Journal of Financial Intermediation
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Call for Papers
Accounting, Transparency and Bank Stability

A joint workshop hosted by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision,
the Centre for Economic Policy Research (London),
and the Journal of Financial Intermediation

Bank for International Settlements, Basel, Switzerland, 17-18 May 2004

The Basel Committee is currently in the process of finalising its proposals for a new capital adequacy framework (the New Accord). Following a third and final round of formal consultation, the Committee expects to publish the New Accord in final form by year-end 2003. A key feature of the New Accord is the three-pillar framework, where minimum capital requirements (Pillar 1), and the supervisory review process (Pillar 2) are complemented by greater transparency (Pillar 3). More specifically, under Pillar 3, the Committee has developed a set of disclosure recommendations and requirements, which are intended to permit an assessment by market participants of key pieces of information regarding the safety and soundness of banks. Against this background, the organisers of the workshop would like to solicit theoretical and empirical papers related to the following set of issues which aim to tie together questions relating to Pillar 3 of the proposed Accord with the current debate on accounting, transparency and market regulation. Submissions in other areas of financial stability and banking are also welcome.

  • What is the potential effect of different accounting regimes on bank stability?
  • Mark-to-market accounting versus book value accounting.
  • US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) versus International Accounting Standards (IAS).
  • Accounting principles versus specific accounting rules.
  • Frequency and extent of reporting of bank information to the market and bank stability.
  • The effect of differences in corporate structure and corporate governance on market discipline.
  • Transparency and contagion.
  • Do differences in transparency (different accounting rules, disclosure requirements etc) affect the likelihood (type) of contagion?
  • Transparency, accounting and systemic risk.
  • Do corporate governance/accounting rules affect banks' funding costs, operating profits, the share of international ownership?
  • Stock and bond market regulation, liquidity and market discipline.

The workshop aims to bring together leading academics, representatives of the Basel Committee member organisations and other central bankers and bank supervisors. The Basel Committee will contribute toward the cost of speakers' travel and accommodation expenses.

The Programme Committee for the workshop consists of Urs Birchler (Basel Committee), Stephen Senior (Basel Committee Secretariat), Reint Gropp (European Central Bank), Mark Flannery (University of Florida), Ernst-Ludwig von Thadden (Universitát de Lausanne, CEPR and JFI), Anjan Thakor (University of Michigan and JFI) and Rafael Repullo (CEMFI, Madrid and CEPR).

Ernst-Ludwig von Thadden will be the editor of a special issue of the Journal of Financial Intermediation devoted to the workshop. Along with your submission, please indicate whether you would like the paper to be considered for publication in the JFI. If you choose to submit to the JFI, the submission fee will be waived. Your paper's acceptance to the conference does not guarantee publication in the JFI. All papers must pass the journal's regular refereeing process.

Interested parties should submit their draft papers and any queries to Stephen Senior of the Basel Committee's Secretariat at stephen.senior@bis.org. The submission deadline is 28 November 2003. Contributors will be notified by 10 February 2004. Full versions of accepted papers are due by end-March 2004.