head of the Space Capital research department at the Institute for Work and Technology (Westfälischen Hochschule Gelsenkirchen). He studied spatial planning at the Technical University of Dortmund and the University of Liverpool. He received his PhD in spatial planning at TU Dortmund, focusing on the importance of savings banks for balanced regional development in Germany. His research focuses on regional development and regional structural policy, sustainable economies, and space and banking.
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Abstract

Zusammenfassung: Aufbauend auf der Klassifikation vom dezentralen und zentralen Banking untersucht dieser Beitrag die Diversität in der Unternehmenskreditvergabe des Vereinigten Königreichs. Anhand von Experteninterviews und Literaturrecherche wurde die Distanz in den Kreditvergabeentscheidungen an KMU für verschiedene Typen von Banken und anderen Finanzintermediären klassifiziert. Aufgrund des frühen Ausscheidens von regionalen und nicht rein profitorientierten Banken (Sparkassen und Genossenschaftsbanken) existieren heute kaum noch Finanzintermediäre, die Kredite dezentral, das heißt in räumlicher Nähe zum KMU-Kunden, vergeben. Drei unterschiedliche Ansätze wurden identifiziert, wie dezentrale Kreditvergabe auf der Insel wiedereingeführt werden kann. Aufgrund der Niedrigzinsphase und der verschärften Bankenregulierung ist es jedoch gegenwärtig herausfordernd, regionale Banken wirtschaftlich zu betreiben.

Summary: Based on the classification of decentralised and centralised banking, this paper investigates diversity in business lending in the UK. Using expert interviews and desk research, the distance between lenders and SMEs in credit decisions for the identified types of lenders is classified. Due to the early disappearance of regional and dual bottom-line banks, today hardly any short-distance lender remains in the UK. Three different approaches have been identified to re-introduce decentralised lending to the island, though running regional banks is challenging in times of low interest rates and tightened bank regulation.