

Francesca Vinci
Economist
EU Institutions and Fora
DG International and European Relations
European Central Bank
PhD Economics
Completed at the University of Nottingham
Research Interests
Macroeconomics, EU Affairs, Fiscal Policy, Energy, Firm's Investment and Innovation, Growth Theory, International Economics, Monetary Economics
Passionate about
Connecting dots
Expanding my comfort zone
Teamwork
Email:
Francesca_Romana.Vinci@ecb.europa.eu
© Thibaud Poirier 2019
CURRICULUM VITAE
Full CV
Education
University of Nottingham
2016-2020 PhD Economics
2014-2015 MSc Economics (Distinction)
University of Rome Tor Vergata
2011-2014 BA Economics (110/110 Summa cum laude)
Experience
European Central Bank
September 2022 - today Economist
September 2020 - August 2022 Graduate Programme Participant
Bank of England
June - August 2020 PhD Intern
University of Nottingham
2019-2020 Graduate Teaching Fellow
2017-2019 Graduate Teaching Assistant
Canalys (UK)
2015-2016 Research Analyst, Cyber Security Division
References
Professor Omar Licandro
Univeristy of Nottingham
omar.licandro@nottingham.ac.uk
Professor Giammario Impullitti
Univeristy of Nottingham
RESEARCH
Working papers
Switching-track after the Great Recession
(Joint with Omar Licandro)
Centre for Finance, Credit and Macroeconomics (CFCM)
20/02 Working Paper | 2020
Barcelona GSE Working Paper: 1260 | May 2021
CESifo Working Paper No. 9107 | May 2021
SUERF Policy Brief, No 244 | December 2021
ECB Working paper No 2596 | October 2021
Latest Version
Online Appendix

