Oskar Kowalewski

• Ph.D. in Economics
• Professor (Associate) at IESEG School of Management

This study advances the understanding of the Preferred Habitat Model’s capacity to shed light on the inter-market transfer of mean returns and the diffusion of price volatility in Pakistani investment markets. It examines the extent to which returns in one market exert a systematic influence on returns across others under the potential sway of inte...

Using unique data from a leading peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform, we investigate the link between past investment performance and choice of auto-investing tool. Our results suggest that investors with poorly performing loan portfolios are more likely to switch automatically. This negative relationship can be explained by algorithmic aversion or...

We study the role of a company founder in the internal governance of firms. Using a sample of 484 CEO turnovers for 2000–2015, we establish that CEOs are fired for poor performance. However, the likelihood of a poor‐performing founder‐CEO being fired is lower than that of an outsider CEO. Moreover, having a founder as a member of the executive or s...

We study the effect of board reforms on firms’ research and development (R&D) investments utilizing a sample of 40 countries. Using a difference-in-differences analysis, we find that firms invest more in RED following corporate governance reforms. Of these, two legal reforms — having an independent audit committee and board independence — have a gr...

Does the construction of green spaces, parks, greenbelts and socio-economic amenities helps in creating reasonable identity and prestige before customers which further nurtures premium and pricing advantages in return? For this purpose, we construct prestige based on composite pollution index, greenness score, and socio-economic amenities which fur...

This study addresses the question of whether self-identified LGBT status has some power to explain differences between the earnings of male LGTB workers and their occupational counterpart non-LGBT male workers in the Pakistan labour market. The Pakistan labour market is known to be ‘traditional’ in the sense that its operations and the attitudes of...

We investigated the country determinants that encourage the establishment and activity of financial technology (fintech) companies. We found that countries witnessed more fintech start-up formation when access to bank loans was limited, indicating that fintech companies help underserved markets. In this paper, we show that countries’ technological...

We investigate whether a home country’s culture determines lending behavior of foreign bank subsidiaries in host countries during both prosperous and difficult economic periods. We employ a dataset of foreign-owned banks originating from 46 home countries and operating in 47 host countries during 1996–2018. The results show that, in general, only c...

This study examines how the urban climate affects the price, and urban greenness causes the pricing premium. To explore the greenness aspects, we construct a composite pollution index for each property traded in twin cities—Islamabad and Rawalpindi—based on the area traded properties' water, air, noise, and soil pollution. To examine the pricing ef...

We investigate the development of technology-driven alternative credit markets using data from 94 countries for the period 2013–2019. We find that digitalization, institutional quality, and culture play significant roles in the national development of fintech and big tech credit. Moreover, we present the differences between the two types of alterna...

Access to credit information and the ability to process this information effectively determine the conditions of competition in the credit market. Traditionally, local banks have had an advantage in relationship lending (based on soft credit information), whereas foreign banks are considered to base on hard credit information. With the advent of fi...

Purpose This research aims to identify the statistically significant characteristics of a hedonic model to explain the pricing of residential properties in two cities in Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach The research methodology applies extreme bounds analysis and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator. Estimators of efficient pri...

This paper provides novel evidence on the role of labor unions in firms’ corporate cash policy. Examining the unionization rates of firms across 29 countries for the period 2004–2015, we show that firms respond to an increase in unionization rate by decreasing their corporate cash holdings. The reported effect is symmetric, in that firms respond to...

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) strategic partnership with the Chinese consortium shifted trends and transition patterns from global to Chinese exchanges. Any substantial changes in these markets created a significant impact on the PSX. After the partnership with the Chinese consortium, Pakistan's mean returns and price volatility dynamics have s...

This study investigates the determinants of the presence and success of initial coin offering (ICO) campaigns using data on 503 ICOs from 60 countries launched between 2015 and 2018. The analysis is based on an individual project, considering a country-wide perspective. The results show that while insider retention and resource-related signals, suc...

