This paper contains a critique of solvency regulation such as imposed on banks by Basel I and II. Banks investment divisions seek to maximize the expected rate of return on risk-adjusted capital. For them, a higher solvency level lowers the cost of refinancing but ties costly capital. Sequential...

This paper contains a critique of solvency regulation such as imposed on banks by Basel I and II. It argues that banks seeking to maximize rate of return on risk-adjusted capital (RORAC) aim at an optimal level of solvency because on the one hand, solvency S lowers the cost of refinancing; on...