Financial Intermediation

140 Pages Posted: 9 May 2002 Last revised: 29 Nov 2022

See all articles by Gary B. Gorton

Gary B. Gorton

Yale School of Management; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); Yale University - Yale Program on Financial Stability

Andrew Winton

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities - Carlson School of Management; Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) - Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF)

Date Written: May 2002

Abstract

The savings/investment process in capitalist economies is organized around financial intermediation, making them a central institution of economic growth. Financial intermediaries are firms that borrow from consumer/savers and lend to companies that need resources for investment. In contrast, in capital markets investors contract directly with firms, creating marketable securities. The prices of these securities are observable, while financial intermediaries are opaque. Why do financial intermediaries exist? What are their roles? Are they inherently unstable? Must the government regulate them? Why is financial intermediation so pervasive? How is it changing? In this paper we survey the last fifteen years' of theoretical and empirical research on financial intermediation. We focus on the role of bank-like intermediaries in the savings-investment process. We also investigate the literature on bank instability and the role of the government.

Suggested Citation

Gorton, Gary B. and Winton, Andrew, Financial Intermediation (May 2002). NBER Working Paper No. w8928, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=311424

Gary B. Gorton (Contact Author)

Yale School of Management ( email )

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HOME PAGE: http://mba.yale.edu/faculty/profiles/gorton.shtml

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

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Yale University - Yale Program on Financial Stability

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Andrew Winton

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities - Carlson School of Management ( email )

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Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) - Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) ( email )

Shanghai Jiao Tong University
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Shanghai, 200030
China

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