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Workinn Paper 9007
Optimal Financial Structure and Bank Capital Requirements:
An Empirical Imrestigation

by William P. Osterberg and James B. Thomson

William P. Osterberg is an economist and
James B. Thomson is an assistant vice
president and economist at the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland.

Working papers of the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland are preliminary
materials circulated to stimulate
discussion and critical comment. The
views stated herein are those of the
authors and not necessarily those of the
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland or of the
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
July 1990

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Abstract
This paper presents an empirical analysis of the determinants of the
leverage ratios (the book value of liabilities divided by the total of the
book value of liabilities' and the market value of equity) for 232 bank holding
companies for December 1986, June 1987, and December 1987. Many theoretical
models of bank behavior assume that bank capital requirements will be binding,
and empirical research has generally shown that almost all-banks will meet
capital guidelines. However, if the optimal leverage ratios differ among
banks, then banks' responses to changes in capital requirements or to changes
in factors that influence their optimal leverage ratio may vary in a cross
section. The theoretical framework is a variant of the one developed in
Bradley, Jarrell , and Kim (1984) The optimal'leverage ratio balances the tax
advantage of debt with the costs of bankruptcy. In addition to considering
nondebt tax shields and tax rates as determinants of the optimal ratio, we
analyze the simultaneity between leverage and investment in municipal
securities (munis). Previous research indicates that banks utilize munis t o '
minimize tax liabilities.

.

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I. Introduction
The impact of bank capital regulation has reemerged as a topic of debate
since the establishment of risk-based capital guidelines. Capital
requirements are intended both to control excessive risk-taking and to limit
the exposure of the deposit-insurance fund. Capital regulation may be
rationalized as a necessary part of a system of bank regulation that involves
fixed-rate deposit insurance. However, it is unclear whether capital
guidelines have been successful in meeting their objectives.

Even if most

banks meet or exceed the guidelines, at least in a book-value sense,
guidelines may affect market leverage and have a perverse impact on
risk-taking. For example, banks may resort to accounting gimmicks to meet the
guidelines, or they may redefine products or activities to circumvent them.
In addition, a focus on market-value measures of capital adequacy, or on the
extent to which banks maintain capital cushions, may be more appropriate for
assessing the exposure of the deposit-insurance fund. Although all of these
factors may be examined by regulators, their links with capital regulation are
unclear.
On the surface, capital guidelines would seem to be effective, since
the vast majority of banks increase their (book-value) capital ratios in
order to meet the requirements. However, this need not imply that the
guidelines are effective, because market influences may affect the capital
decision.

For example, in a system of partial deposit insurance, it is

difficult to separate regulatory influences from market influences, since
the interests of the insurer and the uninsured depositors are similar. Then,
if regulators and depositors react to similar information, an increase in
capital requirements followed by an actual increase in capital ratios does not

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necessarily indicate the effectiveness of regulation.

Similarly, if

market-equity values incorporate a deposit-insurance subsidy that varies
inversely with the capital-asset ratio, then an increase in capital will have
a smaller impact on the market-value measure of capital adequacy than on the
narrower book measure.

Furthermore, market-equity values include the value of

growth options that are not captured by book-equity measures.
In the absence of regulation, the optimal leverage ratio for a bank may
be below, above, or equal to the guidelines. To some extent, optimal leverage
ratios for banks may be determined as for nonfinancial corporations, that is,
by a tax advantage for debt interacting with expected bankruptcy and agency
costs. Thus, tax rates, nondebt tax shields, and proxies for debt-related
costs (such as variance of cash flow) may affect capital ratios. There may be
influences unique to banks as well, such as economies of scale in the
provision of deposit services.

In addition, agency problems are introduced by

capital regulation and deposit insurance. The possibility of a
deposit-insurance subsidy and the existence of government guarantees may also
encourage lower capital ratios.

Some theoretical analyses of bank behavior

assume that capital guidelines will always be binding.

However, even if in

practice the incentives to increase leverage are great enough relative to the
costs that banks are at the capital guidelines, market influences may affect
the response of leverage to changes in regulations. In other words, capital
positions may influence bank portfolio decisions.
In this paper, we analyze the impact of capital regulation by
considering a model of a bank that responds to both market and regulatory
forces in its choice of optimal market leverage ratio (the book value of
liabilities divided by the total of the book value of liabilities and the

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market value of equity).

The model is a variant of that developed by Bradley,

Jarrell, and Kim (1984).
In the absence of capital regulation, the optimal leverage ratio
balances the tax advantages of debt against the expected costs of debt.
Variations in nondebt tax shields, tax rates, and the variance of bank return
affect the optimal leverage ratio in the simple model.

In the presence of

capital requirements, the expected cost of violating the guidelines is part of
the expected cost of leverage.

Our model allows for the possibility of

deposit-insurance subsidies or other government guarantees, which may be
reflected in market leverage ratios. Although portfolio composition is taken
as a given, riskiness is allowed to influence the bank's leverage decision.
The model implies that the market leverage ratio will vary with tax rates, tax
shields, variance of return, and municipal bond holdings (munis).

It is

important to note that the response of leverage to market influences will also
vary with capital position.

Munis are included in the analysis because they

are closely related to bank tax liability.
We utilize balance-sheet data on 232 bank holding companies from
December 1986 to December 1987, and estimate a two-equation simultaneous
system between leverage and munis using an instrumental variables technique.
The capital ratio relative to the overall average is a determinant of the
response of leverage to changes in tax rates, nondebt tax shields, and
loan-loss provisions.

The variance of bank returns is also assumed to

influence the response of leverage. A variety of balance-sheet proxies for
the variance are considered, following the suggestions of Kuester and O'Brien
(1989).

Results provide some support for considering taxes, capital

regulation, munis, and risk in analyzing bank leverage decisions.

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11. Related Literature

A. Optimal Financial Structure for Financial Institutions:

Theory

The theory of optimal financial structure for nonfinancial institutions
may not be directly applicable to financial intermediaries such as banks.

For

nonfinancial corporations, there is a consensus that optimal structure
balances the tax advantage to debt against leverage-related costs. The
ability of corporations such as banks to deduct interest on debt encourages
leverage and makes relevant nondebt tax shields such as depreciation, tax
credits, and munis.

