South African government palliative funds for SMMEs during COVID-19: challenges of implementation and suggestions for improvement

Purpose: The implementation of the lockdown on 28th March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted business and economic activities completely, which has serious consequences for SMME survival in South Africa and the world at large. Subsequently, there was a contingent need to provide funding to SMMEs to ensure their survival. This study, therefore, explored the meaning of SMME in the South African context and their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study further investigated the palliative funds given to SMMEs during COVID-19 by the South African government, the challenges encountered during its implementation process, and the measures to improve the funding implementation. Methodology: The study adopted a qualitative research approach with an exploratory research design, and this enhanced in-depth findings through the adoption of interviews as the only source of primary data collection. Data collected from the participants were analyzed using a thematic analytical technique with the help of Atlas-ti software (Version 22). Findings: Findings obtained from the study revealed that SMMEs are separate and distinct business entities, including co-operatives and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), managed by one or more owners, including their branches and subsidiaries. Another finding revealed that during the COVID-19 period, SMMEs experienced supply chain disruptions, inventory shortages, cash flow issues, and low income due to the inability to engage in active business. In the empirical study, participants attested that the scoring system, lack of business and managerial experience, communication barriers, and business registration requirements are some of the challenges encountered in funding implementation by the government departments. Furthermore, the participants highlighted that funding based on merit, consideration of the scoring system, and the application of communication dynamics to reach SMMEs should be applied to improve SMME funding implementation. Originality/Value: This study is meant to inform the government on how to handle SMME funding and measures to assist them to enhance employment and to improve economic development.

Desempeño de los mercados accionarios desarrollados y emergentes un año antes y un año después del primer brote de Covid-19 originado en Wuhan, China: GCG

Este artículo investiga el desempeño de los mercados accionarios desarrollados y emergentes, un año antes y después del primer brote de Covid-19. Para lo anterior, se utiliza el Alfa de Jensen, a partir del modelo de 5 factores de Fama & French, estimado por mínimos cuadrados generalizados. Los resultados indican que durante la crisis, los mercados accionarios de Alemania, Austria, España, Holanda, Portugal, Brasil, Chile, Malasia, Rusia, Sudáfrica y Tailandia destruyen valor mientras que China y Corea del Sur presentan un buen desempeño asociado a políticas monetarias y fiscales exitosas, representando así una opción para el refugio de inversionistas globales.Alternate :This article investigates developed and emerging equity markets performance, one year before and one year after the first Covid-19 outbreak. In order to do this, the Jensen's Alpha is used, based on Fama & French five factors model, estimated by generalized least squares. The results indicate that during the crisis, the stock markets of Germany, Austria, Spain, the Netherlands, Portugal, Brazil, Chile, Malaysia, Russia, South Africa and Thailand destroy value while China and South Korea show a superior performance due to the effectiveness of their monetary andfiscal policies, and thus, becoming a relevant option for the refuge of global investors.Alternate :Este documento investiga o desempenho dos mercados bolsistas desenvolvidos e emergentes, um ano antes e um ano depois do primeiro surto de Covid-19. Para este fim, utilizamos o "Alfa de Jensen", baseado no modelo de 5 factores de Fama & French, estimado por mínimos quadrados generalizados. Os resultados indicam que durante a crise, os mercados bolsistas da Alemanha, Austria, Espanha, Holanda, Portugal, Brasil, Chile, Malásia, Russia, África do Sule Tailandia destroem valor, enquanto a China e a Coreia do Sulapresentam um bom desempenho associado apolíticas monetárias efiscais bem sucedidas, representando assim uma opçaopara o refugio dos investidores globais.

The Random Walk and Systematic Risk in Indonesia

Purpose: During the period 2022 until January 2023, several new global issues emerged besides the COVID-19 pandemic and had an impact on economic. This study aims to examine the weak form of market efficiency in Indonesia under the assumption that uncertain economic conditions tend to affect systematic risk and cause stock returns randomly move. Methodology: This study employs time series data based on the stock returns of 766 firms in Indonesia during the period January 3, 2022, to January 31, 2023. To detect random walk, the runs test is conducted with supporting of the variance ratio test. Findings: Systematic risk plays an important role in risky assets' efficiency during uncertain economic events which is consistent with the random walk theory. Otherwise, the impact of uncertain economic events on less risky assets gives the investors possibility to obtain extraordinary returns or abnormal returns. Originality/Value: This study examines market efficiency by taking into account the systematic risk of assets that are rarely analyzed at present.

