The Banking System Discussion Forum
I want 250 words writing.
Overview
From our earlier discussion on economic growth, we know that capital formation (generated through investment) is one of the three main pillars for long-run economic growth. The Financial System, introduced in Chapter 8 via the circular flow diagram, is a group of institutions in the economy that helps with this effort. Broadly defined, the role of the Financial System in the economy is to facilitate the movement of money from saving to investment. In the U.S. economy, financial institutions can be categorized as financial markets (bond market, stock market) that directly move funds from lenders (saving) to borrowers (investment), or as financial intermediaries (banks, mutual funds) that indirectly move funds from lenders to borrowers.
This week’s readings, Chapter 12 from the textbook, gives us a brief look at the banking system (a group of financial intermediaries), and its role in creating money for investment in the economy.
Assignment
Consider the financial crisis from 2007 to 2009 which was punctuated with a rash of bank failures occurring up to 2014 in the United States. Also consider the banking regulations which were designed to control the money supply while ensuring the safety of depositors’ funds. One key observation from the past two decades is that while there were several bank failures, these failures did not lead to runs on banks. In fact, if the government took over a failed bank with liabilities (mostly deposits) of $2 billion (for example), it would pay off the depositors, and sells the assets for $1.5 billion.
Why did these failures not lead to runs on banks? And with the specific example, where would the missing $500 million come from to complete the transaction?
Task
Additional Details
Helpful slides are provided in the attachment section