1. ^aCass Business School, City University, 106 Bunhill Row, London EC1Y 8TZ, U.K. E-mail: e.kalotychou@city.ac.uk
2. ^bRisk Institute and Emerging Markets Group, Cass Business School, City University, 106 Bunhill Row, London EC1Y 8TZ, U.K. E-mail: sks@city.ac.uk

^*The authors are indebted to the anonymous referees for the detailed reviews, and for triggering various discussions throughout this study. The authors would like to express their gratitude to Christos Chrisanthakopoulos, Bank of Greece; Christos Copelouzos, Copelouzos Group; Petros Kourtis, Agrotiki Insurance; Anastasios Pagonis, Ethniki Insurance; Amalia Filou Staikouras, SOL; Konstantinos Staikouras, SOL; Nikolaos Violakis, Alpha Insurance; and Michel Zanatta, Emporiki Life for providing information and valuable comments. Special thanks are due to Paul Dawson and Shelagh Heffernan, Cass Business School, for continuous support, as well as to Maria Agathokleous and Dr. Sahad Al-Mosawi for excellent research assistance. The views in this paper do not necessarily reflect those of the aforesaid people or the institutions that they are affiliated with. The usual disclaimer applies.

Abstract

The present study delves into the bank–insurance phenomenon in Greece. The paper explores the market-based practices surfacing through the bank–insurance interface and delineates the possible theoretical corporate structures. A review of the various financial ventures in the domestic market is provided aiming to unveil corporate patterns both in a cross-venture and time series framework. As a result of this survey, the existence of de jure limits versus de facto boundaries, as expanded by loopholes and avoidance activities, is established. The "traditional" subsidiary model is complemented by a number of multi-ventures as banks make inroads into the insurance business. The latter is associated with the presence of multinational firms and foreign direct investment in the region. The analysis is further extended by examining the drivers, motives and operational issues pertinent to these financial conglomerates.