Regional differences in bank efficiency and technology

Regional differences in production technologies and the effect of regulatory stringency — which differs across states — are analyzed for a sample of large U.S. commercial banks. Differences in both dimensions of production are found. Banks located in the midwestern states are found to be more adversely affected by regulation, however, to have a technology which enables them to be more resilient to regulatory induced distortions, i.e., they would produce more efficiently under comparable regulatory conditions. The policy implications of the results are discussed.

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