Contemporary Trends in European Cooperative Banking

The cooperative banks’ business model is unique in the financial market. It is featured by democratic foundations (one-head-one-vote principle), proximity to the members and the community they serve, limited profit-seeking nature, and prudent management. However, these principles are applied in a variety of organisational structures and economic and regulatory contexts, making cooperative banks significantly different from one country to another. This book expands existing knowledge on the European cooperative banking sector by analysing recent trends affecting cooperative banks. Namely, the book discusses the role of cooperative banks in the policy and societal movement towards sustainability, including in adopting sustainable finance practices. It explores the digital transformation journey of cooperative banks and the impact of the consolidation of Fintech players in the financial services markets. It further showcases the need to evolve the cooperative banks’ governancestructures and processes in order to foster (and in some cases restore) democracy and transparency in the decision-making. Lastly, the book debates the specific role of cooperative banks in the economic crisis that has followed the unfolding of the Covid-19 pandemic vis-à-vis their members and the communities they serve. Of interest to scholars, professors, students, and practitioners of banking and finance, this book will build on the existing research and explore the latest trends in the space.

Marco Migliorelli is an economist at the European Commission and a senior associate researcher at the IAE of the University Paris 1 Panthéon- Sorbonne (Sorbonne Business School). He holds a PhD from the University of Rome Tor Vergata. His research interests include cooperative banking, sustainable and green finance, and financial instruments innovation.

Eric Lamarque is the dean of the IAE of the University Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (Sorbonne Business School) where he is also full professor and director of the research chair Management and Governance of Financial Cooperatives. He is the president of the IAE France. For 12 years he was member of the board of a cooperative bank in France.