Varese, Federico --- "Underground banking and corruption" [2015] ELECD 1103; in Rose-Ackerman, Susan; Lagunes, Paul (eds), "Greed, Corruption, and the Modern State" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2015) 336

Book Title: Greed, Corruption, and the Modern State

Editor(s): Rose-Ackerman, Susan; Lagunes, Paul

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781784714697

Section: Chapter 14

Section Title: Underground banking and corruption

Author(s): Varese, Federico

Number of pages: 23

Abstract/Description:

This chapter explores some theoretical and empirical features of underground banking, with a special attention to corruption. After a discussion of the nature of Informal Value Transfer Systems (IVTSs)—which I use as a synonym for underground banking—and the key theoretical questions related to IVTSs, I turn to the connection between this phenomenon and corruption. By drawing upon two case-studies, I conclude that corruption is not a key ingredient of IVTSs. Rather, pervasive corruption can fuel the demand for informal banking.