This paper presents research into the information content of firm-level and industry-level cross-sectional volatility (CSV) of daily equity returns for future market-level volatility in Australia. Using a conditional volatility framework that allows for commonly observed excess kurtosis in asset...

Research in this thesis deals with some unexplored, or only partially explored, issues relating to the information content of volatility of the idiosyncratic component of asset returns at the firm and industry-level, both in the context of developed and emerging stock markets. Specific issues we...

In the economic environment of the information age, the performance of the stock market is considered an important indicator of the health of a nation's economy. Typically, the performance of any stock market is reflected through stock market prices. It would not be over emphasizing to state...

This study investigates the efficiency and productivity of a balanced panel of 10 Australian banks during the period 1995-2005. It begins with a preliminary analysis based on financial indicators (popularly referred to as financial ratios) covering aspects of profitability, operational...

In June 2004 the Committee published a revised framework for the international convergence of capital measurement and capital standards, known as Basel II. The proposal includes a formal capital charge against operational risk in the business activities of banks. The calculation of an...

One of the reasons for firms decentralising aspects of their operations is to enable managers to gain specialised knowledge of local conditions. For credit managers in a banking firm, this may take the form of knowledge of investment opportunities and the risk profiles of each of these...

In 1987 Lopes developed Security/Potential, Aspiration (SP/A) Theory, a framework for risky choice under uncertainty. Similar to Prospect Theory, SP/A Theory seeks to combine the forces of Economics and Psychology. This means that the assumption that individuals make choices based on expected...

The role of economic capital has grown significantly in recent years. Although not a regulatory requirement, an increasing number of financial institutions use economic capital for such purposes as measuring and managing the performance of people, products, risk exposures, and to manage and...

A large body of the literature argues that the soundness of financial system is largely determined by the economic and institutional environment in which the financial system works. Drawing on this theoretical underpinning, research in this thesis models financial soundness indicators (FSIs)...