Bank Efficiency and Openness in Africa: Do Income Levels Matter?

The business of this study is to investigate the role of openness in bank efficiency with respect to income levels. From a panel of 29 low and middle income African countries with data spanning from 1987 to 2008, we provide evidence that, openness (trade and financial) breeds less bank efficiency in low income countries. As for middle income countries, while financial openness has the same effect, results for trade openness are not significant. These findings justify the absence of a banking comparative advantage and consequently, the issue of over-liquidity resulting from low funding of credits by deposits. For policy implications, openness will increase the economic cost of banks in sampled countries. However, trade openness will be more detrimental than financial openness. More so, banks in middle income countries play a greater role in financing activities resulting from trade openness than those in low income countries.