How a run on a bank can occur even today

Article Excerpt

Confidence is a key ingredient for the smooth functioning of a banking system. Banks hold deposits from customers—these appear as liabilities on their balance sheets. They use the deposits to lend money to retail customers who want to buy, say, a house or a car, or to commercial customers to fund or grow their businesses. These loans extended by banks have different maturity profiles but are in most instances not repayable on demand. On the other hand, depositors often have the right to withdraw their money from their chequing or savings accounts without any notice. Banks usually satisfy these withdrawals from the cash they hold in their vaults or at the central bank. However, problems occur when a large number of depositors decide to withdraw their deposits over a short period—a so-called run on a bank. This often happens when depositors suspect that a bank has incurred large loan losses and may be unable to repay their deposits. Governments and regulators know that forceful…