01855cas a2200265 a 4500 AALejournalIMF015961 230101c9999 xx r poo 0 0eng d 5.00 USD 9781513516141 1018-5941 BD-DhAAL BD-DhAAL Elekdag, Selim. Breaking the Bank? : A Probabilistic Assessment of Euro Area Bank Profitability / Selim Elekdag, Sheheryar Malik, Srobona Mitra. Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, 2019. 1 online resource (38 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 This paper explores the determinants of profitability across large euro area banks using a novel approach based on conditional profitability distributions. Real GDP growth and the NPL ratio are shown to be the most reliable determinants of bank profitability. However, the estimated conditional distributions reveal that, while higher growth would raise profits on average, a large swath of banks would most likely continue to struggle even amid a strong economic recovery. Therefore, for some banks, a determined reduction in NPLs combined with cost efficiency improvements and customized changes to their business models appears to be the most promising strategy for durably raising profitability. Mode of access: Internet Malik, Sheheryar. Mitra, Srobona. IMF Working Papers; Working Paper ; No. 2019/254 Full text available on IMF http://elibrary.imf.org/view/journals/001/2019/254/001.2019.issue-254-en.xml IMF e-Library