Leverage-related costs arise due to the possibility of

bankruptcy and agency problems associated with conflicts among creditors,
stockholders, and managers.

In the case of banks, problems include conflicts

involving the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and other
regulators.
The theory of optimal financial structures for financial intermediaries
differs from the theory for nonfinancial firms for at least three reasons.
First, incomplete markets seem to be necessary to explain the existence of
intermediaries. Second, the role of deposits seems to make the separation of
operating and financial decisions unlikely.

Third, the role of regulatory

forces is harder to ignore.

A wide body of research has attempted to analyze the role of
informational asymmetries and the resulting contracts in order to explain the
existence of intermediaries (see Boyd and Prescott [I9861 and Diamond [1984]).
The "finance" approach is somewhat distinct. Hart and Jaffee (1974) made an
early attempt to apply finance theory to intermediaries. Sealey (1983, 1985)
discusses conditions under which shareholder unanimity obtains given a

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particular type of market incompleteness, and reviews the link between
unanimity and separation of operating and financial decisions. Chen, Doherty,
and Park (1988) utilize an option pricing framework to analyze the
capital-structure decisions of depository financial intermediaries in the
presence of deposit insurance, reserve requirements, liquidity effects, and
taxation. They conclude that no clear separation between operating and
financial decisions exists, and that this even applies to analysis of the
impact of taxation on leverage decisions.
As discussed in Santomero's (1984) survey of approaches to modeling bank
behavior, most analyses of bank-capital structure assume that the leverage
choice is made conditional on asset choices. Orgler and Taggart (1983)
provide one such approach, showing that economies of scale in the provision of
deposit services can help to determine intermediaries' optimal choice of
leverage. If 100 percent of all bank debt can be viewed as insured, then the
option pricing framework can be utilized to examine capital-structure issues.
In fact, the conclusions of theoretical analyses of the impact of bank capital
requirements are closely tied to the treatment of deposit insurance and
government guarantees. This may not be surprising, given the findings
of Buser, Chen, and Kane (1981), who view capital regulation as imposing an
implicit risk-related insurance premium that discourages banks from exploiting
a subsidy implied by flat-rate deposit insurance.
Koehn and Santomero (1980) analyze the impact of increased capital
requirements on the portfolio choices of banks that are risk-averse expected
utility maximizers and conclude that portfolio reshuffling would unambiguously
increase the probability of bankruptcy.

Lam and Chen (1985) and Kim and

Santomero (1988) are examples of similar approaches. Keeley and Furlong

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6

(1987) point out that these approaches ignore the impact of changes in
leverage and portfolio risk on the deposit-insurance subsidy, clarifying
these effects within a value-maximization framework. Osterberg and Thomson
(1988) show that the impact of capital requirements is closely related to the
extent to which deposit insurance is mispriced. The option pricing framework
has also been utilized by Pyle (1986) and Marcus (1984) to show how the impact
of capital requirements depends on closure policy and other aspects of
regulation.

B . Optimal Financial Structure for Financial Institutions: Evidence
Distinguishing market forces from regulatory forces is a major
difficulty in discerning the effectiveness of capital guidelines. Peltzman
(1970) finds that the guidelines have no effect on bank capital, while Mingo
(1975) reaches the opposite conclusion. Dietrich and James (1983) point out
that, under interest-rate ceilings, banks can influence risk-adjusted returns
on debt by augmenting capital.

In that case, under partial deposit insurance,

both regulators and uninsured depositors benefit from higher capital, so it is
crucial to develop distinct measures of regulatory and market influences.
Dietrich and James conclude that the guidelines have no distinct influence.
Marcus (1983), Wall and Peterson (1987), and Keeley (1988a, 1988b) look
at bank holding companies rather than at independent banks.

Wall and Peterson

consider the reaction of equity values to distinguish between two regimes, one
in which capital ratios are higher than the requirements and thus are
influenced by market forces, and another in which the ratios are at their
regulatory minimum.

Their evidence suggests that most banks are influenced by

regulation.

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Marcus utilizes a time series-cross sectional approach, measuring
regulatory pressure to increase capital by the holding company's capital ratio
relative to the average, in terms of book or market value.

He finds that the

incentive to decrease capital varies positively with the level and variability
of interest rates, as well as with the tax disadvantage of equity finance.
Regulation seems to have no effect; however, his regulatory measure does not
incorporate risk.
Keeley (1988a) looks at the response of bank holding companies to the
increased capital requirements of the 1980s. Although capital-deficient banks
increased their ratios more than did capital-sufficient banks in order to meet.
the guidelines in a book-value sense, market ratios increased for both classes
of banks.

However, the possibility of regulatory subsidies or taxes can

influence the response of market-value capital ratios to increased capital
guidelines, since the value of the subsidy to the bank can vary with leverage
or asset risk.

Keeley (1988b) claims that increased competition erodes the

value of bank charters and thereby raises the incentives to increase leverage
or to reduce capital ratios. Charter values should be reflected in market
capital ratios, but not necessarily in book ratios.
The relevance of taxes to the capital structure of banks is discussed in

more detail by Wall and Peterson (1988) and Gelfand and Hanweck (1987).

Wall

and Peterson focus on large banks affiliated with bank holding companies.
They argue that tax considerations are not important in analyzing the capital
structure of banks affiliated with holding companies, since the tax
consequences of the parent issuing debt to buy subsidiary equity are similar
to those ensuing when the bank itself issues debt. Gelfand and Hanweck
examine financial data for 11,000 banks and find strong evidence for market

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influences on leverage: Tax rates, risk, and nondebt tax shields
significantly influence leverage. Gelfand and Hanweck use munis as their
proxy for nondebt tax shields.
Prior to the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (TRA), banks had an advantage in the
purchase of munis.

Before August 7, 1986, they could deduct a portion of the

interest expense associated with the purchase of these securities. In studies
using a pre-TRA sample period, muni holdings seem to be related to taxable
income, tax shields, and relative yields. Osterberg (1990) provides recent
evidence regarding the determinants of bankst holdings of munis.

