Chapter1: Making Economics Decisions
Section: Chapter Questions
Problem 1QTC
Related questions
Question
2 What mathematical form of cost function would be most appropriate to use to test the existence of economies of scale in banking?
![10:59
M 4 ET •
in the United States. Shaffer and David examined
economies of scale in 'superscale' banks, that is
banks with assets ranging from $2.5 billion to $120
billion in 1984. They
estimated that the minimum efficient scale of these
banks was between $15 billion and $37 billion in
assets, and that these larger banks enjoyed lower
average costs than smaller banks. Many of the
studies have been summarized by Clark in the
USA. In particular, Clark's conclusions were that
there are only significant economies of scale at low
levels of output (less than $100 million in deposits).
Furthermore, it appeared that economies of scope
were limited to certain specific product categories,
for example consumer loans and mortgages, rather
than being generally applicable.
Questions
1 What shape of long-run average cost curve
appears to be appropriate for the commercial
banking industry?
2 What mathenmatical form of cost function would
be most appropriate to use to test the existence of
economies of scale in banking?
3 What factors might cause the LAC curve to flatten
out at high levels of output?
4 In view of the empirical evidence, what factors
do you think might be responsible for the current
trends of increasing size and mergers?
?](/v2/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcontent.bartleby.com%2Fqna-images%2Fquestion%2F60b2326e-48dc-4452-a060-acc284857570%2F93ffb16c-35e9-42f2-bbb7-c80c5900cd51%2Ffhua54j_processed.jpeg&w=3840&q=75)
Transcribed Image Text:10:59
M 4 ET •
in the United States. Shaffer and David examined
economies of scale in 'superscale' banks, that is
banks with assets ranging from $2.5 billion to $120
billion in 1984. They
estimated that the minimum efficient scale of these
banks was between $15 billion and $37 billion in
assets, and that these larger banks enjoyed lower
average costs than smaller banks. Many of the
studies have been summarized by Clark in the
USA. In particular, Clark's conclusions were that
there are only significant economies of scale at low
levels of output (less than $100 million in deposits).
Furthermore, it appeared that economies of scope
were limited to certain specific product categories,
for example consumer loans and mortgages, rather
than being generally applicable.
Questions
1 What shape of long-run average cost curve
appears to be appropriate for the commercial
banking industry?
2 What mathenmatical form of cost function would
be most appropriate to use to test the existence of
economies of scale in banking?
3 What factors might cause the LAC curve to flatten
out at high levels of output?
4 In view of the empirical evidence, what factors
do you think might be responsible for the current
trends of increasing size and mergers?
?
![10:57
M 4 ET •
l ll GD ס
There are various theoretical reasons why
economies of scale should occur in the banking
industry:
1 Specialization of labour. There is considerable
scope for this as cashiers, loan officers, account
managers, foreign exchange managers, investment
analysts and programmers can all increase their
productivity with increased volume of output.
2 Indivisibilities. Banks make use of much
computer and telecommunications technology.
Larger institutions are able to use better equipment
and spread fixed costs more easily.
3 Marketing. Much of this involves fixed costs, in
terms of reaching a given size of market; large
institutions can again spread these costs more
easily.
4 Financial. Banks have to raise finance, mainly
from depositors. Larger banks can do this more
easily and at lower cost, meaning that they can
afford to offer their depositors lower interest rates.
There are also reasons why banks should gain
from economies of scope; many of their products
are related and banks have increasingly tried to
cross-sell them. Examples are different types of
customer account, accounts and credit cards,
accounts and mortgages or consumer loans, and
even banking services and insurance. There has
also been a spate of bank mergers and acquisitions
in recent years, often involving related institutions
like building societies, investment banks and
insurance companies. Many of these institutions](/v2/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcontent.bartleby.com%2Fqna-images%2Fquestion%2F60b2326e-48dc-4452-a060-acc284857570%2F93ffb16c-35e9-42f2-bbb7-c80c5900cd51%2Fq5qfyev_processed.jpeg&w=3840&q=75)
Transcribed Image Text:10:57
M 4 ET •
l ll GD ס
There are various theoretical reasons why
economies of scale should occur in the banking
industry:
1 Specialization of labour. There is considerable
scope for this as cashiers, loan officers, account
managers, foreign exchange managers, investment
analysts and programmers can all increase their
productivity with increased volume of output.
2 Indivisibilities. Banks make use of much
computer and telecommunications technology.
Larger institutions are able to use better equipment
and spread fixed costs more easily.
3 Marketing. Much of this involves fixed costs, in
terms of reaching a given size of market; large
institutions can again spread these costs more
easily.
4 Financial. Banks have to raise finance, mainly
from depositors. Larger banks can do this more
easily and at lower cost, meaning that they can
afford to offer their depositors lower interest rates.
There are also reasons why banks should gain
from economies of scope; many of their products
are related and banks have increasingly tried to
cross-sell them. Examples are different types of
customer account, accounts and credit cards,
accounts and mortgages or consumer loans, and
even banking services and insurance. There has
also been a spate of bank mergers and acquisitions
in recent years, often involving related institutions
like building societies, investment banks and
insurance companies. Many of these institutions
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