European bank loan loss provisioning and efficient technological innovative progress

This paper presents an analysis of Loan Loss Provisioning (LLP) behavior of European banks across 26-member states to determine how bad management and Technological Innovative Progress (TIP) has affected bank risk management. Technological improvements in banking have seen advances in both back and front office operations with respect to lending. This is created through increased disembodied technological change capturing improvements in both non-financial and risk management technologies. We find, using a new dynamic LLP model that European banks employed bad management practices in relation to their lending and monitoring practices, leading to higher losses on loans (through increased LLPs). However, the relationship between TIP and LLPs indicates that those banks which increased their technological efficiency with respect to costs had a greater ability to recognize bad loans, and were therefore able to subsequently increase LLPs. That is, improving technology mitigated the impact of bad management practices in European banks

Loan loss provisions, non-performing loans and cost efficiency: evidence from Greece

This Thesis is a both timely and warranted examination of ‘risk management behaviour’ in Greek banking inter-linking cost efficiencies with loan loss provisioning practices during 2005 to 2012. Firstly, utilising Stochastic Frontier Analysis, we construct numerous cost efficiency frontiers and examine the evolution of cost efficiency in the banking system. Secondly, we investigate the risk management behaviour and the dominant loan loss provisioning practises in the domestic banking sector. These include capital management, efficiency hypotheses and the cyclicality of loan loss provisioning. Finally, we investigate the evolution of non-performing loans and if they are Granger caused by bad management or cost skimping within our construct of risk management behaviour. During 2005 to 2012 the ‘four core’ banks record strong performances and operate at higher levels of cost efficiency than their domestic competitors. This gap was reduced after the 2008 and 2010 financial crises, thus indicating an adverse impact due to the Private Sector Involvement. Overall, despite the so called bond haircut, the Greek banking system still recorded a strong performance where many banks operated close to the optimal efficiency levels, despite the ongoing deepening economic recession. In addition risk bank management behaviour presents loan loss provisioning practices that are counter cyclical to the Greek business cycle. These results suggest that banks have engaged in capital adjustment via their loan loss provisioning resources. In addition, we present evidence to support that low cost efficient banks reported higher levels of loan loss provisioning indicating difficulties in raising additional external capital. Finally, with respect to the development of non-performing loans we present evidence of cost skimping and little support concerning moral hazard in Greek bank risk management behaviour

External Biliary Fistula

We report 210 cases of external biliary fistula treated in our clinics between 1970–1992. In 7 cases, fistulas were formed after iatrogenic bile duct injury, in 4 cases after exploration of common bile duct, in 4 cases due to disruption of biliary-intestinal anastomosis, and in 2 cases due to liver trauma. In 85 cases bile leak was observed after cholecystomy, in 103 cases after hydatid disease surgery, and in 4 cases after the passage of P.T.C. catheter. In one patient the appearance of the fistula was due to spontaneous discharge of a gallbladder empyema. 173 cases were managed conservatively, and 37 cases surgically

Our local experience with the surgical treatment of ampullary cancer

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to report the outcome after surgical treatment of 32 patients with ampullary cancers from 1990 to 1999. METHODS: Twenty-one of them underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy and 9 local excision of the ampullary lesion. The remaining 2 patients underwent palliative surgery. RESULTS: When the final histological diagnosis was compared with the preoperative histological finding on biopsy, accurate diagnosis was preoperatively established in 24 patients. The hospital morbidity was 18.8% as 9 complications occurred in 6 patients. Following local excision of the ampullary cancer, the survival rate at 3 and 5 years was 77.7% and 33.3% respectively. Among the patients that underwent Whipple's procedure, the 3-year survival rate was 76.2% and the 5-year survival rate 62%. CONCLUSION: In this series, local resection was a safe option in patients with significant co-morbidity or small ampullary tumors less than 2 cm in size, and was associated with satisfactory long-term survival rates

Intrabiliary rupture of liver hydatid cyst: a case report and review of the literature