111. The Model
In this section, we set up a single-period model of optimal capital
structure for a regulated banking firm that is an extension of the Bradley,
Jarrell, and Kim (BJK [1984]) m o b 1 of optimal capital structure for the
nonregulated firm. We thus allow for both market and regulatory forces to
influence bank leverage. Risk, in terms of the variance of returns, is
assumed given, although it can influence the leverage decision. We also
cannot control for the influence of regulatory subsidies, such as may be
implied by fixed-rate &posit

insurance. As in BJK, we assume that

1.

Investors are risk-neutral.

2.

The personal tax rate on returns from bank debt is t*.

3.

The personal tax rate on equity and the marginal corporate tax rate are
constant and tp, and t,, respectively.

4. All taxes are based on end-of-period wealth.
5.

The firm's end-of-period tax liability can be reduced through nondebt
tax shields, 4, which include investment tax credits and accelerated

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depreciation. We also allow banks to shelter income from taxation by
holding municipal debt.

6. Unused tax credits cannot be transferred across time or firms.
7.

Positive costs associated with financial distress are incurred if banks
cannot meet their end-of-period promised payments to depositors,

8.

?.

The end-of-period value of the bank before taxes and debt payments is

z.

If

is less than

?,

then the the costs of financial distress reduce

bank equity value by a factor of k.

In addition, we make the following assumptions:
9. Banks face an end-of-period capital requirement of 6
10.

In states of the world where

z-9is

-

?d.

less than 6, a regulatory

penalty reduces the return to stockholders by a constant fraction, A .
11. All bank liabilities are uninsured deposits that mature at the end
of the period.
12. The capital constraint, 6, is binding at end-of-period values of
where the tax shields,

k

d , are being fully utilized by the bank.

The reader is referred to BJK for a discussion of assumptions 1 through
8. Assumptions 9 and 10 are made to incorporate the effects of a regulatory
capital requirement on the capital-structure decision of a bank.

As in Buser

et al. (1981), bank regulators use their regulatory powers to levy a tax or
penalty on banks that fail to meet minimum capital requirements. Assumption
11 allows us to isolate the effects of capital requirements on optimal capital
structure independent of the effects of deposit insurance.

Thomson (1987)

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shows that assumption 11 is equivalent to assuming 100 percent deposit
insurance when the insurance is fairly priced.

To determine the sensitivity

of the results to assumption 10, appendix A presents the model with 100
percent of bank liabilities covered by fixed-rate deposit insurance, where the
deposit-insurance premium is zero.

Finally, assumption 12 is made largely for

convenience and ease of exposition. The alternative would be
to assume that 6 is binding for values of

where

4>

(z-?)tc.

As shown in

appendix B, results of the analysis are not materially affected by this
assumption.
Given the above assumptions, cash flows accruing to the bank's
stockholders and depositors in each state at the end of the period are

P,

(1)

-

(Z -

?)(I

-

(1

-

A)[(%

(1

-

A)(%

tc) +

4

- P)(1 -

t,)

+ d]

Z z Q +l-t,
6-4
P + -d s Z < P

- ?)

+

c

?sf<?+-

6-d
l-t,

d
c

0

Z < ?

PsZ
0 < Z < ?
otherwise,
where
P,,

P,,

-

gross end-of-period cash flows accruing to stockholders and
depositors of the bank, respectively,

9
d
k
6

-

total end-of-period promised payment to depositors,
total end-of-period after-tax value of nondebt tax shields if they
are fully utilized,
cost of financial distress per dollar of end-of-period firm value,
regulatory capital requirement at the end of the period,

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- regulatory penalty (or tax) per dollar of end-of-period equity, and

X

-

d

parameter indicating the proportionate response of the capital
requirement to an increase in debt,

9.

In equation 1, regulators impose a tax of X on the end-of-period
equity of the firm if

z is below ?+(6-d)/(l-t,) , that is, if equity is

insufficient to meet the capital requirement Z(1-t,)*-9

BJK, nondebt tax shields exceed income taxes when

< 6. As in

z is less than ?*/t,.

Equation 2 gives the end-of-period pre-tax flows to the depositors.
Under the assumption of risk neutrality, the after-tax values of the
bank's equity (S) and deposits (B) at the beginning of the period are

where

-

S ,B

E(F,),

ro
f(z)

E(Fb)

-

the market value of the bank's stock and deposits,
respectively,
one plus the expected pre-tax rate of return on

stocks and deposits, respectively,
one plus the rate of return on a risk-free tax-exempt bond, and

- probability density of Z.

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12
Following BJK, the market value of the banking firm i s the sum of
equations 3 and 4 , the market value of its equity and deposits.

The f i r s t integral i n equation 5 is the expected value of the bank over
the range of

Z

where the bank f u l l y utilizes its nondebt tax shields.

The

second integral i s the expected value of the regulatory tax w e r the range of
where the bank f u l l y u t i l i z e s i t s nondebt tax shields but f a i l s t o meet
i t s capital guideline.
over the range of

The third integral is the expected value of the bank

where nondebt tax shields are no longer f u l l y utilized.

The l a s t integral is the expected value of the bank when

Z is

not large

enough t o meet promised payments t o depositors and k percent of the firm value
is l o s t to financial distress.

The optimal leverage decision involves choosing the end-of-period
promised payment t o depositors, f , to maximize the value of the bank.

The

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partial derivative of V with respect to

9 is Vi (av/a?).

where F( - ) is the cumulative probability density function of

z.

If A

- 0, then the last term in equation 6, A(.),

is zero and the resulting

equation is identical to equation 6 in BJK.

The first two components of

A(-) make up the expected after-tax regulatory penalty associated with
issuing the last dollar of deposits.

The last component of A(.)

is the

marginal increase in the cost of equity capital from issuing the last dollar
of deposits, [6+d(6-d)/(l-tc) ]f(?+(6-d)/[l-t,])

.

Because all of the components

of A(-) are positive, the optimal leverage for a bank facing a possible
capital penalty is less than it would be for the same bank without a capital
constraint.
The effects of fixed-rate deposit insurance on a bank's optimal
leverage can be seen by relaxing assumption 11 and assuming that 100 percent
of deposits are insured.

Subtracting equation 6 from V, in the fully

insured case gives us (1-tpb)[F(P)

Y

+ k?f (2)] /ro , which

fixed-rate deposit insurance, the optimal

9 for

is positive. Under

insured banks is greater

than for uninsured banks for two reasons. First, with deposit insurance, the
probability that depositors will not be paid in full, ~ ( 9 1 ,is zero.

