Sectoral Loan
Portfolio
Concentration
and Bank Stability:
Evidence from an
Emerging Economy
Baah Aye Kusi
1
Lydia Adzobu
1
Alex Kwame Abasi
2
Kwadjo Ansah-Adu
3
Abstract
In this study, the effect of sectoral loan portfolio concentration on
bank stability is investigated in the Ghanaian banking sector between
2007 and 2014. Specifically, we investigate the linearity and non-
linearity effects of sectoral loan concentration on bank stability given
the limited exploration of this nexus. Employing a two-step generalized
method of moments (GMM) robust random and fixed effects panel
models of 30 banks, the study provides evidence showing that sectoral
loan concentration weakens the stability of banks. This confirms the
concentration-fragility hypothesis and the diversification theory of
traditional banking but may promote bank stability beyond a certain
Article
Journal of Emerging Market Finance
19(1) 66–99, 2020
© 2019 Institute for Financial
Management and Research
Reprints and permissions:
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DOI: 10.1177/0972652719878597
journals.sagepub.com/home/emf
1
Department of Finance, University of Ghana Business School, Accra, Ghana.
2
Department of Accounting, Banking & Finance, Wisconsin International University
College Ghana, Accra, Ghana.
3
Department of Banking and Finance, Valley View University, Accra, Ghana.
Corresponding author:
Baah Aye Kusi, Department of Finance, University of Ghana Business School, Accra,
Ghana.
E-mail: baahkusi@gmail.com