We propose a theoretical framework to reconcile episodes of V-shaped and L-shaped recovery, encompassing the behaviour of the U.S. economy before and after the Great Recession. In a DSGE model with endogenous growth, negative demand shocks destroy productive capacity, moving GDP to a lower trajectory. A Taylor rule policy designed to reduce the output gap may counterbalance the shocks, preventing the destruction of economic capacity and inducing a V-shaped recovery. However, when shocks are deep and persistent enough, like during the Great Recession, they call for a downward revision of potential output measures, the so-called switching-track, weakening the recovering role of monetary policy and inducing an L-shaped recovery. When calibrated to the U.S. economy, the model replicates well the L-shaped recovery and switching-track that followed the Great Recession, as well as the V-shaped recoveries that followed the oil shock recessions.
Potential Output, the Taylor Rule and the Fed
(Joint with Omar Licandro)
Centre for Finance, Credit and Macroeconomics (CFCM)
21/03 Working Paper
Latest Version
The Taylor Rule is widely considered a useful tool to summarise the Fed's policy, but the information set employed in practice to assess the state of economic activity is still an object of debate. The contribution of this paper is to provide evidence in favour of the following hypotheses. First, the original Taylor Rule is a valid representation of the actual working of the Fed's monetary policy. Second, the real time beliefs of the Fed concerning potential output can be proxied by the estimates published by the Congressional Budget Office. Third, potential output estimates were revised down following the Great Recession.
Marrying Fiscal Rules and Investment: a Central Fiscal Capacity for Europe
(Joint with Christopher Schang)
ECB Workign Paper No 2962 | 2024
Latest Version
The European fiscal governance framework remains incomplete, leading to challenges in coordinating policy responses when facing economic shocks, and hampering the transmission of the single monetary policy. Moreover, high public debt burdens, coupled with pro-cyclical and chronically low public investment in the face of high investment needs hamper resilience across Member States. Several policy-makers, institutions and academics hence share the view that the establishment of a central fiscal capacity (CFC) would be an important step forward. Against this backdrop, we provide a framework to assess a proposal for a CFC in the euro area, aimed at stabilizing the business cycle, promoting sovereign debt sustainability as well as reducing the procyclicality of public investment. We develop a two-region DSGE model with a permanent CFC that allocates resources based on the relative output gap of the two regions while earmarking a fraction for public investment and imposing fiscal adjustment requirements for the high-debt region. We find that the introduction of the CFC can lead to enhanced business cycle stabilisation and welfare improvements for both regions. In response to an asymmetric shock, the CFC reduces procyclicality in public investment and tames the public debt burden. The analysis also explores modelling extensions to enable European bond issuance and implement an active supranational investment strategy to address investment needs by providing European Public Goods (EPGs).
Burn now or never? Climate change exposure and investment of fossil fuel firms
(Joint with Jakob Feveile Adolfsen, Malte Heissel and Ana-Simona Manu)
ECB Workign Paper No 2945 | 2024
R&R at Journal of International Economics
Latest Version
We investigate the impact of expectations about future climate policy on investment decisions of fossil fuel firms. Our empirical analysis reveals that firms with greater exposure to climate change significantly increased their investment in response to the Paris Agreement, in contrast to firms with lower exposure. Importantly, investment was directed towards traditional activities in the fossil fuel industry. By contrast, there are no indications that f irms invested to transition towards renewable energy sources nor in making production less carbon-intensive. Our findings contribute to the ongoing discussion about the potential adverse effects of delays in the implementation of climate regulation.
Intangible Intensity, Recessions and Growth Potential in Europe
Latest Version
This paper analyses the evolution of intangible intensity in Europe, in normal times and following a negative shock. I show that intangible intensity has been on the rise in Europe, both due to research and development expenditure (R&D) and other firm specific intangibles. I find that smaller firms invest relatively more in intangibles, larger firms tend to have a higher share of intangible capital and that firms that invest more in intangibles tend to grow faster in revenue. Moreover, I find evidence of a slowdown in the rise of intangible intensity brought about by the Great Recession of 2008-2009, driven by a slowdown in R&D investment. Overall, the paper offers insights on the drivers and evolution of intangible intensity in Europe, and its effect on
firm growth. Moreover, it provides evidence on the long lasting scarring effects of recessions on the structural transformation process towards a more intangible intensive economy, and on economic growth potential.
Unlocking growth? EU investment programmes and firm performance
(Joint with Alessandro De Sanctis, Daniel Kapp and Robert Wojciechowski)
ECB Workign Paper No 3099 | 2025
Latest Version
This study evaluates the effectiveness of EU Cohesion Policy as an investment programme, employing a novel dataset that links firm-level data from Orbis with project-level information from the Kohesio database. It focuses on two key questions: (1) Which firms receive EU funding? (2) How does receiving EU funding affect firm performance? By applying a logit model and a local projection difference-in-differences approach, we provide new insights into the allocation mechanisms of EU Cohesion Policy funds and their firm-level impact. Our findings show that funding tends to be allocated to firms that already perform relatively well, and that firms receiving EU funding experience a persistent productivity increase of approximately 3% after 4 years, with smaller and more financially constrained firms experiencing relatively greater improvements. Moreover, funding targeting “SME investment” tends to enhance firm performance disproportionately more than other categories, whereas projects directed the “green transition” appear comparatively less beneficial.
Private investment, R&D and European Structural and Investment Funds: crowding-in or crowding-out?
(Joint with Roberto A. De Santis)
ECB Working Paper No 3098 | 2025
Latest Version
We employ a novel regional dataset on European private investment and business R&D spanning the years 2000 to 2021, along with comprehensive historical data on European Union Structural and Investment (ESI) funds, to estimate whether ESI funds have crowding-in or crowding-out effects on private investment and business R&D. Our analysis, leveraging regional variation and a fiscal instrument immune to region-specific shocks, reveals a significant crowding-in effect, with 1 euro in ESI funds increasing private investment by 1.1 euros and business R&D by 0.1 euros after two years. The effect is stronger in developed regions for private investment and in less developed regions for R&D. Additionally, crowding-in effects are stronger in regions where corporate private debt is relatively higher. Among the different ESI funds, the Cohesion Fund (CF) shows the largest estimated impact, while the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) yields somewhat smaller but statistically more robust results.
Oil shocks and firm investment on the two sides of the Atlantic
(Joint with Pablo Anaya Longaric, Vasileios Kostakis and Laura Parisi)
ECB Working Paper No 3116 | 2025
Latest Version
Europe’s lack of energy independence raises concerns about its vulnerability to external energy shocks, such as Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. This paper examines how energy shocks impact firm-level investment, comparing European and US firm responses. Using global oil supply news shocks, S&P’s Compustat data, and a local projections approach, the study reveals that European firms significantly cut capital and R&D expenditures after an oil shock, unlike US firms. The disparity is primarily driven by financially constrained firms in energy-intensive sectors. Additionally, differences in capital market structures play a role, as European firms relying more on market-based financing reduce investment by less. Lastly, our analysis confirms that the US shale revolution was a contributing factor in shaping Europe’s relative vulnerability. These findings highlight the need for national and EU policies to secure the energy supply, lower prices, and deepen capital markets, enhancing resilience and future competitiveness amid energy volatility.
POLICY WORK
Energy shocks, corporate investment and potential implications for future EU competitiveness
(Joint with Pablo Anaya Longaric, Alessandro De Sanctis, Charlotte Grynberg and Vasileios Kostakis)
ECB Economic Bulletin Article 2025
Investing in Europe’s green future: green investment needs, outlook and obstacles to funding the gap
ECB Occasional Paper 2025
Burn now or never: The response of fossil fuel firms to climate policy
(Joint with Jakob Feveile Adolfsen, Malte Heissel and Ana-Simona Manu )
VoxEU Column, 2024
Rapid growth and strategic location: Analysing the rise of FinTechs in the EU
(Joint with Oscar Fast, Zakaria Gati, Urszula Kochanska, Claudia Lambert, Chloe Larkou, Hanni Schölermann, Evangelia Sfetsori and Thomas Teulery)
Box, ECB Report on Financial Integration and Structure in the Euro Area 2024
The recovery in business investment – drivers, opportunities, challenges and risks
(Joint with Malin Andersson, Claudia Di Stefano, and Yiqiao Sun)
ECB Economic Bulletin Article, Issue 5, 2022
TEACHING
Graduate Teaching Assistant/Fellow
I received certified training from the Economics Network in 2017 and 2018
Teaching Excellence Award 2017/2018 and 2018/2019
(University of Nottingham)

" Very helpful feedback on presentation. Kind and approachable person."
Economic Integration
1st year module
2019/2020 Seminars

"Francesca went over and above to help me, and even gave me guidance on future study outside of the module. Cannot recommend her more highly, honestly the best person to have taught me this year."
Economics Dissertation
3rd year module
2018/2019 Seminars

"Amazing tutor, great at explaining things, the tutorials were really helpful"
Macroeconomic Theory
2nd year module
2017/2018 Seminars

"She was very helpful and got a lot of ideas regarding my dissertation (.... )She even put detailed suggestions on Moodle for me under my presentation submission and even links to find more information regarding her suggestions. She was also really helpful and knew a lot regarding stata and econometrics when I asked questions during my presentation."
Economics Dissertation
3rd year module
2019/2020 Seminars and
STATA clinics

"Great tutor and I definitely benefited a lot from her expertise and help."
Monetary Economics
2nd year module
2018/2019 Seminars

"I thought Francesca was an excellent tutor. She was very thorough with her explanations of questions."
Quantitative Methods
1st year module
2017/2018 Seminars