Bank size and capital: A trade-off between risk-taking incentives and diversification

Capital stability of the banking system is the basis of its effective development and realization of its main function – optimal redistribution of capital. So, the aim of the article is to develop indicators of capital stability of the banking system, and to propose the frameworks for the long term capital stability strategy of the banking system in Ukraine. For this purpose, the analysis of micro- and macroeconomic indicators of the capital stability of domestic banks within the period 2007–2016 is made. To carry out the research, there were used the statistic data of the National Bank of Ukraine, its legislative and regulatory documents, the Basel Accords.

Capital stability of the banking system has been defined in the article as the process of ensuring capitalization that is adequate to the banking risks and cyclical economic development. It has been detected that a significant reduction in return on equity of the Ukrainian banks in 2014–2015 even with restoring their liquidity has had a crucial destabilizing impact on their capital stability. In order to improve the assessment of capital stability, its key indicators for the groups of domestic banks have been studied. The necessity of refocusing macroprudential requirements of the National Bank of Ukraine from quantitative indicators to qualitative ones to ensure economic development has been proved. It has been concluded that a necessary condition for restoring the Ukrainian banking system was to develop an effective strategy for ensuring its capital stability, which should be focused on the creation of its diversified structure.

Securitization has been used as a tool for bank funding, liquidity, risk management, and performance for over two decades. However, securitization activities were negatively affected by the recent financial crises, which led to stricter regulations of banks’ off-balance-sheet activities. This study examined the possible impacts of the Basel IV capital requirements on securitization activities and the performance of commercial banks in South Africa if implemented. The study used aggregated financial data of selected South African commercial banks to create a sample representative projection as if the selected banks had implemented the Basel IV capital requirements between 2002 and 2018. The simulated data were analyzed and compared to Basel III data using panel data analysis under certain assumptions, while other conditions held constant. The results revealed that the implementation of the Basel IV capital requirements will have a significant positive impact on securitization activities of commercial banks in South Africa. However, higher capital requirements of Basel IV may have no significant impact on performance of securitizing banks but it can protect banks from securitization exposure.

The purpose of this article is to evaluate the financial soundness of commercial banks listed on the Palestine Exchange using the CAMEL rating system. A content analysis, composite rating, and a one sample t-test are applied to a sample of six local banks operating in Palestine. Secondary data were obtained from the financial statements of the banks for the period of 2007–2017 in order to conduct the research and evaluate their financial performance. The empirical test has shown that Palestinian banks adhere to the Basel Committee standards in terms of capital adequacy and that they display stability in terms of profitability and liquidity. However, the paper concludes that the operational efficiency of the banks being evaluated is “fairly managed”. Finally, the findings indicate significant differences amongst Palestinian banks in terms of performance, assessed using the CAMEL rating system. This paper suggests that the listed Palestinian banks should focus on long-term investments rather than short-term ones, and monitor their risk management practices to increase their profits and move towards sustainability and growth.