Cover IMF Working Papers
Buy Book in Print
Determinants of Bank Interest Margins in the Caucasus and Central Asia
Author:
Raja Almarzoqi
Search for other papers by Raja Almarzoqi in
Current site
Google Scholar Close
and
Samy Ben Naceur
Search for other papers by Samy Ben Naceur in
Current site
Google Scholar Close
Series:
IMF Working Papers
Volume/Issue:
Volume 2015: Issue 087
Language:
English
Publication Date:
29 Apr 2015
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5089/9781484342817.001
ISBN:
9781484342817
ISSN:
1018-5941
Pages:
29
Keywords:
WP; interest margin; interest; bank
Legal-disclaimer:
IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.
Download PDF (787.3 KB) Download Epub
In this paper, we use a bank-level panel dataset to investigate the determinants of bank interest margins in the Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA) over the period 1998–2013. We apply the dealership model of Ho and Saunders (1981) and its extensions to assess the extent to which high spreads of banks in the CCA can be related to bank-specific variables, to competition, and to macroeconomic factors. We find that interest spreads are affected by operating cost, credit risk, liquidity risk, bank size, bank diversification, banking sector competition, and macroeconomic policies; but the impact depends on the country.
  • Collapse
  • Expand
Cover IMF Working Papers
IMF Working Papers
ISSN:
1018-5941
Publisher:
International Monetary Fund