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14

Second, because the costs of financial distress are borne by the FDIC, the
leverage-related costs, k?f

(9) ,

do not factor into the bankfs

capital-structure decision.

IV. Comparative Statics
Equation 6, the first-order necessary condition (FOC) for leverage,
gives the optimal capital structure for a bank given d,
tp, , t* , and u, where u is the standard deviation of
N

4, A ,

k, t,,

g and we assume

~ ( i t , o 2 ) . Differentiating the optimality condition (6) with respect

to the above exogenous variables indicates how each affects optimal bank
leverage.
Equation 7 gives the impact of a change in the capital requirement on
the optimality condition for leverage.

Equation 7 is negative whenever

x

1 ?+(6-4)/(1-t,).

That is, an increase

in the capital requirement (through an increase in d) reduces leverage when
the bank, on average, expects to be able to meet capital requirements.
However, if capital requirements are set at a level a bank does not expect to
be able to meet, on average, then the bank may actually increase its leverage
in response to an increase in d.
The effect of an increase in nondebt tax shields,

4, on

the

optimality condition (6) is

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(8) V24

- - -[

l-tpa
4
(l+~)f(?i-)
ro
c

+

6-4
~f(?c)[l
1-tc

Equation 8 is positive when 2 r ?+(6-4)/(1-t,).

d

-

d(6-6))
(&+ 1-tc

[ q a - a l
I-r,
02

]

PO.

This may seem to be

counter-intuitive. In the BJK model, an increase in

4 reduces

leverage.

However, there is ambiguity here because the capital requirement is based on
the after-tax value of equity, which includes the value of the shields, and
the capital requirement is binding when the tax shields are being fully
utilized. For high-enough values of

z,

an additional dollar of tax shields

reduces the probability that the bank will violate the capital constraint and
incur the regulatory penalty.
Equation 9 shows that an increase in the regulatory penalty, A,
reduces bank leverage.

Equation 10 demonstrates that an increase in the costs

of financial distress, k, also reduces optimal leverage.

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The effects of changes in the various tax rates on the optimal level of
debt are shown in equations 11, 12, and 13.

In equation 11, the response of

bank leverage to an increase in the marginal corporate tax rate is positive
when

r

?+(6-4)/(1-t,) .

In other words, if expected end-of-period

income is large enough to meet capital requirements, then an increase in t,
reduces the optimal level of debt.

The ambiguous sign for V-

when

YtC

%&+(6-#)/(I-t,)

arises because the capital constraint is assumed to

be binding when the bank's net tax bill is positive.

There are two separate

First, an increase in tc raises the value of the interest

effects.

deduction on debt, which induces the bank to issue more deposits.

Second,

there is a reduction in the after-tax value of equity, which increases the
probability that the capital constraint will be violated and also reduces
leverage. When the bank does not expect to meet its end-of-period capital
requirements, the sign of V-

depends on which effect dominates.

YtC

When X equals zero (see BJK), equation 12 is unambiguously negative at the
optimal level of debt.
insured, V.

In addition, when all of the bank's deposits are

is unambiguously negative.

However, for positive A

Ytpb

and no deposit insurance, equation 12 is negative for values of

? where

the

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probability that

? is less than E exceeds the marginal expected leverage-related

costs. As in BJK, V-

is unambiguously positive.

Ytps

Finally, the optimal level of deposits is a function of the variability
of

Z.

Equation 14 shows that an increase in a has an ambiguous effect

on optimal leverage.

The sign of Vb depends upon the proximity of

?, ?+(6-4)/(1-t,) , and ?*/tc
of k,

4, d,

to the mean of

z,

as well as on the magnitudes

and A.

V. Municipal Securities and Optimal Leverage
In the model presented above, the level of nondebt tax shields
influences the optimal

2 , since such shields substitute for the interest

deduction allowable on bank debt. Munis provide an alternative with which

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Gelfand and Hanweck (1987) use munis as

banks can reduce tax payments.

proxies for nondebt tax shields, but this study views munis as substitutes for
nondebt tax shields (such as investment tax credits and foreign tax credits)
and allows for the simultaneous determination of muni holdings and leverage.
Previous analyses of muni holdings support the view that banks adjust their
muni portfolios to minimize tax liability given other nondebt tax shields (see
Neubig and Sullivan [1987]).

In fact, the interest-expense ratio, which is

related to the level of debt, is a factor in determining muni holdings in such
analyses.
To see how the factors influencing optimal leverage would influence muni
demand, suppose the return
and tax-exempt returns
m

(Q).

were split between taxable returns

(g)

Then, if the proportion going into munis,

- w,

were chosen so as to eliminate tax liability (

[q -

?] t,

- 4) ,

the

share of munis would clearly be a function of nondebt tax shields, the
corporate tax rate, total returns, and leverage:

Unfortunately, the model we present assumes that portfolio composition is
given.

However, Osterberg (1990) suggests that the determinants of muni

demand include income/assets, the difference between the yield on munis
relative to taxable investments and a break-even ratio, the interest-expense
ratio, and loan-loss provisions.

In the next section, we propose an empirical

model of the choice of leverage (LEV) that differs from previous analyses by
considering simultaneity between LEV and muni holdings.

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VI. An Empirical Model
The general structure of our empirical model is given in equations 16
and 17.

(16) LEV
(17) m

-

L(m, t,,

4, loan-loss provisions, o,

m(LEV, t,,

A)

4, loan-loss provisions, o,

yield minus break-even ratio)

+

+

el

income, relative

em

The actual capital requirement (d in our model) is excluded from the

..

empirical analysis because the primary capital-asset ratio did not vary from

0.055 during our sample period.
and loan-loss provisions.

In each equation, we distinguish between 4

Loan-loss provisions, which did not appear in our

theoretical model, seem to be deductions from net income on financial
statements. However, loan-loss provisions have been shown to be determinants
of muni holdings and to sometimes signal asset quality. The penalty for
violating the capital guideline, A, is assumed to influence leverage but
not muni demand. Here, we are implicitly assuming that X

-

k, the cost of

financial distress.
Income, given the availability of various tax shields, influences muni
demand, but only indirectly influences leverage. The yield on munis relative
to taxable investments minus a break-even ratio influences muni demand. The
relative yield may also incorporate variations in personal tax rates, tPb and
tp,, which are not included directly.

