IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jocaae/v12y2016i2p176-190.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The determinants and value relevance of banks' discretionary loan loss provisions during the financial crisis

Author

Listed:
  • Morris, Richard D.
  • Kang, Helen
  • Jie, Jing

Abstract

We examine the economic determinants and value relevance of US banks' loan loss provisions (LLP) during the financial crisis. We consider whether LLP is determined by non-discretionary incurred loss variables only, or also by discretionary LLP (DLLP) that smooths reported earnings, signals favourable future earnings, or anticipates future losses. In a sample of 5187 bank-quarter observations from 2006 to 2010, our results show that LLP increases substantially, consistent with it being pro-cyclical, although LLP/equity levels remain modest. LLP severely and negatively impacts reported earnings, especially during 2009–2010. We also find that DLLP is used for smoothing and signalling, primarily where the two incentives reinforce each other, but smoothing occurs more frequently. Further, DLLP anticipated next quarter's losses in 2006–2008 but not in 2009–2010. The market positively values the use of DLLP in 2006–2008 to reduce reported earnings of poorly performing banks, and in 2009–2010 to smooth reported earnings of better performing banks.

Suggested Citation

  • Morris, Richard D. & Kang, Helen & Jie, Jing, 2016. "The determinants and value relevance of banks' discretionary loan loss provisions during the financial crisis," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 12(2), pages 176-190.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jocaae:v:12:y:2016:i:2:p:176-190
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jcae.2016.07.001
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1815566916300157
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jcae.2016.07.001?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Asokan Anandarajan & Iftekhar Hasan & Cornelia McCarthy, 2007. "Use of loan loss provisions for capital, earnings management and signalling by Australian banks," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 47(3), pages 357-379, September.
    2. Laeven, Luc & Majnoni, Giovanni, 2003. "Loan loss provisioning and economic slowdowns: too much, too late?," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 12(2), pages 178-197, April.
    3. Beatty, Anne & Liao, Scott, 2014. "Financial accounting in the banking industry: A review of the empirical literature," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(2), pages 339-383.
    4. Farook, Sayd & Hassan, M. Kabir & Clinch, Gregory, 2014. "Islamic bank incentives and discretionary loan loss provisions," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 152-174.
    5. Kiridaran Kanagaretnam & Gerald J. Lobo & Dong†Hoon Yang, 2004. "Joint Tests of Signaling and Income Smoothing through Bank Loan Loss Provisions," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 21(4), pages 843-884, December.
    6. Lobo, Gerald J & Yang, Dong-Hoon, 2001. "Bank Managers' Heterogeneous Decisions on Discretionary Loan Loss Provisions," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 16(3), pages 223-250, May.
    7. Dechow, Patricia & Ge, Weili & Schrand, Catherine, 2010. "Understanding earnings quality: A review of the proxies, their determinants and their consequences," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(2-3), pages 344-401, December.
    8. Bushman, Robert M., 2014. "Thoughts on financial accounting and the banking industry," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(2), pages 384-395.
    9. John Quiggin, 2009. "Six Refuted Doctrines," Economic Papers, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 28(3), pages 239-248, September.
    10. Christian Laux & Christian Leuz, 2010. "Did Fair-Value Accounting Contribute to the Financial Crisis?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 24(1), pages 93-118, Winter.
    11. Kanagaretnam, Kiridaran & Krishnan, Gopal V. & Lobo, Gerald J., 2009. "Is the market valuation of banks' loan loss provision conditional on auditor reputation?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 1039-1047, June.
    12. Collins, Jh & Shackelford, Da & Wahlen, Jm, 1995. "Bank Differences In The Coordination Of Regulatory Capital, Earnings, And Taxes," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(2), pages 263-291.
