Working Paper Series This paper can be downloaded without charge from: http://www.richmondfed.org/publications/ Loan Loss Reserves, Accounting Constraints, and Bank Ownership Structure This version: November 17, 2011 Eliana Balla1 Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Morgan J. Rose University of Maryland, Baltimore County Working Paper No. 11-09 Abstract This paper examines how the tightening of accounting constraints associated with the SunTrust bank decision in 1998 impacted the loan loss reserve policies of banks differently based on ownership structure. The SunTrust case, the result of an SEC inquiry over possible overstating of loan loss reserves, represented a strengthening of accounting priorities, which stress the importance of the reserve account for financial statement objectivity and comparability, relative to supervisory priorities, which emphasize the role of reserves for bank solvency through changing economic environments. The evidence presented indicates that publicly held banks, which fall directly under the SECs purview, reduced their loan loss reserve and provisions relative to privately held banks. Evidence also indicates that the positive relationship between bank earnings and provisions weakened, consistent with a reduction in either earnings management or early recognition of losses. JEL classification: G21; G28; G32; E65 Keywords: Loan loss provisioning; Earnings management; Income smoothing; Ownership structure; Financial institutions; Banking regulation. 1We thank seminar participants at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and participants at the Federal Reserve System Committee on Financial Structure and Regulation conference for comments and Susan Maxey for excellent research assistance. Please contact Eliana Balla at
[email protected] with any comments. The views expressed belong to the authors and do not represent the views of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond or the Federal Reserve System.