Parmendra Sharma

How efficient is the banking system of Asia’s next economic dragon? Evidence from rolling DEA windows

Vietnam is now widely regarded as a rising economic star and the next economic dragon of Asia. Its banking system has played a key role in this stellar economic performance. Since 1990, Vietnam’s banking system has undergone significant changes which saw its composition transformed from being state banks only to now being both state as well as private banks, and has performed generally well in terms of growth, profitability and stability. But is it efficient? We conduct a dynamic analysis of the level and trend of the cost and profit efficiency of the Vietnamese banking sector over the period 1995 to 2011 taking into account the Asian and Global Financial crises. We use the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) Windows Analysis approach and adjust for bank size in calculating the average efficiency score of the banking system. Our empirical findings show that the cost and profit efficiency of the Vietnamese banking system averaged around 0.90 and 0.75, respectively, with the state banks being more efficient than the private banks and with efficiency experiencing an upward trend over the analysis period. Moreover, we find that the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and Asian Financial Crisis (AFC) did not significantly affect the efficiency of the whole Vietnamese banking system.

It is Time to Reexamine the Role of Stock Markets in Developing Economies

Although the many perceived benefits of a stock market may have led to their rapid formation and development aspirations across economies, emerging findings that stock markets may not be as useful as previously thought, even a detraction in the case of some developing economies, raises the question of how practical stock markets may be in different situations. In light of the foregoing and using Fiji as an example, this study argues that it is indeed time to reexamine the role of stock markets in developing economies with a view to restructuring the financial system for improved efficiency and effectiveness.

Law and Banking Development in a South Pacific Island Economy: The Case of Fiji, 1970-2006

This paper examines the applicability of the prominent law–finance theory to banking development in Fiji, a representative island economy in the South Pacific region. Secondary and primary data are used to assess legal institutions and the level of development in the banking sector in Fiji (and, where possible, in other South Pacific island economies) in comparison with up to 53 other countries, both developed and developing. The paper also re-examines the question of a possible law–banking development connection internationally, in light of newly available data and a newly proposed composite index of banking development. While the results are broadly consistent with previous findings of a direct relationship between law enforcement quality and banking development, they also suggest that the legal rules codifying creditor rights may not be as influential as had been thought previously. The latter result accords with the experience of Fiji, where very weak legal rules combined with average law enforcement quality (and high accounting standards) yield a reasonable performance in terms of banking development over the 1970–2006 period. The paper also points out some possible policy implications of these results.

Determinants of bank net interest margins in Fiji, a small island developing state

This article investigates the determinants of Net Interest Margins (NIM) of banks in Fiji, a Small Island Developing State (SIDS) in the South Pacific, over the period 2000–2010. Based mainly on the Ho and Saunders’ (1981) dealership model and extensions thereto, this study uses a number of panel data estimation techniques to control for possible heterogeneity across banks and various assumptions about errors. Consistent with the theoretical model, NIM has a positive association with implicit interest payment, operating cost, market power and credit risk, and a negative association with the quality of management and liquidity risk. However, the association with bank capital and opportunity cost of required reserves do not conform to expectations. Policy implications are discussed.

Bank reforms and efficiency in Vietnamese banks: Evidence based on SFA and DEA

ABSTRACT This study examines the cost efficiency of Vietnamese banks from 2000 to 2014 in the first stage, and the selection and dynamic effects of two governance reforms, foreign partial acquisition and listing on the stock exchange, on the efficiency in the second stage. Empirical results from the two-stage Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) are highly consistent with those from the two-stage Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) . Specifically, the first-stage efficiency estimation indicates that the cost efficiency shows a slightly upward trend over the period 2000–2014, with the cost efficiency score being 0.93 and state-owned banks outperforming joint-stock banks (JSBs). The mixed process seemingly unrelated regression estimator which controls the potential endogeneity of public listing and foreign acquisition in the second stage shows that selection effects occur in the Vietnamese banking system: banks selected by the strategic foreign investors for partial acquisition and banks selected for public listing are more cost-efficient than those not selected. The short-term and long-term dynamic effects of foreign partial acquisition are documented: the cost efficiency of the Vietnamese banks post-partial acquisition is lower than prior-partial acquisition, and it experiences a decreasing trend since partial acquisition. However, the short-term and long-term dynamic effects of public listing are not evidenced: the cost efficiency of the banks after public listing is not statistically different from that before public listing, and it also reveals an unclear trend since public listing.