    13. Beatty, Anne & Liao, Scott, 2011. "Do delays in expected loss recognition affect banks' willingness to lend?," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(1), pages 1-20, June.
    14. Ray Ball, 2009. "The Global Financial Crisis and the Efficient Market Hypothesis: What Have We Learned?," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 21(4), pages 8-16, September.
    15. Ahmed, Anwer S. & Takeda, Carolyn & Thomas, Shawn, 1999. "Bank loan loss provisions: a reexamination of capital management, earnings management and signaling effects," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 1-25, November.
    16. Kanagaretnam, Kiridaran & Lobo, Gerald J & Mathieu, Robert, 2003. "Managerial Incentives for Income Smoothing through Bank Loan Loss Provisions," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 63-80, January.
    17. Hodder, Leslie & Hopkins, Patrick & Schipper, Katherine, 2014. "Fair Value Measurement in Financial Reporting," Foundations and Trends(R) in Accounting, now publishers, vol. 8(3-4), pages 143-270, December.
    18. Viral V. Acharya & Stephen G. Ryan, 2016. "Banks’ Financial Reporting and Financial System Stability," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(2), pages 277-340, May.
    19. Beaver, W & Eger, C & Ryan, S & Wolfson, M, 1989. "Financial-Reporting, Supplemental Disclosures, And Bank Share Prices," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(2), pages 157-178.
    20. Mary Barth & Wayne Landsman, 2010. "How did Financial Reporting Contribute to the Financial Crisis?," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 399-423.
    21. Steve Easton & Paul Kerin, 2010. "Market Efficiency and the Global Financial Crisis," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 43(4), pages 464-468, December.
    22. Beaver, William H. & Engel, Ellen E., 1996. "Discretionary behavior with respect to allowances for loan losses and the behavior of security prices," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(1-3), pages 177-206, October.
    23. Kanagaretnam, Kiridaran & Lobo, Gerald J. & Yang, Dong-Hoon, 2005. "Determinants of signaling by banks through loan loss provisions," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 58(3), pages 312-320, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Florian Kiy & Theresa Zick, 2020. "Effects of declining bank health on borrowers’ earnings quality: evidence from the European sovereign debt crisis," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 90(4), pages 615-673, May.
    2. Skała, Dorota, 2021. "Loan loss provisions and income smoothing – Do shareholders matter?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    3. Ovi, Nafisa & Bose, Sudipta & Gunasekarage, Abeyratna & Shams, Syed, 2020. "Do the business cycle and revenue diversification matter for banks’ capital buffer and credit risk: Evidence from ASEAN banks," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(1).
    4. Alhaj-Ismail, Alaa & Adwan, Sami & Stittle, John, 2019. "Share-option based compensation expense, shareholder returns and financial crisis," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(1), pages 20-35.
    5. Ozili, Peterson K, 2019. "Bank loan loss provisioning during election years in Nigeria," MPRA Paper 96704, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Tito Tomas Siueia & Jianling Wang, 2017. "Loan Loss Provisions, Income Smooth, Signaling, Capital Management and Pro-Cyclicality: Empirical Evidence from Mozambique¡¯s Commercial Banks," International Journal of Economics and Finance, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 9(11), pages 48-63, November.
    7. Jutasompakorn, Pearpilai & Lim, Chu Yeong & Ranasinghe, Tharindra & Ow Yong, Kevin, 2021. "Impact of Basel III on the discretion and timeliness of Banks’ loan loss provisions," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2).
    8. Kutubi, Shawgat S. & Ahmed, Kamran & Khan, Hayat & Garg, Mukesh, 2021. "Multiple directorships and the extent of loan loss provisions: Evidence from banks in South Asia," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(3).
    9. Justin Yiqiang Jin & Yi Liu, 2024. "The Impact of Stock Price Crash Risk on Bank Dividend Payouts," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 17(5), pages 1-25, May.
    10. Ozili, Peterson K, 2020. "Bank loan loss provisioning during election years: cross-country evidence," MPRA Paper 96639, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Ozili, Peterson K, 2019. "Bank loan loss provisions, risk-taking and bank intangibles," MPRA Paper 90273, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Di Fabio, Costanza & Ramassa, Paola & Quagli, Alberto, 2021. "Income smoothing in European banks: The contrasting effects of monitoring mechanisms," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 43(C).