In this study, we assess capabilities of different types of banks to cater to the financial needs of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Using a comprehensive dataset from an emerging economy, including the information on local banks’ corrective programs, we find that local banks remain difficult-to-replace lenders for SMEs. We show that pre...

We examine the stock market reaction to disasters in potash mines. We use a sample of 55 mining accidents – natural and man-made - worldwide over the period 1986–2019. On average, the affected mining firms experience a cumulative drop in their market value of 1.15% in the first 2 day day of a disaster. We show also that the accidents impact stocks...

This study documents significant differences in the interbank market lending and borrowing levels across countries. We argue that the existing differences in interbank market usage can be explained by the trust of the market participants in the stability of the country's banking sector and counterparties, proxied by the history of banking crises an...

What drives the resilience of markets to disasters? We study syndicates, a form of legal cartel that assigns market share based on production capacity. This creates incentives for excess capacity investment, and may insulate the market from the impact of extreme events. The potash industry, controlled by a syndicate and subject to mine disasters ge...

Using data on outstanding market value and value of bonds issued by financial and non-financial companies, we investigate the development of the corporate bond markets in ten Asian countries from 1995 to 2014. We confirm that a number of macroeconomic and institutional factors are significantly related to the depth of the corporate bond markets. Fu...

We investigate whether the public sector’s ability as the guarantor of last resort (GLR) to help banks or to guarantee banks’ liabilities affects the sensitivity of interest costs to bank fundamentals. We use a global bank sample and find that the sensitivity is an increasing function of GLR risk, regardless of the method applied to describe this r...

In this paper, we examine the relationship between the structure of the real economy and a country's financial system. We consider whether the development of the real economic structure can predict the direction of evolution of a country's financial structure. Using data for 108 countries, we find a significant relationship between real economic st...

This study analyzes the economic consequences of changes in the local bank presence. Using a unique data set of banks, firms and counties in Poland over the period 2009–14, it is shown that changes strengthening the relationship banking model are associated with local labour market improvements and easier small and medium-sized enterprise access to...

We investigate the development of corporate bond markets in 10 Asian countries from 1995 to 2014. Using data on outstanding value and total issue of bonds by financial and non-financial companies, we confirm that macroeconomic and institutional factors are related to the depth of the corporate bond market. We show that creditor rights and instituti...

This paper characterizes politically connected firms and their access to bank financing. We determine that the relationship between political connections and access to long-term bank loans is weaker in Poland than in other emerging economies. The most probable explanation for this result is related to the instability of the political climate in Pol...

This paper investigates the relationship between local banking structures and SMEs’ access to debt and performance. Using a unique dataset on bank branch locations in Poland and firm-, county-, and bank-level data, we conclude that a strong position for local cooperative banks facilitates access to bank financing, lowers financial costs, boosts inv...

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the impact of corporate governance, as measured by the Corporate Governance Index, on firm performance and dividend payouts during the financial crisis of 2008. Design/methodology/approach The empirical approach followed in the study involved constructing a comprehensive measure of corporate governance for 29...

The Warsaw Stock Exchange is one of Europe’s largest exchanges by the number of initial public offerings. In this study, we use a large data-set to explore firms’ decisions to issue equity on the main or alternative market, and debt on the bond market. We observe that, in general, larger, more profitable firms are more likely to go public, although...

This study examines whether investor protection affects capital markets, specifically the development of corporate bond markets versus equity markets. Using a dataset of 42 countries, we show that countries with strong creditor rights have more developed corporate bond markets than equity markets. However, we find only weak evidence that countries...

Competitiveness is a broad concept that refers to sustainable economic growth, but also to the ability to improve the living standards of a society, strengthen a country’s position on foreign markets, and increase its attractiveness to foreign direct investment. Competitiveness embraces a wide range of issues and defies easy determination when it c...

We examine the interactions of bank lending dynamics, ownership structures, and crisis phenomena in the banking systems of Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. Using a panel dataset of more than 400 banks for the period from 1994 to 2010, we show that the impact of ownership structure on a bank’s lending activities in CEE countries was con...

