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27 May 2018

After the financial crisis of 2007–2008, how have the banking and financial services markets changed? What powerful forces are shaping financial markets and institutions today? Which of these forces have led to significant problems for the management of banks and other financial firms and for their stockholders? What do you think the financial services industry will look like 20 years from now?

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Sixta Kovacek
Sixta KovacekLv2
28 May 2018

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Position A: Financial Institutions' role as specialists in risk measurement and management is reduced.

Position B: Financial Institutions' role as specialists in risk measurement and management is increased.

Required:

Read the “background” below. After reading, select the position you agree with and write a position paragraph supporting either Position A or Position B.

Background: A major event that changed and reshaped the financial services industry was the financial crisis of the late 2000s. As Financial Institutions adjusted to regulatory changes brought about in the 1980s and 1990s, one result was a dramatic increase in systemic risk of the financial system, caused in large part by a shift in the banking model from that of “originate and hold” to “originate to distribute.” In the traditional model, banks take short-term deposits and other sources of funds and use them to fund longer term loans to businesses and consumers. Banks typically hold these loans to maturity, and thus have an incentive to screen and monitor borrower activities even after a loan is made. However, the traditional banking model exposes the institution to potential liquidity, interest rate, and credit risk. In attempts to avoid these risk exposures and generate improved return-risk trade-offs, banks shifted to an underwriting model in which they originated or warehoused loans, and then quickly sold them. Indeed, most large banks organized as financial services holding companies to facilitate these new activities. More recently activities of shadow banks, nonfinancial service firms that perform banking services, have facilitated the change from the originate-and-hold model of commercial banking to the originate-and-distribute banking model. In the shadow banking system, savers place their funds with money market mutuals and similar funds, which invest these funds in the liabilities of other shadow banks. Like the traditional banking system, the shadow banking system intermediates the flow of funds between net savers and borrowers. However, instead of the bank serving as the middleman, it is the non-bank financial service firm, or shadow bank, that intermediates. Further, unlike the traditional banking system where the complete credit intermediation is performed by a single bank, in the shadow banking system, it is performed through a series of steps involving many non-bank financial service firms. These innovations remove risk from the balance sheet of financial institutions and shift risk off the balance sheet and to other parts of the financial system. Thus, the financial institutions, acting as underwriters, are not exposed to the credit, liquidity, and interest rate risks of traditional banking.

In your own words, explain what is meant by business and financial risk. Suppose Firm A has greater business risk than Firm B. Is it true that Firm A also has a higher cost of equity capital? Why or Why not? Explain.

Post financial crisis period or post oil/commodities bust period that began couple of years ago, many Blue Chip companies, including many banks and oil and mining companies that were once considered the staple of dividend distribution, announced dramatic cutbacks in dividends. As expected, the markets punished these stocks severely and many of these companies that have not returned to their former dividend policies (with some recent rise in dividend levels for U.S. bank) operate with depressed stock prices.

Your post should answer the following question: do you believe that these companies’ dividend cuts, especially the ones in the banking sector, is a direct outcome of classic financial forecasting that is showing a dark future for many years to come or do you believe that these decisions are more short-term reflecting the current extraordinary economic environment? Do you agree these companies have made the right move considering the punishment their stock price has suffered by the hand of investors? What other examples of companies with significant dividend distribution policy changes you can think about?

1. Different financial institutions have different levels of service. What is the main reason for this?

a. The Federal regulations relating to the institutions make them provide the services at different levels.

b. Levels of financial service are determined in part by the ownership structure of the financial institution, and different financial institutions have different ownership structures.

c. Financial services require specific expertise and the design of financial institutions favors one type of institution over the other.

d. None of these explain the difference between levels of service at different institutions.

2. Which of the following is not an example of a financial intermediary?

a. Savings and Loans.

b. Commercial banks.

c. Pension funds.

d. Stock markets.

e. All of these are examples of financial intermediaries.

3. Which of the following branches of the Federal Reserve Bank has a permanent seat on the Federal Open Market Committee?

a. New York

b. Cleveland

c. St. Louis

d. Boston

e. None of these.

4. Who owns the Federal Reserve Banking system?

a. No one, it owns itself.

b. The member banks.

c. The US Government.

d. The Chinese Government.

e. The shareholders of the Federal Reserve Corporation.

5. Who is the most important member of the Federal Open Market Committee and often thought of as the second most powerful person in the United States?

a. The President of the United States

b. The Treasury Secretary.

c. The Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank.

d. The President of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

e. None of these.

6. Which of the following markets is the most stable?

a. The market for corporate bonds.

b. The real estate market.

c. The market for Treasury bonds.

d. The New York Stock Exchange.

e. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

7. All of the following show interactions between markets except:

a. Purchase of a mortgage issued by Freddie Mac by the Federal Reserve Bank.

b. Sale of stock to raise equity for a new company to an insurance provider.

c. Increase in short term target rates by the Fed on the bond market resulting in stock market increases when announced in the press.

d. Restrictions in bank lending as the result of increasing capital requirements resulting in lower real estate prices and fewer sales on the real estate market.

e. All of these are examples of market interactions.

8. Which of the following acts was repealed by the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999:

a. The Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980.

b. The Banking Act of 1933.

c. The Garn-St Germain Depositary Institutions Act of 1982.

d. The Civil Rights Act of 1964

e. None of these.

9. Which of the following problems was a reason for bank panics prior to the establishment of the Federal Reserve bank:

a. Currency was not uniform in value.

b. Currency was not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government.

c. Currency could become worthless if the issuing bank went bankrupt.

d. Lack of regulation of the financial markets often led to bank runs.

e. All of these were elements of the bank panics that occurred prior to the establishment of the Federal Reserve system.

