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Professor Dr Lena Tonzer

Professor Dr Lena Tonzer
Current Position

since 9/21

Research Fellow Department of Financial Markets

Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH) – Member of the Leibniz Association

since 5/14

Head of the Research Group Regulation of International Financial Markets and International Banking and Head of the International Banking Library

Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH) – Member of the Leibniz Association

since 4/25

Professor

Leipzig University

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Research Interests
  • banking and sovereign debt crises
  • integration of financial markets
  • banking regulation
  • International Banking Library

Lena Tonzer is Professor of Money, Credit & Banking at the Faculty of Economics and Management Science at Leipzig University since April 2025 and a member of the Department of Financial Markets at IWH since May 2014. In 2019 she joined the SUERF Research Affiliate programme. Her research focuses on banking and sovereign debt crises, integration of financial markets, and banking regulation.

Lena Tonzer received her bachelor's and master's degree from University of Tübingen, and her PhD from European University Institute (EUI) in Florence, Italy. From 2017 to 2021 she taught at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, from 2021 to 2023 at VU Amsterdam, and from 2023 to 2025 at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg. She was head of the ESF project The Political Economy of the European Banking Union from 2017 to 2022.

Your contact

Professor Dr Lena Tonzer
Professor Dr Lena Tonzer
- Department Financial Markets
Send Message +49 345 7753-835 Personal page

Publications

Citations
749

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Cultural Norms and Corporate Fraud: Evidence from the Volkswagen Scandal

Iftekhar Hasan Felix Noth Lena Tonzer

in: Journal of Corporate Finance, October 2023

Abstract

We examine a corporate governance role of local culture via its impact on consumer behavior following corporate scandals. Our proxy for culture is the presence of local Protestantism. Exploiting the unexpected nature of the Volkswagen (VW) diesel scandal in September 2015, we show that new registrations of VW cars decline significantly in German counties with a Protestant majority following the VW scandal. Further survey evidence shows that, compared to Catholics, Protestants respond significantly more negatively to fraud but not to environmental issues. Our findings suggest that the enforcement culture in Protestantism facilitates penalizing corporate fraud.

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Financial Linkages and Sectoral Business Cycle Synchronization: Evidence from Europe

Hannes Böhm Julia Schaumburg Lena Tonzer

in: IMF Economic Review, December 2022

Abstract

We analyze whether financial integration leads to converging or diverging business cycles using a dynamic spatial model. Our model allows for contemporaneous spillovers of shocks to GDP growth between countries that are financially integrated and delivers a scalar measure of the spillover intensity at each point in time. For a financial network of ten European countries from 1996 to 2017, we find that the spillover effects are positive on average and much larger during periods of financial stress, pointing towards stronger business cycle synchronization. Dismantling GDP growth into value added growth of ten major industries, we observe that spillover intensities vary significantly. The findings are robust to a variety of alternative model specifications.

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Completing the European Banking Union: Capital Cost Consequences for Credit Providers and Corporate Borrowers

Michael Koetter Thomas Krause Eleonora Sfrappini Lena Tonzer

in: European Economic Review, September 2022

Abstract

The bank recovery and resolution directive (BRRD) regulates the bail-in hierarchy to resolve distressed banks in the European Union (EU). Using the staggered BRRD implementation across 15 member states, we identify banks’ capital cost responses and subsequent pass-through to borrowers towards surprise elements due to national transposition details. Average bank capital costs increase heterogeneously across countries with strongest funding cost hikes observed for banks located in GIIPS and non-EMU countries. Only banks in core E(M)U countries that exhibit higher funding costs increase credit spreads for corporate borrowers and contract credit supply. Tighter credit conditions are only passed on to more levered and less profitable firms. On balance, the national implementation of BRRD appears to have strengthened financial system resilience without a pervasive hike in borrowing costs.

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Working Papers

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Banks’ foreign homes

Kirsten Schmidt Lena Tonzer

in: Deutsche Bundesbank Discussion Papers, No. 46, 2024

Abstract

<p>Our results reveal that higher lending spreads between foreign and home markets redirect real estate backed lending towards foreign markets offering a higher interest rate, which provides evidence for "search for yield" behavior. This re-allocation is found especially for banks with more expertise on the foreign market due to a higher local activity and holds for commercial and residential real estate backed loans. Furthermore, "search for yield" behavior and a resulting increase in foreign real estate backed lending is found when macroprudential regulation is missing or misaligned between a bank’s country of residence and the destination country. When turning to the question of whether the detected search for yield behavior results in more risk, we find that especially better capitalized banks report higher forbearance ratios as they might face less stigma effects compared to low capitalized banks.</p>

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How Do EU Banks’ Funding Costs Respond to the CRD IV? An Assessment Based on the Banking Union Directives Database

Thomas Krause Eleonora Sfrappini Lena Tonzer Cristina Zgherea

in: IWH Discussion Papers, No. 12, 2024

Abstract

The establishment of the European Banking Union constitutes a major change in the regulatory framework of the banking system. Main parts are implemented via directives that show staggered transposition timing across EU member states. Based on the newly compiled Banking Union Directives Database, we assess how banks’ funding costs responded to the Capital Requirements Directive IV (CRD IV). Our findings show an upward trend in funding costs which is driven by an increase in cost of equity and partially offset by a decline in cost of debt. The diverging trends are most present in countries with an ex-ante lower regulatory capital stringency, which is in line with banks’ short-run adjustment needs but longer-run benefits from increased financial stability.

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Inflation Concerns and Green Product Consumption: Evidence from a Nationwide Survey and a Framed Field Experiment

Sabrina Jeworrek Lena Tonzer

in: IWH Discussion Papers, No. 10, 2024

Abstract

Promoting green product consumption is one important element in building a sustainable society. Yet green products are usually more costly. In times of high inflation, not only budget constraints but also the fear that prices will continue to rise might dampen green product consumption and, hence, limit the effectiveness of exerted efforts to promote sustainable behaviors. To test this suggestion, we conducted a Germany-wide survey with almost 1,200 respondents, followed by a framed field experiment (N=500) to confirm causality. In the survey, respondents’ stated “green” purchasing behavior is, as to be expected, positively correlated with concerns about climate change. It is also negatively correlated with concerns about future inflation and energy costs, but after controlling for observable characteristics such as income and educational level only the correlation with concerns about future prices remains significant. This result is driven by individuals with below-median environmental attitude. In the framed field experiment, we use the priming method to manipulate the saliency of inflation concerns. Whereas sizably relaxing the budget constraint (i.e., by 50 percent) has no impact on the share of organic products in participants’ baskets, the priming significantly decreases the share of organic products for individuals with below-median environmental attitude, similar to the survey data.

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Topics

Regulation Monetary Policy Financial Institutions Financial Markets The new Europe Risk Financial Stability Policy Evaluation International Finance
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