This paper examines the relationship between size and scale economies of cooperative banks in Japan (namely Shinkin and credit cooperatives). We use the translog cost-function methodology and intermediation approach coupled with a large set of both cross-sectional and panel data over the period...

The risk-capital positions of Japanese banks have been under tension throughout the 1990s. However, existing theory on the determinants of bank risk-taking still remains limited and the evidence is conflicting. Most studies concentrate on US and European banks, while empirical evidence has...