Moreover, banks offer contracts (such as overdrafts or credit lines) and services (such as lending assistance) that are often complementary to market-based finance. These contracts and services can be helpful to firms, especially in periods of distress.9 *  *  *  To conclude, the corporate sector would greatly benefit from a more developed market-based segment within our financial systems.
Institutional investors play a pivotal role in this structural evolution. At the European  7  8  9  Scharfstain, D. S., “Presidential Address: Pension Policy and the Financial System,” The Journal of Finance, 73 (2018), 1463–1512. McCahery J. A., Z. Sautner and L. T. Starks, “Behind the Scenes: The Corporate Governance Preferences of Institutional Investors,” The Journal of Finance, 71 (2016), 2905–2932.