The constitutional principle of economic freedom and COVID-19 – interventionism in the pandemic situation

The purpose of the article is to analyse the concept of economic freedom as a constitutional right in Poland, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and to synthetically evaluate the intervention actions taken by government in the economic area – their nature and scope. Descriptive analysis and statistical data analysis of the economic impact of the pandemic were used. The research work points to the intensification of state interventionism while limiting economic freedom. This phenomenon, seemingly negative, should be assessed positively, because the actions taken by government actually limit the multidimensional consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are significant hints of a strong relationship between the dynamics of real estate markets and financial crises from the second half of the 19th century until today. In spite of research accumulation, it is seemingly ignored that since the late 19th century several financial crises were caused by real estate bubbles, depending on the distinct characteristics of real estate markets. The paper supports the idea that real estate and financial crises show indeed similar and congruent characteristics since the 19th century. This concerns (1) the inherent tendency towards speculative bubbles, (2) the growing significance of globalized finance, (3) credit practices, (4) the close relationship between the banking system and real estate markets and (5) between the real estate business and the stock market. However, the investigation into real estate markets is not only interesting for understanding and explaining the genesis of modern economic crises, but also contributes to the understanding of the emergence of practices of speculation, the indebtedness of private households and social inequalities. Further research on real estate markets promises the contribution towards a better understanding of actors, practices and institutions in modern market society.

Economic LONG COVID – Constitutional Context and Economic Perspective

The aim of this article is the analysis of the constitutional context of government interventions of the European Union states as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, with an indication of the effects on economic freedom. An analysis was made of the constitutional provisions of the European Union member states in shaping the economic system and economic freedom guarantees, as well as a comparative analysis of three economic freedom indicators: Index of Economic Freedom, Economic Freedom of the World and The Oxford Covid-19 Government Response Tracker. Research showed that despite the constitutional guarantees of economic freedom, the scope and intensity of the preventive measures undertaken by the governments in order to counteract the health, social, and economic effects of the pandemic may cause a long-term restriction of freedom and democracy. The conclusions presented in this article are the result of research that is a continuation of analyses, the synthesis of which is presented in the publication „The constitutional principle of economic freedom and COVID-19 – state interventionism in pandemic conditions” (“Constitutional Law Review” 2021, no. 5/63).

Analysis of the possibility of building a credit risk model

FinAi has undertaken a project focused on the development of an innovative credit risk model utilizing alternative data sources, such as data from social media platforms (Facebook, LinkedIn) and mobile phone records. This project was co-financed through the European Regional Development Fund under a funding agreement between FinAi S.A. and the National Centre for Research and Development (NCBiR), headquartered in Warsaw. The initial phase of the project involved the collection of data and their utilization in constructing a network graph of customer relationships. Furthermore, leveraging external data as well as data managed by FinAi, specific indicators were formulated. These indicators were employed under the supervision of experts to train a predictive model that incorporated graph structures. The model thus constructed was to exhibit a higher predictive capability compared to conventional models commonly employed within the industry. The study explored the feasibility of creating a credit risk model based on the acquired data and assessed the quality of data originating from alternative sources. It was demonstrated that alternative data sources were populated for a small fraction of the population, and their quality has proven unsatisfactory. The scale of the dataset proved inadequate for establishing a robust credit risk model or attaining a competitive advantage over the models in use within banking institutions.