The Effects Of Regulations And Supervision On The Activities Of Commercial Banks In Zimbabwe

ABSTRACT

Banking regulations and supervision is an essential aspect of modern financial systems,

seeking crucially to monitor risk-taking by banks so as to protect depositors and the

economy as a whole against systemic risk and bank failure. The research involves an

investigation on the effects on the activities of commercial banks in Zimbabwe during the

dollarization period of (2009-2013). All research findings were obtained from 16

commercial banks and the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. The researcher found out that

most of the investors are aware of the activity of the RBZ of regulations and supervision

on the activities of commercial banks. However, the regulations and supervision had

both negative and positive effects on the activities of commercial banks. The negative

effect outweighs the positive effects. The researcher found out that supervisory and the

regulatory functions of the RBZ have not been effective in curtailing distress in the

commercial banks. The results also show that majority of the respondents believed that

urgent attention towards verification; processing and settlement of claims filed by

depositors of failed banks would help in boosting confidence of the banks’ customers.

Therefore, in order for commercial banks to improve profitability it was recommended

that commercial banks need to invest in supply side of their macroeconomics through

capital expansion and deposit layering activities both at individual bank level and

industrial level at large as the demand for bank loans continues to escalate.

Therefore,effective bank supervision is important in protecting depositors' funds,

avoiding bank failures and installing discipline in the financial sector.

Read Download