The Insurance Industry in the ASEAN5 Economies: Tapping Its Potential

Has the insurance industry in the five ASEAN economies been fully tapped to help in fostering the development of capital markets in the region? This Policy Notes concludes that the industry is still relatively underdeveloped and untapped, and argues that the government regulatory framework plays a big role in engendering its growth and development. Read more.insurance industry, insurance regulation, ASEAN-5

Deregulation of Bank Entry and Branching: Impact on Competition

Does deregulation of entry and branching restrictions in the country's commercial banking sector foster a more competitive atmosphere? What are the effects of the regulatory restrictions on bank entry and branching on the structure, conduct and performance of the Philippines' commercial banking sector? This Notes reviews the impact of such restrictions and argues for a continuing easing of the rules on entry and branching.competition, deregulation, entry barriers, bank entry and branching, commercial banking sector

Measuring Bank Competitiveness: Has Financial Liberalization Increased Competition?

The financial liberalization in the 1990s appears to have aided the increase in competition among Philippine banks despite the increasing trend in concentration from bank mergers. The finding that Philippine banking industry is close to being perfectly competitive means that further consolidation in the banking sector would not severely undermine market competition.competition, banking sector, bank liberalization

Topology of biological networks and reliability of information processing

Biological systems rely on robust internal information processing: Survival depends on highly reproducible dynamics of regulatory processes. Biological information processing elements, however, are intrinsically noisy (genetic switches, neurons, etc.). Such noise poses severe stability problems to system behavior as it tends to desynchronize system dynamics (e.g. via fluctuating response or transmission time of the elements). Synchronicity in parallel information processing is not readily sustained in the absence of a central clock. Here we analyze the influence of topology on synchronicity in networks of autonomous noisy elements. In numerical and analytical studies we find a clear distinction between non-reliable and reliable dynamical attractors, depending on the topology of the circuit. In the reliable cases, synchronicity is sustained, while in the unreliable scenario, fluctuating responses of single elements can gradually desynchronize the system, leading to non-reproducible behavior. We find that the fraction of reliable dynamical attractors strongly correlates with the underlying circuitry. Our model suggests that the observed motif structure of biological signaling networks is shaped by the biological requirement for reproducibility of attractors.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure

The need for a second black hole at the Galactic center

Deep infra-red observations and long-term monitoring programs have provided dynamical evidence for a supermassive black hole of mass 3.e6 solar masses associated with the radio source Sagitarrius A* at the center of our Galaxy. The brightest stars orbiting within 0.1 parsecs of the black hole appear to be young, massive main sequence stars, n spite of an environment near the black hole that is hostile to star formation. We discuss mechanisms by which stars born outside the central parsec can sink towards the black hole and conclude that the drag coming from plausible stellar populations does not operate on the short timescales required by the stellar ages. We propose that these stars were dragged in by a second black hole of mass of 1.e3-1.e4 solar masses, which would be classified as an intermediate-mass black hole. We discuss the implications for the stellar populations and the kinematics in the Galactic center. Finally we note that continued astrometric monitoring of the central radio source offers the prospect for a direct detection of such objects.Comment: 5 pages, 2 postscript figures, submitted to ApJ letters The introduction section has been updated since submission to Ap

Integrated Financial Supervision: an Institutional Perspective for the Philippines

This paper looks at the issue of reforming financial regulatory structures from the New Institutional Economics perspective. In particular, it examines how the broader institutional environment prevailing in developing countries like the Philippines may affect the institutional arrangements for financial regulation, and how these might be taken into consideration when designing or reforming financial regulatory structures. The paper argues that the state of financial conglomerates in the Philippines does not warrant a shift toward integrated financial supervision. Instead, any effort to reform the financial supervisory structure must explicitly address the countrys most fundamental need, which is to strengthen institutions and governance structures. Key institutional characteristics must already be in place to undertake such a reform successfully, including sound political and legal systems and enforcement mechanisms. That being said, properly structured independent regulatory agencies in the financial sector can play a part in strengthening the overall regulatory environment

Integrated financial supervision: An institutional perspective for the Philippines

This paper looks at the issue of reforming financial regulatory structures from the New Institutional Economics perspective. In particular, it examines how the broader institutional environment prevailing in developing countries like the Philippines may affect the institutional arrangements for financial regulation, and how these might be taken into consideration when designing or reforming financial regulatory structures. The paper argues that the state of financial conglomerates in the Philippines does not warrant a shift toward integrated financial supervision. Instead, any effort to reform the financial supervisory structure must explicitly address the country's most fundamental need, which is to strengthen institutions and governance structures. Key institutional characteristics must already be in place to undertake such a reform successfully, including sound political and legal systems and enforcement mechanisms. That being said, properly structured independent regulatory agencies in the financial sector can play a part in strengthening the overall regulatory environment

Deregulation of Bank Entry and Branching: Impact on Competition

This paper looks at public policy towards bank entry and branching in the Philippines and its impact on the sectors structure, conduct and performance. In particular, it argues that regulatory restrictions on bank entry and branching have had adverse effects on competition, while the liberalization of these restrictions have led to a more competitive banking sector. The paper has two main sections. Section II presents the history of regulation of bank entry and branching in the Philippines. The impact of these regulations on the banking sector is then briefly discussed in Section III by looking at some indicators of changes in financial structure, measures of concentration and operational efficiency. Section IV then presents some policy implications

Viola praemorsa Douglas

https://thekeep.eiu.edu/herbarium_specimens_byname/20125/thumbnail.jp

Viola purpurea Kellogg

https://thekeep.eiu.edu/herbarium_specimens_byname/20126/thumbnail.jp