Santiago Carbó-Valverde is Professor of Economics and Finance at Bangor University, UK. He was previously a Professor of Economics at the University of Granada, Spain. He currently serves as Director of the Financial Services Studies of Spanish Savings Banks Association (FUNCAS) and as President of the Rating Committee of Axexor. He has been advisor to the European Central Bank, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, financial institutions, such as BMN, and has spoken at the G-20 forum. Pedro Jesús Cuadros-Solas is a Lecturer in Economics and a Researcher in Banking and Finance at the University of Granada, Spain. He holds a Bsc in Business Management and Law from the University of Jaén, Spain, and a Msc in Economics from the University of Granada. He is also a member of the Department of Economic Theory and History at the University of Granada. He has been a visiting scholar at the Bangor Business School (UK) and also at the University of St. Andrews, UK. Francisco Rodríguez-Fernández is Professor of Economics at the University of Granada, Spain. He is also a Senior Economist at the Spanish Savings Banks Foundation (FUNCAS). He has spent time as a visiting scholar at the University of Modena (Italy), Bangor Business School (UK) and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago (USA). He has served as a consultant to the European Commission, the European Research Framework Programme, the Spanish Ministry of Labour, KPMG and Euro 6000.