Financial Intermediaries and the Banking System,Chapter 4,Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be mailed to: Thomson/South-Western5191 Natorp Blvd.Mason, OH 45040,Financial Intermediaries,Specialized financial firms that facilitate the indirect transfer of funds from savers to borrowers by offering savings instruments and borrowing instruments,Financial Intermediation,The process by which financial intermediaries transform funds provided by savers into funds used by borrowers,The Financial Intermediation Process,Benefits of Intermediaries,Reduced costs Risk/diversification Funds divisibility/pooling Financial flexibility Related services,Types of Intermediaries,Commercial banks Credit unions Thrift institutions Mutual funds Whole life insurance companies Pension funds,Safety (Risk) of Financial Institutions,Banks, thrifts and credit unions insured by FDIC regulated by Federal Reserve Insurance companies regulated by states Pensions ERISA established PBGC Mutual funds SEC,Evolution of Banking Systems,Storage of valuables (gold & silver) Depository receipts Receipts could be traded Inventory could be lent out Only necessary to maintain enough reserves to cover demand for withdrawal (fractional reserves),Fractional Reserve System,When the amount of reserves maintained by a financial institution to satisfy requests for withdrawals is less than 100 percent of total deposits,Excess Reserves,Reserves at a bank in excess of the amount required Equal to the total reserves minus the required reserves Available for lending an increase in reserves increases the money supply,Money Supply,Maximum change in the money supply equals the excess reserves divided by the reserve requirement,U. S. Banking System,Dual banking system bank chartering exists both at state and national levels Intrastate branching establishing branch banks within the same state Interstate branching establishing branch banks in more than one state,Bank Holding Company,Corporation that owns controlling interest in one or more banks,Central Banking - The Federal Reserve System,Manages the monetary policy of the country Decentralized network of regional, district banks Supervised by the Board of Governors, who are appointed by the President,Monetary Policy of the U.S. To promote effectively the goals of maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates,Responsibilities of the Fed,Monetary Policy,Open Market Operations buy and sell Treasury securities to expand or contract the nations money supply Primary Dealer has established relationship with the Federal Reserve to buy and sell government securities,Monetary Policy,Reserve requirement Funds that a financial institution must retain “in the vault” to back customers deposits Discount rate charged by the Fed for loans it makes to banks to meet temporary shortages in required reserves,U.S. Banking in the Future,Deregulation Intermediaries are more similar in operations Number of intermediaries has decreased Large financial service corporations Overlapping of products available,International Banking,Other countries have fewer financial institutions, but with more branches Foreign banks are allowed to engage in non-banking business activities Most of the worlds largest banks are not U. S. banks Edge Act International Banking Facilities (IBFs),End of Chapter 4,Financial Markets and the Investment Banking Process,