Financial institutions

• November 22, 2004

  The Evolving Financial System and Public Policy: Conference Highlights and Lessons

  Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 2004 Pierre St-Amant, Carolyn A. Wilkins

  At the 12th annual Bank of Canada economic conference, held in Ottawa on 4 and 5 December 2003, representatives from various public and private organizations and Bank of Canada staff discussed papers presented on three key issues affecting the financial system: financial contagion, the implications of bank diversification, and financial sector regulation. Papers on financial contagion studied the effect of globalization on Canadian foreign-asset exposures, developed a general-equilibrium model of a competitive interfirm lending market in which firms can borrow or lend, and used market-based indicators to determine the probability that contagion can be generated by interbank exposures. The papers on bank diversification focused on the links between the changing behaviour of financial institutions and risk-return trade-offs. Issues of financial sector regulation included the relationship between governance and financial sector soundness, the theoretical basis of bank regulations for capital requirements, and the implications of bank capital requirements for the transmission of monetary policy. A panel discussion provided extended discussion of the conference papers.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Financial institutions, Financial markets, Financial services
• November 21, 2004

  Summary of the G-20 Workshop on Developing Strong Domestic Financial Markets, 26-27 April 2004

  Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 2004 Joerg Stephan, James Powell, Robert Lafrance, James Haley

  G-20 representatives, academics, market participants, and members of international financial institutions were brought together in Ottawa to explore the connection between robust financial markets and economic growth and development, share experiences, and to develop policy recommendations, where possible. Participants identified several areas they deemed critical for fostering strong domestic financial markets and reducing external vulnerability: sound macroeconomics policies, strengthened financial infrastructures and banking systems, and exchange rate flexibility for countries with widely open capital accounts. Papers presented in the six sessions and keynote address highlighted a number of issues, including currency mismatches, the sequence of financial liberalization and supervisory reforms, the development of local financial markets, infrastructure building and governance, and appropriate incentives.

  Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Development economics, Financial institutions, International topics

• Finance Constraints and Inventory Investment: Empirical Tests with Panel Data

  Staff Working Paper 2004-38 Rose Cunningham

  The author empirically tests two aspects of the interaction between financial variables and inventory investment: negative cash flow and finance constraints due to asymmetric information.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Financial institutions JEL Code(s): E, E2, E22, G, G1, G14

• Market Valuation and Risk Assessment of Canadian Banks

  Staff Working Paper 2004-34 Ying Liu, Mingwei Yuan, Eli Papakirykos

  The authors apply the asset-valuation model developed by Rabinovitch (1989) to six publicly traded Canadian banks over the period 1982–2002.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Financial institutions JEL Code(s): G, G1, G12, G2, G21

• The New Basel Capital Accord and the Cyclical Behaviour of Bank Capital

  Staff Working Paper 2004-30 Mark Illing, Graydon Paulin

  The authors conduct a counterfactual simulation of the proposed rules under the new Basel Capital Accord (Basel II), including the revised treatment of expected and unexpected credit losses proposed by the Basel Committee in October 2003.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Financial institutions JEL Code(s): G, G2, G21, G28, K, K2, K23

• Uninsurable Investment Risks

  Staff Working Paper 2004-29 Césaire Meh, Vincenzo Quadrini

  The authors study a general-equilibrium economy in which agents have the ability to invest in a risky technology.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Economic models, Financial institutions, Financial markets JEL Code(s): D, D3, D31, E, E2, E21, G, G0

• Regulatory Changes and Financial Structure: The Case of Canada

  Staff Working Paper 2004-26 Christian Calmès

  The author documents some stylized facts about the Canadian financial structure. He explores these empirical facts in the context of Canadian financial legislation and finds that, over the 1990s, Canadian businesses became more heavily dependent on financial markets as their primary source of external funding.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Financial institutions, Financial services, Recent economic and financial developments JEL Code(s): G, G2, G20, G21

• Competition in Banking: A Review of the Literature

  Staff Working Paper 2004-24 Carol Ann Northcott

  The author reviews the theoretical and empirical literature to examine the traditional perception that the following trade-off exists between economic efficiency and stability in the banking system: a competitive banking system is more efficient and therefore important to growth, but market power is necessary for stability in the banking system.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Financial institutions, Financial services, Market structure and pricing JEL Code(s): G, G2, G21, G28, L, L1, L11, L12, L13, L16

• When Bad Things Happen to Good Banks: Contagious Bank Runs and Currency Crises

  Staff Working Paper 2004-18 Raphael Solomon

  The author develops a twin crisis model featuring multiple banks.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rates, Financial institutions JEL Code(s): E, E5, E58, F, F3, F30, G, G2, G21

• Bank Capital, Agency Costs, and Monetary Policy

  Staff Working Paper 2004-6 Césaire Meh, Kevin Moran

  Evidence suggests that banks, like firms, face financial frictions when raising funds.

  Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Financial institutions, Monetary policy transmission JEL Code(s): E, E4, E44, E5, E52, G, G2, G21