Herein, we report a 66 year old woman who was diagnosed to have intrabiliary rupture of liver hydatid cyst with demonstrative computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography findings, with a review of the literature

An analysis of loan loss provisioning behaviour in Vietnamese banking

This paper investigates loan loss provisioning (LLP) behaviour by Vietnamese banks during the period 2006–2012. We test the capital, income-smoothing and cyclical management hypotheses and examine whether the inclusion of X-efficiencies and/or risk control variables influences provisioning behaviour. When the X-efficiency estimates are incorporated into the models, Vietnamese banks do not exhibit counter-cyclical or capital management manipulation by managers, but counter cyclical income smoothing. Yet, the inclusion of risk control variables in X-efficiency scores (either equity or reserves for impaired loans) supports the addition of capital management hypotheses

The effects of thermal sources emitted infrared radiation on rabbit corneal and crystalline lens

Purpose: To investigate the effect of acute and chronic exposure to infrared radiation (IR) on rabbit corneal and lens metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2), MMP-9 and glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) and the influence of cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibition. Materials-Methods: Fourteen (14) New Zealand rabbits were used totally. Chronic exposure to IR included 4 month irradiation of 3 rabbits, whereas 3 animals were the control group. Regarding acute exposure, 8 rabbits were used, diclofenac sodium eye drops 0.1% were instilled in their right eyes and 4 of them were irradiated for 12 hours. By comparing the left irradiated with the left non-irradiated eyes, the effect of IR exposure was investigated. COX inhibition role with and without IR exposure was determined, by comparing the left with the right eyes of the irradiated and the non-irradiated rabbits separately .The cornea and lens were extracted, followed by gelatin zymography to determine MMP-2 and MMP-9 activity, GAGs isolation, measurement of uronic acids and electrophoresis on cellulose acetate membranes for GAGs analysis. Results: Chronic IR exposure induced the activity of corneal and lens pro-MMP2 activity but did not affect GAGs. Acute exposure increased corneal and lens proMMP-2 activity and lens heparan sulfate amount, whereas the use of diclofenac sodium was unable to influence these effects. Conclusions: Corneal and lens acute and chronic IR exposure induced the activity of pro-MMP-2. Acute exposure also increased lens heparan sulfate amount. These results considering the role of these molecules in many ocular diseases, could correlate the IR exposure with various ocular damages, elucidate the possible mechanisms involved and contribute to the field of preventive and therapeutic solutions.Σκοπός: Να διερευνήσει την επίδραση της οξείας και της χρόνιας έκθεσης σε υπέρυθρη ακτινοβολία (infrared radiation-IR) στις μεταλλοπρωτεϊνάσες-2 και -9 (ΜΜΡ-2 και ΜΜΡ-9), καθώς και στις γλυκοζαμινογλυκάνες (GAGs) στον κερατοειδή και τον κρυσταλλοειδή φακό κονίκλων και να μελετήσει, επίσης, την επίδραση της αναστολής της κυκλοοξυγενάσης (COX, φλεγμονώδης διαμεσολαβητής). Υλικό-Μεθοδολογία: Δεκατέσσερεις κόνικλοι Νέας Ζηλανδίας χρησιμοποιήθηκαν συνολικά. Η χρόνια έκθεση σε IR περιελάμβανε ακτινοβόληση επί τετραμήνου τριών κονίκλων, ενώ τρεις άλλοι κόνικλοι αποτέλεσαν την ομάδα των μαρτύρων. Όσον αφορά στην οξεία έκθεση, χρησιμοποιήθηκαν οκτώ κόνικλοι, σταγόνες θειικής δικλοφενάκης 0,1% ενσταλλάχτηκαν στους δεξιούς οφθαλμούς όλων των κονίκλων, ενώ τέσσερεις από τους οκτώ κονίκλους ακτινοβολήθηκαν επί δωδεκαώρου. Συγκρίνοντας τους αριστερούς ακτινοβολημένους με τους αριστερούς μη ακτινοβολημένους οφθαλμούς διερευνήθηκε η επίδραση της οξείας έκθεσης σε IR. Μελετήθηκε, επίσης, ο ρόλος της COX αναστολής με και χωρίς έκθεση σε IR, συγκρίνοντας τους αριστερούς με τους δεξιούς οφθαλμούς των ακτινοβολημένων και μη ακτινοβολημένων κονίκλων αντίστοιχα. Μετά την λήψη του κερατοειδούς και του φακού, ακολούθησε ζυμογραφία ζελατίνης για τον υπολογισμό της δραστηριότητας της ΜΜΡ-2 και ΜΜΡ-9, καθώς και απομόνωση των GAGs και μέτρηση των ουρωνικών οξέων στα δείγματα, τα οποία τελικά ηλεκτροφορήθηκαν σε μεμβράνες οξικής κυτταρίνης για την ποιοτική και ποσοτική ανάλυση των GAGs. Αποτελέσματα: Η χρόνια έκθεση σε IR προκάλεσε επαγωγή της δραστηριότητας της προ-ΜΜΡ-2, χωρίς να επηρεάσει τις GAGs τόσο στον κερατοειδή όσο και στον κρυσταλλοειδή φακό. Η οξεία έκθεση αύξησε τη δραστηριότητα της προ-ΜΜΡ-2 στον κερατοειδή και τον φακό, όπως επίσης και την θειική ηπαράνη στον φακό, ενώ η θειική δικλοφενάκη δεν μπόρεσε να επηρεάσει αυτές τις επιδράσεις. Συμπεράσματα: Η οξεία και η χρόνια έκθεση σε IR προκάλεσε επαγωγή της δραστηριότητας της προ-ΜΜΡ-2. Η οξεία έκθεση, επίσης, αύξησε το ποσό της θειικής ηπαράνης στον κρυσταλλοειδή φακό. Τα αποτελέσματα αυτά, αναλογιζόμενοι τις. βιολογικές δράσεις των παραπάνω μορίων σε διάφορες οφθαλμικές παθήσεις, θα μπορούσαν να συσχετίσουν την έκθεση σε IR με την πρόκληση διαφόρων βλαβών στον οφθαλμό, να αποσαφηνίσουν τους πιθανούς μηχανισμούς πρόκλησης των βλαβών αυτών και να συμβάλλουν στον τομέα ανίχνευσης προληπτικών ή και θεραπευτικών μέτρων

