Purpose – The aim of this article is to investigate how the use of financial instruments influences the development of Regional Development Funds (RFR) in Poland and to assess the maturity and coherence of the regional development financing system in this country.
Design/methodology/approach – The methodology is based on the multilevel governance literature and on data collected during 26 in-depth interviews in regional, national and international institutions.
Findings – The authors demonstrate that the use of financial instruments stimulates new kinds of cooperation between several institutions and contributes to the establishment of RFR. The authors also show that the Polish regional financing system is still developing and formulate recommendations about necessary improvements.
Originality/value – The main contribution of this article, in addition to taking up a new, relevant topic for the regional development policy in countries benefiting from European Union (EU) cohesion policy, is the application of the multilevel governance (MLG) concept to explain the development of the Polish regional development financing system. Moreover, the significant added value of this study comes from the use of data collected during 26 in-depth interviews (IDI) in regional, national and international institutions on the use of
repayable instruments in regional development policy.

Purpose: The article considers country-level governance factors (legal/regulatory system and financial development) and ownership concentration that impact the value of non-financial firms in Central European nations, specifically by describing a study done in Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Slovenia, and Switzerland.

Methodology: A fixed effect panel data regression analysis was applied to a strongly balanced panel data using a collection of six diverse Central European countries’ non-financial firms across the sample period of 2010–2020.

Results: According to regression analysis, the legal and regulatory system as well as financial development have a positive relationship with firm value. The firm’s value rises as the legal and regulatory system improves. Furthermore, the growth of financial markets adds to the firm’s value. However, our study reveals a negative relationship between ownership concentration and firm value, which indicates that ownership concentration is too high to allow for effective supervision, implying that more ownership concentration lowers firm value, as the expropriation theory suggests.

Originality: The study examines the value of a firm by incorporating both country- and firm-level factors, which broadens the current literature’s insight.
Implications: Overall, our findings add to the literature on the value of non-financial firms by providing new significant information. Some of the recommendations may be beneficial to the long-term success of non-financial companies.

Purpose: This study investigates the benefits of being perceived as a socially responsible company. The main purpose of the research was to find out whether company managers consider that certain aspects of company activity may benefit from being perceived as socially responsible. Research limitations: The primary source of data used in this study was a survey of respondents’ views and opinions rather than an analysis of extensive numerical data.

Methodology: The research methods included a literature review and a survey conducted in several Polish companies regarded as socially responsible. The so-called RESPECT Index, including socially responsible companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange Main List, as well as annual rankings of responsible companies were used as a kind of reputation database for choosing survey respondents.

Findings: The most important benefits indicated by the respondents included better frm image/reputation, improved relations with stakeholders, increased employee motivation, better communication inside the company, as well as more effective management and control over new aspects not considered before. Additionally, the identified benefits were analyzed using different criteria, such as the size of the company or its feld of activity.

Originality: The problem analyzed in this study is important, yet it is still not a suffciently examined issue in many emerging markets including Poland. As benefits taken into consideration in the survey are also valid for other financial markets, the results can be used for comparative studies of Poland and other countries.

Purpose: The aim of this article is to analyse the theoretical views and results of empirical research
concerning the relation between organisational learning (OL) and organisational performance (OP).

Methodology: The study was carried out through extensive literature research, including relevant
literature review from databases such as ProQuest, Elsevier, Emerald and EBSCO (the phrases:
“organisational learning”, “learning organisation” and “organisational performance” were searched
in the keywords, titles or abstracts).

Findings: From a theoretical point of view, the relation between OL and OP is neither obvious nor
clear, but the analysis of the empirical studies allows one to assume that OL has an essential impact
on OP. However, differences in the strength of the relation were shown and some contradictions
related to the presence of the relation between OL and selected (mostly financial) performance
aspects identified. Furthermore, the article discusses the significant differences and inconsistencies
in the methods of measuring OL, measuring OP, selecting contextual factors and adopted
methods of data analysis.
Implications: Inconsistencies and gaps found in the studies of the relationship between OL and
OP made it possible to designate the direction for promising further research.

Value: The article presents valuable insight through its in-depth, critical analysis of the organisational
learning and organisational outcomes. First and foremost, this indicates that the formula of
the previous empirical studies does not allow for the development of precise solutions pertaining
to organisational learning management for the benefit of OP improvement.

Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to identify the factors that affect the development of the models
of financial market state supervision and to identify the factors that have influenced the evolution
of the supervision model in Poland.

Methodology: critical analysis of literature, legal provisions and documents.
Findings: The completely integrated and the fully dispersed model of supervision are located at
the opposite ends of the spectrum. A variety of the hybrid models can be identified between them.
Factors that affect supervision organization are both economic and non-economic. Factors that
have influenced the Polish model of supervision include political aspects, administration costs
and, in due course, also the development of the financial market.