Variance, o, is allowed to influence both

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endogenous variables, and may impact muni demand by affecting uncertainty of
income. % and em are residuals.

The econometric specifications of the

two equations are seen in equations 18 and 19.

where X1 includes t,, 4, and loan-loss provisions, and
t, , ,

% includes

loan-loss provisions, income, and relative yield minus break-even

ratio.
In order to capture some of the nonlinear interactions predicted by our
comparative statics results, both the standard deviation of return, a, and
the regulatory penalty, A , enter interactively. The standard deviation of
return enters via the coefficients attached to X1 and
i in the vectors

0

-Ix

and /3

-mx

%. Each coefficient

is parameterized as

where q is a vector of risk proxies. Thus, risk influences the responses
of LEV and m to other market determinants. This allows us to distinguish
between the influences of risk and a regulatory penalty, although the
possibility that a regulatory subsidy influences LEV cannot be ruled out.
The regulatory capital penalty influences the response of LEV to the
t,,

market determinants in /3

-1X

4, and

loan-loss provisions. Thus, the

'

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impact of each determinant of LEV in

has three components: the direct

effect, an effect that depends on the bank's risk, and an effect that depends
on regulation.

VII. Data and Estimation
We utilize balance-sheet information supplied by Kuester and O'Brien
(1989) for 232 bank holding companies for December 1986, June 1987, and
December 1987. Twenty-six respondents from the sample were deleted because
data were unavailable for items required to calculate some of our proxies.
(Detailed information on our data manipulations is given in appendix C.)

This-

section briefly describes the construction of our variables.
LEV is measured as the ratio between the book value of debt and the

total of the market value of equity (see Kuester and O'Brien, p.14, for the
construction of the market value of equity) and the book value of debt. m is
calculated as the book value of munis divided by total assets. The variable
for loan-loss provisions is measured as the ratio between loan-loss provisions
and total assets, which we refer to as "llp."

tj

is measured as the total

of investment tax credits and foreign tax credits divided by total assets.
t, is the highest corporate income-tax bracket in the state of
incorporation. The calculations of income and relative yield minus the
break-even ratio are described in more detail in appendix C.

We note that the

relative yield employed is a national-average ratio rather than a
state-specific ratio. The list of variables considered as proxies for
given in appendix D.

(I

is

Our q variables are all calculated as the difference

between the particular balance-sheet ratio for holding company i at time j,
and the mean ratio for all banks over the three periods. This allows us to

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interpret the a's as responses of the dependent variable to the independent
variables at the mean of the risk measures.

Our proxy for A , the regulatory penalty, is calculated as the
difference between the holding company's primary capital-asset ratio and the
average ratio for all holding companies at the same time. This
peer-group-standard approach is similar to that of Marcus (1983).

In effect,

the response of LEV to changes in t,, 4 , and loan-loss provisions is
dependent on the holding company's capital-asset ratio relative to its peers.
We utilize iterative three-stage least squares (3SLS) for all three
reporting periods both separately and combined. Initially, all of the X's and
the products of the q's with the X's were considered as instruments. However,
employing the collinearity diagnostics suggested by Belsley, Kuh, and Welsch
(1980), we found excessive collinearity. (Our procedure is described in
appendix D.) As a result, we exclude a subset of the products of q's with the
X's.
VIII. Results
Panels A and B of table I contain the 3SLS estimation results (using
SHAZAM) for our model for each separate year and for the pooled sample.

Panel

A contains the results from the leverage equation, and panel B contains the
results from the muni equation. A comparison of our 3SLS results with those
obtained using ordinary least-squares (OLS) indicates significant simultaneity
bias in the OLS results and lends support to our simultaneous equations
approach.
As expected, the coefficient on m in panel A is negative and significant
in all four regressions. Since munis can substitute for interest expenses in

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23

shielding income, higher levels of munis will be associated with less
leverage.

Similar reasoning explains the negative sign on LEV in the m

equation for the entire sample.

However, it is somewhat puzzling that the

coefficient on m for the December 1986 reporting period is smaller in absolute
value than it is for the other periods, because TRA reduced the demand for
munis after 1986.

It is possible that portfolio rebalancing by banks in

reaction to TRA introduced noise into the relationship between m and LEV in
the December 1986 regressions, thereby reducing the measured relationship
between them. The positive and insignificant coefficient on LEV in panel B
for December 1986 is consistent with this explanation.
In the leverage equation, the coefficient on t, is negative and
significant for all of the regressions.

The average effect of a higher

corporate income-tax rate is a reduction in leverage.

In our model, the sign

of the relationship is ambiguous because, while a higher tax rate increases
the value of the interest deduction, it also decreases the value of equity and
thus increases the probability of violating the guidelines. The interactive
term involving the regulatory penalty and t, should have captured the latter
effect. Our result on the average effect of t, differs from that of Marcus
(1983), who found that the expected sign on his measure of the tax incentive
increased leverage. However, we divide the influence of t, into three
separate channels.
The coefficient on 4 is negative and significant in the pooled
regression and supports the DeAngelo and Masulis (1980) hypothesis that
nondebt tax shields are a substitute for interest tax shields. However, the
coefficient on

4

is insignificant, with a sign that differs between

subperiods. Our theory implies that an increase in 4 may not always reduce

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leverage if nondebt tax shields can be used to meet capital guidelines.
course, in our estimation,

4

Of

is allowed to influence m directly and via its

interaction with risk, and then to influence LEV through three separate
channels.
The interactive effect of t, and regulation on LEV is only significant
for the first subperiod. We note that, for nonregulated firms,
BJK found a positive and significant relationship between nondebt tax shields

and leverage.
Finally, the positive sign on the coefficient of loan-loss provisions is
consistent with banks' use of these provisions to signal the true quality of
their asset portfolio and the income-smoothing hypothesis (see Greenwalt and
Sinkey [1988]); it is inconsistent with the view of provisions as alternative
shields.

Since 1987, net charge-offs have been the more appropriate measure

of bad-debt deductions.

