01713cas a2200241 a 4500 AALejournalIMF003276 230101c9999 xx r poo 0 0eng d 5.00 USD 9781451820874 1934-7685 BD-DhAAL BD-DhAAL International Monetary Fund. Republic of Kazakhstan : Financial Sector Assessment Program Update-Technical Note-Bank Profitability and Competition. Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, 2004. 1 online resource (27 pages) IMF Staff Country Reports <strong>Off-Campus Access:</strong> No User ID or Password Required <strong>On-Campus Access:</strong> No User ID or Password Required Electronic access restricted to authorized BRAC University faculty, staff and students This technical note explores the reasons for a comparatively high interest rate spread in Kazakhstan in the context of competition in the banking sector. In spite of significant gains in efficiency made in recent years, operational costs and provisioning for loan losses remain high compared with some other economies. Rapid progress is being made in developing an efficient banking sector, and further improvements will depend on good supervisory and regulatory enforcement. The level of financial intermediation, although high among neighboring countries and growing, is still low in broader comparisons. Mode of access: Internet IMF Staff Country Reports; Country Report ; No. 2004/336 Full text available on IMF http://elibrary.imf.org/view/journals/002/2004/336/002.2004.issue-336-en.xml IMF e-Library