10. Why is the Federal Reserve Bank considered to be relatively but not completely free of political influence in the United States?

a. The Federal Reserve Chairman must be appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.

b. The Federal Reserve is not owned by the US Government.

c. The Federal Reserve System is designed to divide power among member banks from different regions of the country.

d. The Federal Reserve appointments are for sufficient length of time that it takes at least 8 years for a majority of members to be appointed by one President.

e. All of these are important in defining the degree of independence of the Federal Reserve from political influence.

11. Which of the following examples is an illustration of interest rate risk?

a. A consumer buys a house with a fixed mortgage that will not change for 30 years.

b. A consumer buys a car with a fixed rate loan at 5.99% for five years.

c. A bank borrows funds from the Federal Reserve discount window for 0.25% and lends that money to a consumer for a car or auto loan of longer duration.

d. A consumer opens a passbook savings account.

e. None of these illustrate interest rate risk

12. If the yield curve is said to be steep, this means:

a. Banks will make a lot of money lending at long term rates that are higher than the short term rates at which they borrow money.

b. The bond market expects inflation to increase in the future.

c. The bond market expects that the economy will grow in the immediate future.

d. None of these are conclusions that can be reached from a steep yield curve.

e. a, b and c are all conclusions that can be reached when the yield curve is steep.

13. According to the expectations theory of interest rates:

a. The total interest rate is equal to the sum of the real interest rate and the expected inflation rate.

b. The total interest rate is equal to the sum of the real interest rate, the expected inflation rate, and a series of additional premiums based on the risks taken in the instrument of interest.

c. The Fed sets interest rates, which cannot be changed by the market.

d. The interest rate in the economy is a balance between the supply and demand of funds.

e. None of these are true.

14. If the real interest rate in the economy is 3% and the expected inflation is 2% per year over a five year period, assuming the maturity risk premium is 0, what is the interest rate that the expectations theory would predict for a five year Treasury note?

a. 10%

b. 3%

c. 2%

d. 6%

e. 5%

15. What is the most important economic function of the money markets?

a. To provide an efficient means of liquidity adjustment for businesses, individuals and governments.

b. To provide a place where buyers and sellers can negotiate a price of funds.

c. To provide a social interaction between borrowers and sellers of funds, allowing for easier relationship-based transactions in the future.

d. To provide a place where stocks and bonds can be sold.

e. None of these are important economic functions of the money markets.

16. The ideal instrument sold in a money market has all of the following characteristics except:

a. High liquidity

b. Low Default Risk

c. Are long term obligations

d. Are short term obligations

e. None of these are characteristics of an ideal money market instrument.

17. What is the reason for the 35% rule in the bid process for Treasury securities?

a. It prevents a single entity from controlling the interest rate in the market.

b. It allows regular consumers access to the treasury market through non-competitive bids.

c. It prevents the government from controlling and regulating banks.

d. It prevents the Chinese from buying too many treasury bills.

e. None of these are reasons for the establishment of the 35% rule.

18. What is the name for the risk that a financial institution might not receive promised cash flows in the form of interest and principal payments from its borrowers?

a. Interest Rate Risk

b. Financial Payment and Principal Risk

c. Market Risk

d. Credit Risk

e. None of these are the correct term.

19. The risk that a financial institution might have to sell a lot of assets in a short period of time at below market prices to pay obligations demanded by its creditors is called:

a. Liquidity Risk

b. Market Risk

c. Credit Risk

d. Interest Rate Risk

e. None of these

20. What is the main difference between firm-specific and systemic credit risk?

a. Firm specific risk can be managed by proper underwriting and diversification in a loan portfolio.

b. Systemic risk affects all borrowers.

c. Firm-specific risk is determined by the individual circumstances of the firm involved.

d. Derivitives can be used to manage systemic risk

e. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York uses open market operations to manage firm-specific risk.

21. A credit crisis in the financial markets can improve bank efficiency by:

a. Focusing the bank underwriting department on firm-specific risk factors associated with default.

b. Forcing banks to reduce staffing needs by eliminating wasteful or unnecessary functions.

c. Marking banks compete more rigorously for customers in a tougher market.

d. None of these are reasons that a recession helps improve bank efficiency.

e. Items a, b and c are all reasons that a bank improves efficiency during a recession.

22. A mutual fund that invests only in Treasury funds has which of the following risk exposures?

a. Interest Rate Risk

b. Liquidity Risk

c. Default Risk

d. Treasury’s are risk free, so a mutual fund that invests in them is also risk free.

e. Credit risk

23. Foreign Stocks carry additional risks beyond those of US companies for US investors. Which of the following risks is not an additional risk that a US investor in foreign stocks faces?

a. Interest Rate Risk

b. Foreign Currency Risk

c. Sovereignty Risk

d. Both a and b are additional risks faced by these investors.

e. All of these risks (a, b and c) are faced by investors in domestic and foreign stocks.

24. According to the theory of Purchasing Power Parity, if the price of a widget in the US is $3.00 and the Euro is worth $1.50, the price of the widget in Germany would be:

a. €5.00

b. €3.00

c. €4.50

d. €7.00

e. €10.00

25. For many years, the current account of the United States has been in deep deficit. In theory, this should lead to a weak dollar. What factors could counteract the effect of the current account deficit on the strength of the dollar?

a. Foreigners use dollars as stores of value

b. When inflation is expected to be low in the USA and interest rates are high, foreigners want to invest here, driving up the price of the dollar.

c. The Dollar is king in the world currency markets

d. Dollars are backed by the full faith and credit of the US Government and therefore maintain a constant value on the market.

e. None of these explains the relative strength of the dollar in the global currency market.

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