Matchmaking as multi-sided market for open innovation

An obvious task in open innovation is to find suitable partners for collaboration. In this paper we present results from three participatory case studies of identifying and matching technology firms for collaborative innovation projects. We observe that matchmaking is a more complex process than an (online) market transaction. The cases show how innovation intermediaries organise the matching process as external service-providers and what economic contribution they can have. The paper conceptualises matchmaking for collaborative innovation as economic resource allocation process in the shape of a multi-sided market which involves the innovation partners and intermediaries. The paper concludes with theoretical and practical implications that such a conceptual lens opens for exploratory technology analysis projects and the management of matching processes for innovation partnership formation.     

From free to civilized trade: a European perspective

In the context of unfettered international competition, free trade tends to undermine basic moral concepts such as justice, dignity, and fairness. Therefore, we suggest moving to a new understanding of markets in international trade, which we call ‘civilized markets’. A civilized market tries to ensure that free entrepreneurship and open markets are eventually compatible with those basic and universal values that also serve as moral cornerstones of the European project. In order to accomplish a civilized market, we propose to establish a new European institution with a mandate to set and enforce minimum standards for goods sold on the European market.     

Measuring Financial Risk Attitude: How to Apply Both Regulatory and Scientific Criteria to Ensure Suitability

Due to regulatory requirements, assessing investors' attitude toward financial risks is becoming increasingly important for advisors. To address this, the authors aimed to develop a risk attitude questionnaire, based on existing instruments, which fulfills both regulatory and scientific criteria. They conducted a survey on real investors and linked the survey data to actual portfolio data to test the validity of the instrument. The risk attitude index the authors developed uses only 6 easy-to-understand items, is reliable (Cronbach's α = 0.88), and explains substantial amounts of variance (R² = 0.40) in the investors' behavior. It therefore fulfills regulatory and scientific criteria.     

Integrated reporting of environmental,social, and governance and financial data: Does the market value integrated reports?

The concept of reporting nonfinancial information within the annual report, so‐called Integrated Reporting (IR) is a rising topic in reporting practice. Supporters claim that IR provides a better view regarding the value creation of a firm. This study investigates the value relevance of IR and the influence of certain characteristics such as assurance. Thus, this paper contributes to the existing literature by examining the actual advantages for firms when adopting an IR approach. The Ohlson model is applied for the market valuation of 50 companies of the STOXX Europe 50 between the years 2010 and 2016. The results of this study support the cost‐concerned school by showing a negative influence on the market value. Nonetheless, the study suggests that the quality of the reports is relevant for market valuation, as the negative effect is mitigated by the quality of the reports.     

Sudden stops in a currency union – some lessons from the euro area

During the Great Financial Crisis several euro area Member States with current account deficits were subject to sharp reversals of private capital flows. We examine how the specific policy rules of the euro area's payments system TARGET2 affects the macroeconomic adjustments to sudden stops. We find that – in the short run – public capital flows in form of TARGET2 help euro area‐deficit countries to stabilize output, consumption, and investment after a sudden stop of private capital inflows. In the long run, however, euro area countries suffer under a prolonged economic recovery and accumulated large public debt as well as higher welfare losses relative to euro peggers.