Examining the strategic benefits of information systems: A global case study

In the context of the emerging evaluation of Information Systems (IS) as strategic enablers, this paper critically reviews the literature relating to the strategic benefits of IS. Understanding the importance of IS benefits can be significant in the development of strategy in an organisation, although most organisations have diverse environments and, likewise, diverse benefits for decision-makers. Thus, taxonomies of the benefits of IS are produced from both the academic literature and published case studies. In this way, a classification of benefits as they relate to organisational strategic focus has been developed to provide a greater understanding of the benefits needed to obtain a specific focus. The result of this paper is a taxonomy of IS benefits in the strategic focus of IS, using Y bank as a case study. This categorisation can support the evaluation of IS processes, which will, in turn, support decision-makers throughout the planning process

Labour Cost Efficiency in UK and Irish Credit Institutions

This paper presents aggregated cost efficiency scores for a balanced panel of British and Irish credit institutions and relates these scores to loan loss reserves as a first step in investigating their usefulness as possible indicators of financial fragility. The efficiency scores are obtained using the two most popular methods of efficiency measurement – data envelopment analysis (DEA) and the stochastic frontiers approach.

Monitoring bank performance in the presence of risk

This paper proposes a managerial control tool that integrates risk in efficiency measures. Building on existing efficiency specifications, our proposal reflects the real banking technology and accurately models the relationship between desirable and undesirable outputs. Specifically, the undesirable output is defined as nonperforming loans to capture credit risk, and is linked only to the relevant dimension of the output set. We empirically illustrate how our efficiency measure functions for managerial control purposes. The application considers a unique dataset of Costa Rican banks during 1998–2012. Results’ implications are mostly discussed at bank-level, and their interpretations are enhanced by using accounting ratios. We also show the usefulness of our tool for corporate governance by examining performance changes around executive turnover. Our findings confirm that appointing CEOs from outside the bank is associated with significantly higher performance ex post executive turnover, thus suggesting the potential benefits of new organisational practices.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author’s final draft

The Community Reinvestment Act: New Standards Provide New Hope

This Comment chronicles the Community Reinvestment Act from its adoption to its present status, including its revision under the Financial Institutions Reform Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA). It reviews the major criticisms of the CRA\u27s supporters and detractors. It introduces the recent regulations issued by the regulatory agencies responsible for enforcing the CRA and the Congressional response to those regulations. It concludes that the CRA can be a more effective legislative response to the lack of banking services in poorer inner city communities if the recent agencies\u27 regulations are allowed to take effect and if careful steps are taken to extend the CRA to non-bank financial institutions

Bank regulation and supervision : what works best?

The authors draw on their new database on bank regulation and supervision in 107 countries to assess different governmental approaches to bank regulation and supervision and evaluate the efficacy of different regulatory and supervisory policies. First, the authors assess two broad and competing theories of government regulation: the helping-hand approach, according to which governments regulate to correct market failures, and the grabbing-hand approach, according to which governments regulate to support political constituencies. Second, they assess the effect of an extensive array of regulatory and supervisory policies on the development and fragility of the banking sector. These policies include the following: Regulations on bank activities and the mixing of banking and commerce. Regulations on entry by domestic and foreign banks. Regulations on capital adequacy. Design features of deposit insurance systems. Supervisory power, independence, and resources; stringency of loan classification; provisioning standards; diversification guidelines; and powers to take prompt corrective action. Regulations governing information disclosure and fostering private sector monitoring of banks. Government ownership of banks. The results raise a cautionary flag with regard to reform strategies that place excessive reliance on a country's adherence to an extensive checklist of regulatory and supervisory practices that involve direct government oversight of and restrictions on banks. The findings, which are much more consistent with the grabbing-hand view of regulation than with the helping-hand view, suggest that the regulatory and supervisory practices most effective in promoting good performance and stability in the banking sector are those that force accurate information disclosure, empower private sector monitoring of banks, and foster incentives for private agents to exert corporate control.Banks&Banking Reform,Financial Intermediation,Financial Crisis Management&Restructuring,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Decentralization,Banks&Banking Reform,Financial Intermediation,Environmental Economics&Policies,Financial Crisis Management&Restructuring,Insurance&Risk Mitigation

Bank Regulation and Supervision: What Works Best?

