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Capital ratios and the Weighted Average Cost of Capital: Evidence from Chilean banks

Rodrigo Cifuentes, Tomás Gómez and Alejandro Jara

Latin American Journal of Central Banking (previously Monetaria), 2025, vol. 6, issue 1

Abstract: This paper finds that an additional percentage point in the ratio of Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital to risk-weighted assets is associated with an increase in the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) of Chilean banks by a maximum of only 11.7 basis points. This result is found by evaluating the impact of capital ratios on the return on capital and on the return on debt, following alternative empirical strategies which consider both market data and bank balance sheet information. Higher capital ratios decrease the return on banks’ capital – partly because more capital makes banks less risky – in magnitudes similar to those found in the literature for other countries. Second, we study the role of capital in the return of bank debt. We see a strong impact of capital ratios on the return of subordinated debt and no effect on senior debt.

Keywords: Regulatory policies; Capital requirements; Subordinated debt; Basel III (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C23 E32 G12 G21 G38 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:lajcba:v:6:y:2025:i:1:s2666143824000255

DOI: 10.1016/j.latcb.2024.100143

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Latin American Journal of Central Banking (previously Monetaria) is currently edited by Manuel Ramos-Francia

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