Comparative Analysis of the Impact of Balance Sheet Size on Bank Operations in the Republic of Serbia in the Period Before and During the Covid-19 Pandemic Cover Image

Komparativna analiza uticaja veličine bilansne sume na pokazatelje poslovanja banaka u Republici Srbiji u periodu pre i tokom pandemije covid 19
Comparative Analysis of the Impact of Balance Sheet Size on Bank Operations in the Republic of Serbia in the Period Before and During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Author(s): Željko Račić, Branka Paunović
Subject(s): Economy
Published by: Udruženje banaka Srbije p.u.
Keywords: banking sector of the Republic of Serbia; size of total assets of banks; liquidity of banks; profitability of banks; lending of banks; solvency of banks; concentration of banking sector; Covid-19

Summary/Abstract: This paper aims to analyze the impact of the size of banks operating in the Republic of Serbia on the main indicators of their business activity and assess whether the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the nature and intensity of this impact. The research was conducted on a representative sample of twenty-three domestic banks. The paper’s conclusions are based on the results of applying static panel regression models and cover the period from the second quarter of 2014 to the third quarter of 2021. From the study results, it can be concluded that larger banks reduced lending activities and increased liquidity during the pandemic compared to smaller banks. This had no impact on their profitability, meaning that banks achieved higher returns on capital compared to smaller banks, as in the pre-pandemic period. In addition, the study found that larger banks reduced the ratio of capital to total assets during the pandemic compared to smaller banks, but not to the extent that threatened the banking sector’s stability.

  • Issue Year: 50/2021
  • Issue No: 4
  • Page Range: 36-59
  • Page Count: 24
  • Language: English, Serbian