This paper uses our new database on bank regulation and supervision in 107 countries to assess the relationship between specific regulatory and supervisory practices and banking-sector development, efficiency, and fragility. The paper examines: (i) regulatory restrictions on bank activities and the mixing of banking and commerce; (ii) regulations on domestic and foreign bank entry; (iii) regulations on capital adequacy; (iv) deposit insurance system design features; (v) supervisory power, independence, and resources, (vi) loan classification stringency, provisioning standards, and diversification guidelines; (vii) regulations fostering information disclosure and private-sector monitoring of banks; and (viii) government ownership. The results, albeit tentative, raise a cautionary flag regarding government policies that rely excessively on direct government supervision and regulation of bank activities. The findings instead suggest that policies that rely on guidelines that (1) force accurate information disclosure, (2) empower private-sector corporate control of banks, and (3) foster incentives for private agents to exert corporate control work best to promote bank development, performance and stability.

The solution-seeking behavior of small Hungarian enterprises between 2006 and 2010

This paper describes the results of an investigation into the finance-related innovative ability of Hungarian micro, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) by using two datasets (from 2006 and 2010). The author explored SMEs’ levels of openness to new financial solutions and identified features which influence their innovative solution-seeking behavior. Additionally, changes in innovation between 2006 and 2010 were analyzed according to the SME sector and whether there is a correlation between having an active solution seeking attitude and business performance was examined. The findings show that shared/multiple ownership in businesses (having interests in different enterprises simultaneously) has a significant positive effect on flexibility and innovative ability. However, the size of the business, industrial sector, type of ownership and market of the SME also have some effect. Furthermore, the hypothesis that an active solution-seeking attitude increases after-tax performance per employee was confirmed

The effects of governance changes on bank efficiency in China: A stochastic distance function approach

China has accelerated and deepened bank reform since it joined the WTO in 2001. Employing a stochastic distance function, this paper investigates the technical efficiency of banks and examines the static, selection and dynamic effects of governance changes on bank efficiency in China for the period 1995-2005. Our results show that bank efficiency has been improved and state-owned banks still perform poorly except for a noticeable improvement from 2003. Strong selection effects are found from both the foreign acquisition and going-public reform strategies. Foreign acquisition may benefit bank efficiency in the long run, but going-public appears to have just some short run effects. One obvious policy implication is that foreign competition is beneficial to China 's on-going bank reform, and going-public is just a means to allow effective foreign competition.Distance function, Efficiency, Banking, China

Accounting for the determinants of banks’ credit ratings

The contribution of the banking industry to the recent financial crisis 2007/8 has raised public concerns about the excessive involvement of banks in risky activities. In addition there have been public concerns about the ability of credit rating agencies to evaluate these risks in advance. In this context, this study uses an ordered logit analysis to examine the determinants of banks’ credit ratings using a sample of US and UK banks’ accounting data from 1994 to 2009. Our intention is to examine to what extent banks’ ratings reflect banks’ risks. Our analysis shows that a small number of accounting variables, namely: bank size, liquidity, efficiency and profitability are able to correctly assign credit rating for approximately 74% to 78% the sample banks. Surprisingly, the association between banks’ credit ratings and each of leverage asset quality and capital is not robust, suggesting that the rating agency’s models did not pick them up despite their importance in the crisis. In addition, the relationship between banks’ credit ratings and liquidity is the reverse of that which an adequate early warning system would require. As banks benefit from higher credit ratings they will have addressed their determinants rather than taking care of systemic factors that affect underlying risk. Policy makers therefore need to intervene to address this market failure.This study was financially supported by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)