Risk Sharing in the Euro Area

Interdisciplinary and International Research Project Funded by the Volkswagenstiftung

Risk-sharing mechanisms are an important part of the European integration process. There have been wide-ranging debates about the desirable extent of risk sharing in the Euro Area and appropriate institutional reforms such as the call for an EU finance minister or the creation of a European Monetary Fund. Against this background, it is the objective of this research project to develop a conceptual framework that permits a comprehensive analysis of risk sharing in the Euro Area.

The innovative aspect of this project is the interdisciplinary approach which builds on both legal and economic theory. To date there has been no comparable interdisciplinary attempt to provide a comprehensive analysis of risk sharing. Moreover, the international background of participating researchers from Aristoteles University Thessaloniki, Bocconi University Mailand and University of Tübingen provides excellent prerequisites for fruitful collaborations.

Research questions which will be addressed by the participating researchers concern three important issues of risk sharing: analytical aspects, actual policies and the institutional environment, and normative questions. These research questions are arranged within three domains: financial markets, fiscal policy and migration. All of these domains are essential in determining the capacity of countries to absorb asymmetric shocks and thus achieve risk sharing.

Click here for project description in German