Prior to that time, the deduction included an

addition to the bad-debt reserve. However, the negative and significant sign
on provisions in the muni equation for the entire sample and for December 1986
may capture any role of provisions as a proxy for the bad-debt deduction.
Risk directly affects leverage interactively with t,,

4, and

loan-loss provisions. Risk also influences LEV indirectly through m, since the
second equation contains interactive risk measures.

While some of the

coefficients on the interactive risk measures for both the leverage and muni
equations are significant, we have no interest in the individual interactions.
Table I1 indicates that we reject the restriction that the interactive risk
measures are jointly zero at the 1 percent significance level.
words, the response of leverage to a change in m, t,,

4, or

In other

loan-loss

provisions is a function of the risk of the institution.

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All three interactive regulatory penalty measures are significant for
the entire sample. Only the interaction of bank capital standards with 4
is insignificant for any of the subperiods. Table I1 indicates that we reject
the restriction that the coefficients on the regulatory penalty measures are
jointly zero at the 1 percent significance level in all sample periods.

In

other words, the response of leverage to changes in tax provisions or to other
market determinants depends on the bank's capital position relative to its
peers.

The magnitude of the coefficients on the interactive terms relative to

the direct effects suggests that the response of leverage to a change in t,,

4, or

loan-loss provisions is larger (smaller) for banks with high (low)

capital relative to their peers.
In the muni equation, the positive signs for income and yield are as
expected. Higher income requires more munis as shields. Purchases of munis
after 1986 reduced tax benefits, but nonetheless, banks increased their muni
holdings that year, apparently in anticipation of a need to shelter income.
Although only significant in December 1986, higher nondebt tax shields or
provisions reduce muni demand.

The results for June 1987 and December 1987

indicate that banks located in states with high corporate tax rates have lower
muni holdings.

This is somewhat surprising, since these banks would be

expected to have a greater demand for all types of shields. We note, however,
that our yield minus break-even ratio does not incorporate state-specific
information.

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IX, Conclusion
Using a modified version of the BJK optimal-capital-structure model, we
show how regulatory and market influences may interact in the determination of
bank leverage. The influence of capital regulation on leverage may be
nonlinear, depending on market determinants such as tax rates, tax shields,
and variance of returns.
The theoretical analysis yields some surprising conclusions. First,
increased capital requirements may not reduce leverage, and banks not
expecting to meet the guidelines may respond perversely. Second, higher
levels of nondebt tax shields may not reduce a bank's leverage if such shields
can help to meet the guidelines. Third, a change in the corporate tax rate
may have an unexpected influence on leverage through altering the probability
that a bank will meet capital guidelines.
Empirically, we allow for nonlinearity by modeling the influence of
market determinants on leverage as operating directly, indirectly with risk,
and indirectly with regulation. Our results demonstrate that it is important
to control for the endogeneity of the muni holdings of banks. To do this, we
set up a two-equation system and use 3SLS. This differs from the approach of
Gelfand and Hanweck (1987), who use munis as proxies for tax shields. Our
results show that both book capital regulation and portfolio risk influence
the market leverage of banks. We cannot claim to have addressed Keeleyfs
(1988b) concern and controlled for the influence of risk on a regulatory
subsidy. However, contrary to the results of Wall and Peterson (1988b), our
results provide important support for considering market influences on bank
leverage. Tax rates, nondebt tax shields, and loan-loss provisions impact the
leverage decisions of banks.

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Table I
I t e r a t i v e 3SLS Estimation of LEV, m System

sample

a 11

Dec. 1986

June 1987

Dec. 1987

0.961
( .008)*

0.975
( .007)*

variables
Panel A: Dependent Variable-LEV
intercept

0.983
( .066)*

0.948
( .006)*

i n t e r a c t i v e r i s k measures:
q5*tc
2.348
(0.724)*
q5*llp
-1.559
(9.758)
q6*llp
-14.593
(8.181)*
q7*tc
-11.435
(3.442)*
q9*d
749.78
(961.2)
qll*tc
-0.344
(0.115)*
qll*d
13.001
(49.58)
q14*tc
-0.002
( .052)
q14*d
39.602
(15.99)
q14*llp
0.501
(0.470)
q15*tc
0.105
( .083)
q20*tc
0.038
( .231)
@O*d
55.069
(85.01)

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Table I (continued)

interactive regulatory penalty measures:
qr*t,
-8.058
-10.407
( .868)*
(1.253)*
q-d
-85.578
1375.3
(347.4)
(731.6)*
qr*ll~
19.43
11.669
(3.94)*
(6.727)*

Total
observations

696

232

- 5.204
(1.596)*
24.201
(874.5)
31.509
(9.184)*

-7.524
(1.601)*
-2286.7
(1727.5)
26.911
(9.959)*

232

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Table I (continued)
Iterative 3SLS Estimation of LEV, m System

sample

all

Dec. 1986

June 1987

Dec. 1987

0.380
( .139)*

0.249
( .152)

variables
Panel B: Dependent Variable-m
intercept 0.215
( .079)*
LEV

-0.406
( .161)*

-0.183
( .084)*

c

4
1 1 ~
income
yield

-0.082
( .045)
-8.835
(5.714)
-0.407
( .218)*
1.332
( .275)*
0.109
( .016)*

interactive risk measures:
qlqield
0.024
( .069)
q29ield
0.083
( .loo)
0.798
95*tC
( .884)
-19.789
q5*llp
(10.00)*
-4.466
q5* income
(6.247)
q59ield
0.258
( .636)
- 11.226
q6*llp
(7.907)
q69ield
-0.252
(1.033)
-8.128. .
q7*t,
(3.378)*
-7.239
q7Jryield
(2.241)*

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Table I (continued)

* Significant at the 10 percent confidence level.
* Significant at the 5 percent confidence level.
NOTE: Standard errors are in parentheses.
SOURCE: Authors' calculations.

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Table I1
Hypothesis Tests of the Impact of Capital Standards and Risk

Hypothesis C1: There is no channel through which regulatory capital standards
influence leverage, that is, all of the coefficients on the
regulatory capital measure equal zero.
Hypothesis R1: There is no channel through which risk influences leverage,
that is, all of the coefficients on the risk measures equal
zero.
sample
Cl.:
F-statistic
(d.f.)

all

Dec. 1986

June 1987

Dec. 1987

30.588(3,1332)

Wald Chi-Squared 91.762(d.0
(3)

Wald Chi-Squared 83.966(d.f.)
(31)

**

Significant at the 1 percent level.
SOURCE: Authors' calculations.

