Provisioning rules and bank lending : A theoretical model
Résumé
This paper develops a partial equilibrium model of a banking firm to analyze how provisioning rules influence loan market fluctuations. We show that a backward-looking provisioning system amplifies the pro-cyclicality of loan market fluctuations. We demonstrate that, in a forward-looking provisioning system where statistical provisions are used to smooth the evolution of total loan loss provisions, the issue of pro-cyclicality of loan market fluctuations does not exist. Our findings support the call for the implementation of a dynamic provisioning system.