    2. Raffaela Casciello & Marco Maffei & David A. Ziebart, 2024. "Regulatory and contextual factors influencing earnings and capital management decisions: evidence from the European banking sector," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 63(1), pages 87-146, July.
    3. Beatty, Anne & Liao, Scott, 2014. "Financial accounting in the banking industry: A review of the empirical literature," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(2), pages 339-383.
    4. P. Barrett Wheeler, 2021. "Unrecognized Expected Credit Losses and Bank Share Prices," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(3), pages 805-866, June.
    5. Wahyoe Soedarmono & Amine Tarazi & Agusman Agusman & Gary S. Monroe & Dominic Gasbarro, 2016. "Loan Loss Provisions and Lending Behavior of Banks: Do Information Sharing and Borrower Legal Rights Matter?," Working Papers hal-01316717, HAL.
    6. Ozili, Peterson K, 2017. "Bank Loan Loss Provisions Research: A Review," MPRA Paper 76495, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Dung Viet Tran & M. Kabir Hassan & Reza Houston, 2020. "Discretionary loan loss provision behavior in the US banking industry," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 55(2), pages 605-645, August.
    8. Tram-Anh Nguyen & Phu Ha Nguyen & Hiep Ngoc Luu & Trang Nguyen Ha Cu & Phuong-Anh Nguyen, 2023. "Bank provisioning practice during the pandemic: evidence from the COVID-19 outbreak," International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 20(3), pages 248-260, September.
    9. Wu, Meng-Wen & Shen, Chung-Hua & Lu, Chin-Hwa, 2015. "Do more foreign strategic investors and more directors improve the earnings smoothing? The case of China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 3-16.
    10. Ozili, Peterson K, 2019. "Impact of IAS 39 reclassification on Income Smoothing by European Banks," MPRA Paper 92098, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Abdullah Mamun & Md Didarul Alam & George Tannous, 2019. "Did the regulatory changes of 1999 and 2001 affect income smoothing behavior of US banks?," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 1011-1041, May.
    12. Jutasompakorn, Pearpilai & Lim, Chu Yeong & Ranasinghe, Tharindra & Ow Yong, Kevin, 2021. "Impact of Basel III on the discretion and timeliness of Banks’ loan loss provisions," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2).
    13. Noor Hashim & Weijia Li & John O'Hanlon, 2019. "Reflections on the development of the FASB’s and IASB’s expected-loss methods of accounting for credit losses," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(6), pages 682-725, September.
    14. Ozili, Peterson K, 2019. "Impact of IAS 39 reclassification on income smoothing by European banks," MPRA Paper 97035, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    15. Ozili, Peterson K, 2015. "Loan Loss Provisioning, Income Smoothing, Signaling, Capital Management and Procyclicality: Does IFRS Matter? Empirical Evidence from Nigeria," MPRA Paper 68350, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Hegde, Shantaram P. & Kozlowski, Steven E., 2021. "Discretionary loan loss provisioning and bank stock returns: The Role of economic booms and busts," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    17. Elnahass, Marwa & Izzeldin, Marwan & Steele, Gerald, 2018. "Capital and Earnings Management: Evidence from Alternative Banking Business Models," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 20-32.
    18. Bouvatier, Vincent & Lepetit, Laetitia & Strobel, Frank, 2014. "Bank income smoothing, ownership concentration and the regulatory environment," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 253-270.
    19. Jin, Justin Yiqiang & Kanagaretnam, Kiridaran & Liu, Yi, 2018. "Banks' funding structure and earnings quality," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 163-178.
    20. Pandey, Ashish & Guhathakurta, Kousik, 2022. "Value relevance of loan loss provision components and the choice of model specification," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jocaae:v:12:y:2016:i:2:p:176-190. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-contemporary-accounting-and-economics .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.