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Appendix A
With 100% Fixed-Rate, Zero-Premium Deposit Insurance
Given assumptions 1 through 10 and 12, and that 100 percent of bank
liabilities are insured with a flat-rate insurance premium of zero, cash
returns to the stockholders and depositors in each state at the end of the
period are given by equations la and 2a.

(la)

where
T,,

9
4
6

4

Tb

T,- Z - P

---

gross end-of-period cash flows to stockholders and
depositors, respectively,
total end-of-period promised payment to depositors,
total end-of-period after-tax value of nondebt tax shields if they
are fully utilized,
regulatory capital requirement at the end of the period, and
regulatory penalty per dollar of end-of-period equity.

The beginning-of-period values of equity (S) and deposits (B) are

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The total value of the bank is V

-

S

+ B.

Comparative Statics
The optimal amount of bank debt,
condition, VY

-

?,

is implied by the first-order

0.

Equations 7a to 14a indicate how the optimal leverage implied by equation 6a
responds to d, 4 , A, k, t,, tps, tpb, and o [where o is the standard
deviation of f

(z) and we

assume

Z

.u

~ ( g , d ) ] , respectively.

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Appendix B
Comparative Statics When 4/tc > 6
With the additional assumption that the capital constraint is binding in those
states of the world where the bank pays no taxes, the returns to bank
stockholders and depositors are indicated in equations lb and 2b,
respectively.

Tn

(lb)

T

(2b)

-

Z-?
(1 - A)(Z - ?)

?+a

0

Z < ?

s Z < ? + -4
c

? s Z < ? + 6

?

? l Z

i(1-k)
0

0 < Z < ?
otherwise,

where

T,,
?
4
k
6

4

?b

-

gross end-of-period cash flows to bank's stockholders and
depositors, respectively,

- total end-of-period promised payment to depositors,

- total end-of-periodafter-tax value of nondebt tax shields when
fully utilized,
- cost of financial distress per dollar of the end-of-period debt
-

-

value,
regulatory capital requirement at the end of the period, and
regulatory penalty (or tax) per dollar of end-of-period equity.

The beginning-of-period values of stock, deposits, and total bank value are
given by equations 3b, 4b, and 5b.

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Comparative Statics
Optimal leverage for the bank is given by equation 6b.

Equations 7b to 14b indicate how the optimal leverage responds to changes in
t*, and o, respectively.
d, 4, A, k, t c , tpm,

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(llb) VI
Ytc

--

(l-(F(?&))
+
c

Lf(?&)]
t c

>

0

tc

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Appendix C
Data Manipulations and Variable Definitions
Data manipulations
Most of the data were generously supplied to us by Kathleen Kuester and
James OIBrien. Except for market values of equity, the original data were
reported on Y-9 reports, the Consolidated Financial Statements for Bank
Holding Companies. Market values of equity included common stock, preferred
stock, certificates, rights, and warrants.
data.

Prices used were end-of-month

See Kuester and OIBrien (1989, p.14) for more detail regarding these

calculations. State-specific marginal corporate income-tax rates were taken
from Significant Facts About Fiscal Federalism (Advisory Council on
Intergovernmental Relations, 1987 and 1988).
We use quarterly balance-sheet (Y-9) data for three periods: December
1986, June 1987, and December 1987.
each six months.

Stock measures are values at the end of

Income-statement items are year-to-date. We divide the

December 1986 income numbers in half and replace December 1987 flows by the
difference between December and June.
Our final sample includes 232 bank holding companies for the three
periods.

Suspicious data items for which bank holding companies were removed

from the sample include: negative values for investment tax credits, foreign
tax credits, tax-exempt lease income, and negative values for loan-loss
provisions. In our calculation of q15 (which should be less than 1.0), we
replace values exceeding 1.0 with their inverse.

In addition, if the

denominator of q14 or q15 is zero, we set each ratio equal to zero.

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Variable definitions

-

LEV
m

-

tc

-

4

total liabilities/total liabilities

+

market value of equity

securities issued by state and political subdivisions/total assets
marginal corporate tax rate (from Significant Facts About Fiscal
Federalism
estimated investment tax credit

+

estimated foreign tax credit/

total assets

-

llp

-

u

-

X

loan-loss provisions/total assets
financial ratios listed in appendix D
the difference between bank i's capital-asset ratio at time j and
the average ratio for all banks at time j, where the ratio is
calculated as equity capital
subsidiaries

+ minority interest in consolidated

+ mandatory convertible securities + allowance for loan

and lease losses/total assets
yield

- relative yield minus break-even ratio, where

relative yield

-

the ratio between the yields on 10-year munis and
10-year Treasuries, and

break-even ratio
t
b
id
income
gti

-

-

-

1

-

t*[l-b*(id/yield on Treasuries)], where

federal marginal corporate tax rate
interest expense disallowance ratio
interest expense/total assets

- MAX(O,gti)/total

-

assets, where

income before extraordinary items

+

securities not in trading accounts

income taxes

-

gains on

+ loan-loss provisions + interest

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expense disallowed as a deduction (bid, described below)

+ net

charge-offs + recapture of loan-loss reserves (recapllr, described
below)
bid

+

grossed-up tax-exempt income (gtei, described below)

- (b * interest expense * munis * tax-exempt income
[described below])/income on munis

tax-exempt income

-

income on munis

+

*

total assets

income on tax-exempt leases

+

income on

tax-exempt loans
gtei

-

recapllr

(tax-exempt income)

-

*

(l/relative yield

-

1)

recapture of loan-loss reserves required of some banks by the TRA.
For any banks with December 1986 total assets of less than $500
million or with a problem loan ratio in excess of 0.75, this number
equals zero.

problem loan ratio

-

total nonaccrual loans and lease financing receivables

loans 90 days past due but still accruing

+

+

restructured loans/

equity capital, where both numerator and denominator are the sum of
the December 1986 and December 1987 items so that this is the
average ratio for 1987

Banks not meeting either exception must include (recapture) into 1987 income
at least 10 percent of December 1986 loan-loss reserves.

