01656cas a2200241 a 4500 AALejournalIMF003959 230101c9999 xx r poo 0 0eng d 5.00 USD 9781451863048 1018-5941 BD-DhAAL BD-DhAAL Gelos, R. Banking Spreads in Latin America / R. Gelos. Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, 2006. 1 online resource (31 pages) IMF Working Papers <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 Intermediation spreads in Latin America are high by international standards. This paper examines the determinants of bank interest margins in that region using bank and country-level data from 85 countries, including 14 Latin American economies. The results suggest that Latin America has higher interest rates, less efficient banks, and larger reserve requirements than other regions and that these factors have a significant impact on spreads. However, Latin American countries do not differ markedly from their peers in other aspects that are found important in determining the cost of financial intermediation, such as inflation and bank profit taxation. Mode of access: Internet IMF Working Papers; Working Paper ; No. 2006/044 Full text available on IMF http://elibrary.imf.org/view/journals/001/2006/044/001.2006.issue-044-en.xml IMF e-Library