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What explains regulators’ preferences concerning the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM)? The paper answers this question by providing an alternative account of the creation of the SSM using an institutionalist perspective. It is argued that the creation of the SSM does not simply reflect the material interests of governments and domestic financial firms, but that regulators’ positions were also significantly affected by the institutional environment in which they operated. Two characteristics of domestic supervisory governance are identified: the institutional responsibilities of banking regulators (microprudential and/or macroprudential) and the fragmentation of supervisory and monetary policies. The empirical analysis demonstrates the relevance of these factors for shaping regulators’ preferences both within and across countries. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We use employment data for 2008-2012 to analyse the impact of the subprime and Eurozone crises on the British and German financial sector. In the UK, the sector contracted and its spatial concentration increased across regions and urban hierarchy, with London as the sole winner. In Germany there has been no contraction overall, and no significant change in the spatial distribution of financial employment. We argue that while in both countries forced consolidation and financial re-regulation have acted as centripetal forces, in Germany they have been offset by strong regional and local banking, underpinned by a decentralized state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]