Banks may recapture

more than 10 percent in 1987. We assume that banks will recapture more than
10 percent if such a recapture still leaves them with negative income, that
is, if December 1987 net income

+

0.10

* December

1986 loan loss reserves

<0

recapture will equal min(-net income, loan-loss reserve), since banks cannot

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recapture more than the available reserve. W
e assume that any recapture i s
s p l i t equally between the two halves of 1987.

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Appendix D
How We Chose Our Proxies for Risk

In our framework, o (the standard deviation of
interaction with the other independent variables.

z)

influences

9

via its

Thus, our risk proxies

appear in multiplicative form. We follow Kuester and OtBrien (1989) and
parameterize the coefficient on each independent variable as
where

pi

pi

-

ai + &is,

is the response of the dependent variable to independent

variable i, and q is the vector of risk proxies, all of which are
mean-deleted. As indicated by Kuester and OtBrien, this setup implies that
the ai coefficient can be interpreted as the response of the dependent
variable at the mean of the risk measures.

This parameterization also implies

that each independent variable appears only on the right side and is
multiplied by each risk proxy.
We consider 21 proxies for risk, testing for potentially damaging
collinearity. First, we apply our diagnostic procedure to the matrix of q t s
and delete several q's from the subsequent analysis. Note that choosing a
principal component would complicate the interpretation of the coefficients.
However, with only the non-o independent variables in the estimating
equations, we find there is still too much collinearity among the instruments,
which include (1) the intercept, (2) each independent variable appearing in
equations 16 and 17, and (3) the product of the remaining q's and the
independent variables.

Applying the same diagnostics to that instrument

matrix leaves us with the variables in table I.

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The list of q's initially included 21 variables defined as follows:

ql) proportion of securities held as U.S. Treasuries
q2) proportion of real estate loans to total loans
q3)

proportion of loans to domestic commercial and industrial customers

q4) proportion of loans to all types of commercial and industrial
customers
q5) proportion of loans to agricultural customers
q6) proportion of loans to foreign governments and official
institutions
q7) proportion of loans that are at least 90 days past due and still
accruing
q8) proportion of loans that are nonaccrual
q9) proportion between net charge-offs and total loans
q10) proportion between loan-loss provisions and total loans
qll) proportion of securities with a remaining maturity of one year or
less
q12) proportion of total assets that reprice or mature within one year
q13) proportion between interest-bearing deposit liabilities that reprice
or mature within one year and total interest-bearing deposits
q14) proportion of long-term debt that is repriced within one year
q15) proportion of long-term debt that matures within one year
q20) ratio between noninterest income and the total of interest income
and noninterest income

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q21)
q22)
q23)
q24)
q25)

- loan-to-total-asset ratio

-

proportion of total assets that are liquid
ratio between volatile liabilities and total assets
proportion of total assets that are current
ratio between current liabilities and total assets

The first fifteen variables are similar to those analyzed by Kuester and
O'Brien, while the last six are additional proxies for interest-rate risk.
The diagnostic procedure we employ is suggested by Belsley, Kuh, and
Welsch (BKW, [1980]). The matrix analyzed includes an intercept and the
difference between each q and its mean.

As suggested by BKW, all variables

are scaled so that they have length equal to one. Although BKW suggest that
the variates be analyzed in level form, in our estimation procedure, the q's
do not enter in level form; in fact, they only enter after having been
multiplied by other variables.
In the first step, we examine the condition indexes: Any index over 30
is associated with a too-harmful linear dependency.

In the second step, we

examine the matrix of variance decomposition proportions and identify the
variables most closely involved in those dependencies.
over 30.

There are 74 indexes

We then calculate the proportions of the variances of each

coefficient that are explained by these 74 dependencies and eliminate the 74
variables involving q's that are most closely associated with these
dependencies.

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REFERENCES

Advisory Council on Intergovernmental Relations. Significant Facts About
Fiscal Federalism, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing
Office, 1987 and 1988.
Belsley, D., E. Kuh, and R. Welsch. Regression Diagnostics, New
York: John Wiley & Sons, 1980.
Bradley, Michael, Gregg A. Jarrell, and E. Han Kim. "On the Existence of an
Optimal Capital Structure: Theory and Evidence," Journal of
Finance, 39 (July 1984), 857-880.
Boyd, John H., and Edward C. Prescott, "Financial Intermediary-Coalitions,"
Journal of Economic Theory, 38 (April 1986), 211-232.
Buser, Stephen A., Andrew H. Chen, and Edward J. Kane. "Federal Deposit
Insurance, Regulatory Policy, and Optimal Bank Capital," Journal of
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Chen, Andrew H., Neil A. Doherty, and Hun Y. Park. "The Optimal Capital
Structure Decision of Depository Financial Intermediaries,"
Research in Finance, 7, 1988, 91-110.
DeAngelo, H., and R. W. Masulis. "Optimal Capital Structure Under Corporate
and Personal Taxation," Journal of Financial Economics, 8 (March
1980) , 3-29.
Diamond, Douglas. "Financial Intermediaries and Delegated Monitoring,"
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Dietrich, J. Kimball, and Christopher James. "Regulation and the
Determination of Bank Capital Changes: A Note," Journal of Finance,
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Gelfand, Matthew D., and Gerald A. Hanweck. "Tax Shields, Bankruptcy
Risk. and O~timalCornorate Ca~italStructure: Evidence and
D.C.: Board of
Implications for Commercial Banking,"
- Washington,
Governors of the Federal Reserve System, November 1987.
Greenwalt, Mary B., and Joseph F. Sinkey, Jr. "Bank Loan-Loss Provisions and
the Income-Smoothing Hypothesis: An Empirical Analysis, 1976-1984,"
Journal of Financial Services Research, 1 (December 1988), 301-318.

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Hart, Oliver D., and Dwight M. Jaffee. "On the Application of Portfolio
Theory to Depository Financial Intermediaries," Review of Economic
Studies, 41 (January 1974), 129-147.
Keeley, Michael C. "Bank Capital Regulation in the 1980s: Effective or
Ineffective?" Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Economic
Review, vol. 1 (Winter 1988a), 3-20.

. "Deposit Insurance, Risk, and Market Power in Banking,"
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Working Paper No. 88-07,
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