BANK CAPITAL REQUIREMENTS, BUSINESS CYCLE FLUCTUATIONS AND THE BASEL ACCORDS: A SYNTHESIS

Abstract.  In order to survey the mechanisms through which the introduction of Basel II bank capital requirements is likely to accentuate the procyclical tendencies of banking, this paper brings together the theoretical literature on the bank capital channel of propagation of exogenous shocks and the literature on the regulatory framework of capital requirements under the Basel Accords. We conclude that the theoretical models that revisit the bank capital channel under the new accord generally support the Basel II procyclicality hypothesis and that the magnitude of the procyclical effects essentially depends on (i) the composition of banks' asset portfolios, (ii) the approach adopted by banks to compute their minimum capital requirements, (iii) the nature of the rating system used by banks, (iv) the view adopted concerning how credit risk evolves through time, (v) the capital buffers over the regulatory minimum held by the banking institutions, (vi) the improvements in credit risk management and (vii) the supervisor and market intervention under Basel II. The recent events and instability in financial markets all over the world have led the procyclicality issue to enter the agendas of several political international  fora  and some measures to mitigate procyclicality are being put forward. The bank capital channel literature should now play an important role in evaluating their effectiveness.     

NPM merger mania Lessons from an early case

A central doctrine of NPM requires the adoption of commercial management techniques to address the espoused goals of saving money and improving collaboration and service co-ordination. This article examines the evidence base for NPM mergers and uses study data to explain how two ingrained features of professional work helped to produce unintended outcomes at an early UK case involving a specialist mental health provider and an acute trust. The emergence of a de facto mental health trust within the merged entity arose from senior professionals' capacity to ‘buffer’ the work of colleagues from the rationalizing spectre of the merger. The persistence of ‘loosely coupled’ practices and structures restricted improvements in collaboration and service co-ordination. It is argued that these two enduring characteristics of professional organization will shape the outcomes of future NPM mergers in mental health care e.g. the creation of social care trusts and mental health ‘super-trusts’) and in other fields such as higher education.     

A CRITICAL REVIEW OF CONTAGION RISK IN BANKING

The recent financial crisis has focused the attention of scholars and policymakers on how to improve financial stability through better macro‐prudential regulation and supervision. In this paper, we compare the existing theoretical and empirical literature on contagion through the banking system. It is argued that the structure of the interbank market, the size of banks, the linkages among them, the level of correlation of their investments and the transparency of the regulator are key factors in determining the possibility of contagion. We discuss the different findings and present avenues for future research.     

An investigation of cultural cohesion in a community bank

This study examines the culture of a medium-sized community bank based in the Western United States. The study aims to identify the organization's culture and then measure the level of cultural cohesion that exists three years after a major cultural campaign was launched. The cultural characteristics the organization valued most highly were integrity, willingness to serve the customer and teamwork - all components of the official bank document on culture. Interestingly, the analysis uncovered some significant value differences among different employee groups and also employees and management; differences which can affect firm performance levels. The analysis also revealed that changing the culture in an organization does not necessarily lead to cultural cohesion.     

从人行法看中国人民银行独立性

中央银行的独立性是其行使自身权力、自主决策与行动的重要保障。近年来,加强中央银行的独立性已成为全球的共识和趋势。文章将以中国人民银行的独立性为切入点,以《中华人民共和国中国人民银行法》为剖析出发点,通过与西方国家的对比,分析当今我国央行的独立性状况及其存在的问题、产生的影响,并探讨可行的解决办法。     

Regret theory and the banking firm: The optimal bank interest margin

This paper examines the optimal bank interest margin, i.e., the spread between the loan rate and the deposit rate of a bank, when the bank is not only risk-averse but also regret-averse. Regret-averse preferences are characterized by a utility function that includes disutility from having chosen ex-post suboptimal alternatives. We show that the presence of regret aversion raises or lowers the optimal bank interest margin than the one chosen by the purely risk-averse bank, depending on whether the probability of default is below or above a threshold value, respectively. Regret aversion as such makes the bank less prudent and more prone to risk-taking when the probability of default is high, thereby adversely affecting the stability of the banking system.     

对中央银行会计事后监督的认识

本文从中央银行会计事后监督的产生与演变入手,分析了央行会计事后监督的职能与定位,提出了央 行会计事后监督的特殊性及其对会计事后监督理论的发展,并阐述了会计监督与会计控制之间的统一性。     

金融制度变迁、银行组织模式与我国商业银行成长

本文通过对金融制度变迁的理论分析和历史考察,揭示了综合化经营制度是金融制度的基本制度安排,对商业银行的成长和发展具有重要的推动作用,我国已经具备了实施商业银行综合化经营的制度基础和条件.本文认为,金融控股公司是我国商业银行实施综合化经营的目标模式.基于目前我国的制度、体制和法律现实,我国商业银行综合化经营的实现必须分步实施,走渐进之路.同时,必须加强制度基础的塑造和建设.     

美国银行业资本监管演变与新进展

文章旨在梳理美国银行业资本监管体系的演进过程,通过时序研究方法揭示美国银行业资本监管的发展动态与脉络。研究发现,美国银行业资本监管与其经济发展趋势密切相关,经济繁荣期监管当局倾向放松监管,这其中有着十分复杂的利益攸关方的激烈博弈,而在经济衰退期,在金融体系风险的压力下,监管当局会收紧监管标准。从中可以窥见,上世纪20年代前的宽松监管与1929年大萧条,二次世界大战后的经济繁荣与70年代经济滞涨,监管加强,80年代初的放松管制与80年代中后期银行大量倒闭,90年代金融服务现代化法案与2008年的全球金融危机,交替出现的银行业监管放松与收紧的变化有着内在的规律性。研究美国银行业资本监管历史、监管体系和监管措施,有助于我国加强银行体系的风险防范,完善银行业资本监管制度和机制。     

浅析半导体行业内企业并购动因

国内外半导体公司在本世纪展开了并购重组潮,希望通过并购带来的规模和领导力在半导体市场上获胜。本文从经济学中关于企业并购的不同角度分析,对半导体行业内的企业并购行为受规模经济,协同效应,产业集群效应等的影响进行大概的分析。