In this paper, we investigate, for the first time in the literature, whether the ability of the public sector or government, for convenience purposes called the guarantor of last resort (GLR), to effectively help banks or guarantee bank liabilities affects the sensitivity of interest costs and deposit dynamics to banks' fundamentals. To test our hy...

Konkurencyjność to koncepcja, która odnosi się do utrzymania trwałego wzrostu gospodarczego, ale oznacza również zdolność do poprawy poziomu życia społeczeństwa, wzmocnienia pozycji na rynkach zagranicznych oraz wzrostu atrakcyjności danego terytorium dla inwestycji kapitału zagranicznego. Szerokie spektrum zagadnień, które zawiera w sobie pojęcie...

This paper investigates the relationship between local banking structures and SMEs’ access to debt and performance. Using a unique dataset on bank branch locations in Poland and firm-, county-, and bank-level data, we conclude that a strong position for local cooperative banks facilitates access to bank financing, lowers financial costs, boosts inv...

We examine the international transmission of liquidity and capital shocks from multinational bank-holding companies to their subsidiaries. Our findings are consistent with the studies that document the negative impact of parent bank fragility on subsidiaries’ lending. We further find that foreign bank lending is determined by different factors in d...

There are three types of performing national innovation systems (NIS). The first subsystem belonging to this group can be found in France, Germany, UK, Italy, South Korea, and Taiwan. The second subsystem can be observed in two countries: the USA and Japan. The third subsystem consists of: Spain, Austria, Norway, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand....

This study uses firm data to examine the locational trends of foreign direct investment projects undertaken by Polish companies. The findings of the study are consistent with the evolutionary models of internationalization. Companies in the early stages of interna-tionalization are motivated by markets and resource seeking, whereas efficiency seeki...

This paper investigates whether foreign subsidiaries outperform their parent banks in terms of profitability and what determines this outcome. Using a sample of multinational banks and their subsidiaries in a large number of countries, this study shows that, on average, foreign subsidiaries are less profitable than their parent banks. However, the...

W artykule prezentowane są wyniki badania nad realizacją interesów grupowych w procesie legislacyjnym w Polsce, które zostały przeprowadzone na próbie 1365 ustaw uchwalonych w latach 1990-2011. Na ich podstawie w badaniu analizowane są dwie powiązane kwestie: stanu polskiego prawodawstwa oraz legislacyjnego odzwierciedlenia wpływu grup interesu na...

This study investigates the relationship between politically connected firms and their access to bank financing in a post-communist eras in Poland. Overall, it finds that “recent” political connections do influence access to bank financing and the value of such connections increased during the financial crisis. However, it also observes that the po...

This monograph presents the results of the latest comparative studies conducted by the World Economy Research Institute at the Warsaw School of Economics. The book aims to determine Poland’s competitive position in the European Union 10 years after the country’s entry into the bloc. The Polish economy is shown in a broader comparative perspective a...

This paper investigates how local market features influence the decisions taken by Polish banks regarding their branch networks. It was found that during the period 2007–2013 the density of branch networks was highest in relatively rich and urbanized regions. However, the rate of growth in the number of branches was more rapid in regions whose dens...

The paper presents the results of the research on the implementation of group interests in the legislative process in Poland, made on a sample of 1365 laws passed in 1990-2011. Two mutually related questions are analyzed: the state of the Polish legislation and the impact of various interest groups on the shape of law. The results of the research d...

The Warsaw Stock Exchange is one of Europe’s largest exchanges by the number of IPOs, although it retains features of a market in post-transition countries, including a relatively small size, shallowness and a weak institutional framework. In this study, we use a large dataset to explore firms’ decisions to issue equity on the main or alternative m...

Purpose: This study examines the determinants of ex-ante state capture in Poland. Methodology: In order to establish the determinants of ex-ante state capture a logistic regression is estimated. Findings: The study shows that in Poland the majority of legal acts were passed with the aim to satisfy the interest of particular groups. Furthermore, the...