any rate comprises of….
how are interest rates set ?
- rate of pure time preference
- inflation premium (if nominal)
- risk premium (if not risk free)
-up to lenders/inv = assess risk premium level req by reference to risk being asked to take
market = expectations regarding inflation
where does risk free rate come from?
rate of pure time preference (nominal or real)
Rf in CAPM
UK role of Bank of England
Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of BOE
meet month = set base rate
deciding whether to raise/lower considers:
-inflation/inflation target
-eco growth, employment
-currency ER price of imports/exports
-operation and decisions = autonomous and independent of HM treasury
base rate
rate banks can obtain short term (overnight) secured lending from BoE
Recently - historically low, pushing up base rate in response to inflation
impact of base rate changes
changes = quickly reflected in all rate/req yields across economy
-asset/project and firm values (changes in discount rate)
-cost of capital
-propensity for inv in different asset classes
-exchange rate
quantitative easing
low base rate - longer term rates remain higher than desired
attempt by BoE directly to downwards influence LT rates & stimulate inv in real economy
involves BoE entering bond mkt to buy back long term bonds = raise market price
reduce GRY
some inv & firms will sell, liberate cash, look for higher return inv
sums involved = highly economically significant
advocates - satisfied QE worked/working critics see as an akin to printing money & inviting inflation
relationship between interest rates and exchange rates
expected future exchange rates = linked to current ER, and risk free interest rates in jurisdictions concerned
flow of funds in a financial system
invests/lenders/savers (SURPLUS SECTOR) -> financial mkt -> need funding borrowers (DEFICIT SECTOR)
(direct finance)
include financial intermediaries (indirect finance)
financial intermediaries
-act on behalf of….
-lenders/borrowers (agency broker)
-just themselves (agency dealer)
roles (transformations)
-asset (maturity/provision of liquidity & size & risk
-transaction costs
-info (mitigating moral hazard and adverse selection)
Types of financial intermediaries
- deposit taking/bank FI (BFIs)
-retail & commerical banks
-investment (wholesale/merchant)
-universal banks - non deposit taking/non bank FI (NBFIs)
-finance houses
-building societies
-pension funds
-insurance companies (general & life)
-unit trusts
NBFIs
-finance ST & LT expenditure
-finance Lt contingent claims/retirement pension
-finance general contingent claims
-facilitates risk spreading and pool of savings
BFI - banks
bank - accepts deposits and channel those desposits into lending activities (directly or through capital mkts)
process of linking capital deficit units to capital surplus units
Types & classifications
- retail (high street) & commercial banks
-traditional (personal/business deposits and turn into personal and business loans) - inv (wholesale)
-raising funds in wholesale money and capital mats for large corporations and gov - universal
-retail commercial and inv banking services
retail (small) commercial banking
-households & small business
-deposit taking & loan granting
-aggressive monitor & manage cash to deposit ratio = meet likely withdrawals or req liquidity on continuous basis
-large volume = low value
-heavy regulation
-dense geographic presence
services/products provided by retail/commercial banking
- deposit taking/bank acct
- lending
- advisory
- payments/clearance/cash
- insurance/pension schemes
- custodian/safe keeping
investment/wholesale banking
-medium/large companies, institutional inv, local/central gov
-involve provision retail banking but gov institutions usually at negotiated rates
-no direct deposits from public
-low volume = high value
-less regulated
-strategic geographic presence
investment/wholesale banking products and services
- Corporate (or governmental) finance
– raising capital, equity, debt or hybrid
– Originating and underwriting IPOs and bond issues
– Large (sometimes syndicated) corporate loans … merchant banking – Project finance – Innovative Products
– Securitisation, collateralised debt obligations (CDOs), credit default swaps (CDSs), etc. – Sovereign lending – granting loans to local and central governments and government agencies - Asset management or private banking
- – Personalised banking, investment and financial services offered to individuals with sizeable wealth
- Trade/export finance
– Guarantees, bills of exchange and letters of credit (LOC) to facilitate international trade - Agency and brokerage
– Buying and selling securities on behalf of clients - Financial asset trading(so-called ‘casino operations’)
- – Market-making – purchase and sale of derivatives for profit-making and risk management, stocks, bonds, commodities, foreign exchange, etc.
- Advisory and research
reasons for financial intermediation
problems with direct financing
1. different needs/desires of lenders & borrowers
2. transaction costs
3. problems arising from info asymmetries
direct financing
direct exchange of securities between surplus unit and deficit units
direct connection of borrowers and lenders to financial mkt without financial intermediary
direct financing
direct exchange of securities between surplus unit and deficit units
direct connection of borrowers and lenders to financial mkt without financial intermediary
different needs of lenders/borrowers
Borrowers = securities with long-term maturities (low liquidity), low returns and high risks & borrow large sums
Lenders/investors would like to buy securities with short- term maturities (high liquidity), high returns and low risks & only be able to grant loans in smaller sums
4 types of transaction costs
- Search costs - finding potential lending/investment opportunities, obtaining information about them and negotiating terms
- Verification costs - evaluating borrowing proposals
- Monitoring costs - monitoring actions of borrowers to ensure compliance with the terms of the loan contract
- Enforcement costs - Mechanisms to enforce the contract if borrowers fail to meet terms of the loan contract or agreement
Problems arising from info asymmetries
1 party to a transaction has more info than other
borrower = more info about risks/potential returns/initiative for which funds are being sought
= problems for lender before deciding to make the loan at verification stage & monitoring and enforcement stages
2 main problems of info asymmetry
both decrease supply of loans and increase costs of loans
1. adverse selection
-search/verification stage
-lender is selecting among potential borrowers
-selecting a potential borrower who is likely to default, i.e., a ‘bad risk’.
-lenders may decide reduce or curtail lending, even though there borrowers with good credit risks in the market
- moral hazard
-both before and after a loan has been granted
-borrower may wilfully misrepresent the circumstance surrounding the loan before the loan is granted
-borrower may engage in activities that are undesirable from the lender’s point of view after the loan has granted = make it less likely that the loan will be repaid Individuals and firms tend to take more risks when using borrowed funds rather than their own funds
