آزادسازی مالی و تغییر بهره وری کل عامل: مطالعه تجربی از بانک های تجاری در ترکیه

In January 1980, a new liberal economic policy was adopted in Turkey to promote financial market development and increase the efficiency and productivity of the financial sector by fostering competition among banks. As a result of this policy, the Turkish banking system witnessed a series of legal, structural and institutional changes throughout the 1980s. To enhance their competitive viability, Turkish banks responded by streamlining their operations and investing in new technology. Utilizing a DEA-type Malmquist Total Factor Productivity Change Index, we examine productivity growth, efficiency change, and technical progress in Turkish commercial banks during the deregulation of financial markets in Turkey. We found that all forms of Turkish banks, although in different magnitudes, have recorded significant productivity gains driven mostly by efficiency increases rather than technical progress. Efficiency increases, however, were mostly owing to improved resource management practices rather than improved scales. Our results also indicate that private banks began to close their performance gap with public banks in the new environment.

Almost all financial transactions taking place in both money and capital markets in Turkey are conducted by banks, which have been the key instrument of the government-orchestrated economic development policy for years. As anywhere else in the world, banking in Turkey has been a highly regulated industry, commensurate with its importance in the financial system. Market entry and exit, capital adequacy, reserve and liquidity requirements, asset portfolio allocation, number of branches, deposit insurance, interest rates on deposits and loans have been heavily regulated by the state. With these restrictions, the regulators tried to prevent “excessive competition” for funds, and thereby providing rents to banks. The rationale was arguably to enhance the safety and soundness of banks by increasing their profitability. Under such strong patronage and protection, Turkish banking has been traditionally and until recently a closed system, characterized and controlled by a few giant banks, immune to the disciplinary forces of competition, sluggish and careless in terms of innovations, and yet very profitable.

Employing a DEA-type Malmquist Total Factor Productivity Change Index approach, we investigated the impact of financial reforms introduced in the 1980s on the productivity, efficiency and technology of Turkish commercial banks between 1981 and 1990. We hypothesized that bank performance measured by various efficiency and productivity scores will rise during the more liberal and competitive environment. Our results suggest that the performance of all types of banks recorded significant improvements after deregulation, whereas their technology has not advanced as expected. Productivity growth in Turkish banking was mainly driven by efficiency increases, i.e., the inefficient banks’ efforts to catch up with the best-practice banks rather than technical progress. However, accounting for non-traditional banking activities such as off-balance sheet items produced some evidence of technical progress.