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2017 (1)

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Dissertation
Impact of Negative Interest Rates on Bank Profitability and Bank Risk-Taking in Belgium

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Abstract

This paper investigates how negative interest rates, as issued by the European Central Bank (ECB), are transmitted into the banking sector. The focus of this paper is on the specific Belgian law that obliges banks to grant a minimum interest rate on their saving deposits to clients. This paper attempts to measure the effect of this law on the reaction of Belgian banks to negative interest rates. More specifically, we look at bank profitability and bank risk-taking. To distinguish this effect from the change in behaviour that is not affected by this law, a comparison is made between banks in Belgium and the rest of the ECB-regulated countries which are not restricted by this law. Using annual data retrieved from Orbis Bank Focus (OBF), we construct a panel data set, to which we apply a difference-in-differences analysis. Overall, we find indications of increased profitability and risk-taking for Belgian banks under implementation of negative interest rates relatively to the control group. These results are in line with the ex-ante expectations considering risk-taking, but are in contrast with the ex-ante expectations considering profitability. However, due to several limitations of our research these results should be interpreted with care.

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