Level and Determinants of Foreign Bank Efficiency in a Pacific Island Country

This study fills a huge gap in literature by providing some evidence on the level and determinants of bank efficiency in a Pacific island context. DEA results show that overall efficiency levels may be lower than in Australia, the home country of major banks. Dynamic GMM and panel data results show that personnel expenses and bank credit matter for efficiency, but not other bank-specific and macroeconomic factors. These insights substantially improve policy-making capacities for Fiji and other Pacific economies, including Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu where banking and regulatory systems and structures are highly comparable.

Foreign banks, profits, market power and efficiency in PICs: some evidence from Fiji

Studies on bank profitability vis-à-vis market power and efficiency span a number of years, many countries, regions and methods. Yet, the experiences of the Pacific’s small states – where foreign banks are widespread and bank profits relatively high – remain unknown, leaving policy-makers ill-informed regarding relevant policy development. This study fills a huge gap in literature by providing some evidence on the issue in a Pacific Island context. Two market power hypotheses – the structure-conduct-performance (SCP) and the relative market power (RMP) hypotheses together with two measures of the efficient structure (ES) hypothesis – X and scale efficiencies are estimated. The nonparametric data envelopment analysis (DEA) technique is used to estimate efficiency scores for banks in Fiji over the period 2000 to 2010 and the dynamic GMM to estimate the relationships between market power and efficiency vis-à-vis profitability. Results show that the RMP and ES hypotheses might hold, but not the SCP. Profits appear to persist over time. Policy implications are considerable including that any suggestions to limit further mergers and acquisitions of banks in the region may have to be properly debated.

Supply Side Obstacles to Financing the Private Sector: Empirical Evidence from a Small Island Developing State

In light of the growing finance - private sector - economic growth findings, this article examines, from a supply - side perspective, obstacles to private sector financing in Fiji, a representative South Pacific small island, growth deprived, fragile economy. A survey of 80 percent of the formal financial sector suppliers reveals that financing the private sector may not be a major problem. However, the prevalent relationship - lending practices, good profits and well - managed risks also suggest that suppliers may be concentrating on a systematically selected small group of connected borrowers; the wider private sector, including many SMEs may be left out. Growth and development implications extend to developing economies beyond the South Pacific region.

Determinants of Bank Credit in Small Open Economies: The Case of Six Pacific Island Countries

This paper examines the changes in bank credit to private sector across six economies in the South Pacific. An extensive time-series and cross-country panel data allow us to draw new and broader lessons compared to existing research, which have tended to focus mostly on single countries with shorter time periods. Results show that rising average lending and inflation rates may be detrimental to credit growth, and that deposit and asset size contribute positively to credit growth. Results also indicate that stronger economic growth leads to higher credit growth. A number of policy implications emerge and are also discussed.

Empirical modelling of bank market exclusion

Driven by higher profit incentives, banks’ marketing strategies have tended increasingly to exclude sections of the retail market on socio‐economic lines. Ironically, these strategies are now seen to have profitability and social responsibility implications. Little previous attempt has been made to quantify the relationship between bank service access and the determinants that act as deterrents, to improve general understanding of the extent of exclusionary influence of each determinant and the relevant implications. This study examines quantified relationships using the Probit model and data collected through primary research from a developing economy in the Asia Pacific region. Results show that bank‐driven pricing strategies may have an overriding effect on other factors. The analysis demonstrates that profits may be increased, socio‐economic exclusionary effects reduced and social image improved by voluntarily reconsidering pricing and other bank‐driven exclusionary strategies.