Loan loss provisions, non-performing loans and cost efficiency: evidence from Greece

This Thesis is a both timely and warranted examination of ‘risk management behaviour’ in Greek banking inter-linking cost efficiencies with loan loss provisioning practices during 2005 to 2012. Firstly, utilising Stochastic Frontier Analysis, we construct numerous cost efficiency frontiers and examine the evolution of cost efficiency in the banking system. Secondly, we investigate the risk management behaviour and the dominant loan loss provisioning practises in the domestic banking sector. These include capital management, efficiency hypotheses and the cyclicality of loan loss provisioning. Finally, we investigate the evolution of non-performing loans and if they are Granger caused by bad management or cost skimping within our construct of risk management behaviour. During 2005 to 2012 the ‘four core’ banks record strong performances and operate at higher levels of cost efficiency than their domestic competitors. This gap was reduced after the 2008 and 2010 financial crises, thus indicating an adverse impact due to the Private Sector Involvement. Overall, despite the so called bond haircut, the Greek banking system still recorded a strong performance where many banks operated close to the optimal efficiency levels, despite the ongoing deepening economic recession. In addition risk bank management behaviour presents loan loss provisioning practices that are counter cyclical to the Greek business cycle. These results suggest that banks have engaged in capital adjustment via their loan loss provisioning resources. In addition, we present evidence to support that low cost efficient banks reported higher levels of loan loss provisioning indicating difficulties in raising additional external capital. Finally, with respect to the development of non-performing loans we present evidence of cost skimping and little support concerning moral hazard in Greek bank risk management behaviour