Research implications: The variety of state supervision structures, combined with the ambiguity
and multiplicity of factors that affect their evolution create a new research challenge. Significant
problems in accessing documents have been identified.

Originality: The author presents an overview of models of state supervision of financial markets
and factors affecting the evolution and structure of supervision. Conclusions drawn from the
analysis were used to identify factors that influence the evolution and supervision of the Polish
financial market.

Purpose: The paper discusses issues associated with using funds that support the development of entrepreneurship – the purpose of the paper is to answer questions regarding the purposefulness and effectiveness of financial instruments from EU funds aimed at the development of emerging businesses (startups).

Methodology: The paper analyzes previously conducted research studies in the fi eld of the discussed topic, it systematizes and describes the fi nancial instruments from EU funds supporting self-employment and startups in their early stages of activity. It also provides an overview of evaluation reports concerning these instruments.

The paper also contains a case study: an analysis of the effectiveness of a selected project supporting the development of entrepreneurship (co-fi nanced from EU funds), in which the method of evaluating the net effect of the support in the short term has been used.

Findings: An analysis of previously conducted research studies has shown that properly designed State aid targeted at those starting up their own business is sensible, as it provides them with seed capital and it helps them survive the most diffi cult period of the so-called “startup”. However, there is a lack of comprehensive studies to confirm the positive impact of business support interventions carried out using EU funds. The methodology of evaluating the net effect used by the Author in the conducted study has made it possible to identify the actualsize of the – positive – impact of the selected project on the growth of self-employment.

Limitations: The study revealed some limitations – the method and time of the study allow to capture the phenomenon on a micro-scale, in the short term. The institutions that are involved in the process of allocating funds should develop a comprehensive methodology that implements the idea of evaluating the net effect, allowing to assess the effectiveness of the support at regional and national level in the long term.

Originality: The originality of the paper consists in applying the theories and results of previous studies to the Polish practice of supporting businesses at their early stages of development as well as applying the method of evaluating the net effect, which allows to determine the actual impact of the intervention.

Purpose: The paper aims at identifying the major information gaps related to the financial sector that have emerged during the last years, including the explanation of the reasons and consequences of these gaps.

Methodology: The analysis is conducted using the descriptive methodology based on real developments in the financial sector. This analysis identifies substantial institutional changes within the financial sector combined with the introduction of new financial instruments that significantly increased information gaps related to financial developments.

Findings: We found that one of the main reasons for the breakdown in the financial liquidity market was the sudden buildup of a systemic risk caused, among other things, by substantial information gaps and limitations in the transparency of financial markets. The low transparency of the financial markets has been caused by institutional changes and new financial instruments introduced within the financial sector. They were introduced by the financial institutions themselves to facilitate very risky financial activities that were very profitable for them in the short term, but – as it occurred – very disruptive for the whole financial system and the whole economy in the longer term.

Research limitations: The analysis is limited only to the consideration of the causes and consequences of statistical gaps substantially reducing the transparency of the financial sector. A more comprehensive project should also explore and provide an appropriate proposal for remedy data and – even more important – a proposal to setup a macroprudential policy framework.

Originality: The original contribution of the paper is the link between specific institutional changes within the financial sector as well as new financial instruments and the emergence of particular information gaps.

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to show the conditions of the EU against the realities of the global economy in the post-crisis era, an indication of which are the determinants of the development of the competitive advantage of the Community.

Methodology: An analysis of the determinants of growth at different stages of the process of EU integration with particular emphasis on optimum currency area criteria for the euro zone crisis, under asymmetric demand shock.

Findings: The last global crisis has highlighted the structural weaknesses of the EU, which in times of economic prosperity can be compensated by a system of transfers and the mechanism of credibility borrowing. With such a strong crisis Europe needs more growth.

Research limitations: The costs of this crisis affect the Community, significant for both public finances and the standard of life, but are also visible on a global scale, which is difficult to estimate.

Originality: An ex ante perspective on the determinants that will not only restore EU’s position in the world, but also did not miss an opportunity to play a significant role in the rapidly changing global economy, the twenty first century.

Purpose: The article investigates whether performance of government-owned banks
is influenced by electoral considerations.

Methodology: To verify the political interference hypothesis, net interest margins
recorded by banks during different stages of the electoral cycle are studied. Univariate
tests are applied and random effects regression models are estimated.

Findings: It is established that government-owned banks exhibit statistically and
economically significantly lower net interest margins and interest incomes during
pre-electoral periods in Central European countries. The results support the view
that government-owned banks do realize political goals.

Research limitations: The role of only one political factor, i.e. electoral cycle is analyzed.
A comprehensive research project should encompass the effect of such factors
as political competition, non-electoral political events, electoral expectations,
government political complexion, and institutional development on governmentowned
banks’ behaviors. It should also assess the political determinants of lending
volume.

Originality: The article uses a new dataset including financial information since
1992, i.e. since the early transformation years.