The Case for A Global Excess Profits Tax: A Response to Dr. Tarcísio Diniz Magalhães & Professor Allison Christians

In striving to slow the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, governments across the globe acted quickly to implement various "stay-at- home" orders and bans on all "non-essential activities." While these actions were likely effective in slowing the spread of the virus, the economic impacts were felt almost immediately. The US deficit rose to $3.1 trillion following massive spending to aid individuals and small businesses. Internationally, governments have been increasing their debt loads to combat both the health and financial impacts of the pandemic. Indeed, by the end of 2020, the international debt load increased to a record-breaking $281 trillion. Almost as quickly, various proposals have been offered regarding how to mitigate this pandemic-fueled deficit. One solution offered is the return of a historical tax scheme-an excess profits tax. Excess profits taxes have historically been applied both domestically and internationally during times of war. Although there are variations in how an excess profits tax is calculated, traditionally, an excess profits tax is applied to those companies who earn returns in excess of a set "normal" rate of return.

Reactions of Thailand's Stock Market to the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election

The U.S. presidential election is one of the most important events in the world, to which the stock markets of other countries react. The 2020 U.S. presidential election was unique due to delayed vote counts, the incumbent president's false election-fraud claims, and the violent riots at the U.S. Capitol Building. In this study, the reactions of Thailand's stock market are examined using the event-conditioning method for event-study analyses. The sample period ranges from August 6, 2019, to January 28, 2021. The period overlaps the period of the COVID-19 pandemic and Thailand's youth protest, thus constituting parameter-instability and confounding-event problems. This study relies on the international capital asset pricing model to mitigate the parameter-instability problem, as it constructs event-dummy control variables to resolve the confounding-event problem. The data comprises daily log returns of Morgan Stanley Global Investable Market Indices portfolios for Thailand and the world, in excess of the 1-month U.S. treasury bill rate. The reactions are found to be significant for the election, the final election results, and the presidential inauguration;they are non-significant for the Capitol riots and the incumbent president's false claims. For the same events, there is dissimilarity between the reactions of the Thai and U.S. markets.

An Examination of Life Insurer Share Price Behavior Surrounding Covid-19 Death Announcements

As of May 2022, the Covid-19 pandemic records over 1 million deaths in the United States. Pertinent to the reported number of deaths, it is questioned whether life insurance firms gained or lost from those incidences. This paper pursues an event study that examines life insurer share price behaviors by the announcements reporting the cumulative death numbers when they reach a certain threshold. We find that life insurers' share prices drop with every announcement. Specifically, our analysis finds evidence for the support of the damage hypothesis based on two competing eses in the literature: damage and revenue hypothesis. Our post-analysis also finds that the pandemic penalized overvalued firms and discouraged dividend cash spending.

The Trilogy of the Chinese Apple Futures Market: Price Discovery, Risk-Hedging and Cointegration

The agricultural futures market plays an extremely important role in price discovery, hedging risks, integrating agricultural markets and promoting agricultural economic growth. China is the largest apple producer and consumer in the world. In 2017, Chinese apple futures were listed on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange (CZCE) as the first fruit futures contract globally. This paper aims to study the efficiency of the apple futures market by using the Wild Bootstrapping Variance Ratio model to estimate the price discovery function, the ARIMA-GARCH model to estimate the risk-hedging function, and the ARDL-ECM model to estimate the cointegration relationship of the futures and spot market. Experimental results firstly demonstrate that the apple futures market conforms to the weak-form efficiency, which indicates that it is efficient in price discovery. Secondly, the apple futures market is not of semi-strong efficiency because it generated abnormal profit margins amid China–US trade friction, climate disaster, and COVID-19;in terms of the degree of impact, the COVID-19 pandemic had the greatest impact, followed by the rainstorm disaster and trade friction. Thirdly, the results of this study indicate that the cointegration relationships exist between the futures market and the spot markets of the main producing areas. This paper is not only conducive to sustainable development of the global fresh or fruit futures market, but also has potential and practical importance for China in developing the agricultural futures market, strengthening market risk management and promoting market circulation.

ESG as a Booster for Logistics Stock Returns—Evidence from the US Stock Market

This article investigates the connection between US logistics companies’ commitment to environmental, social and fair governance (ESG) strategy and their performance on the US stock market during the 2007–2022 period. The research considers historical data analysis, CAPM and a comparison of optimised portfolios. According to the results of the analyses, ‘green’ logistics stocks are less volatile, and hence less risky, and more profitable compared to ‘non-green’ logistics stocks. The Great Recession (2007–2009) and the COVID-19 pandemic (2020) had the greatest impact on stock volatility, in terms of the US stock market. Optimised during the time of the Ukrainian crisis, green logistics portfolios were shown to have higher returns, but also risks and Sharpe ratios, than ‘non-green’ ones. The results confirm there to be a connection between companies’ commitment to ESG strategy and enhanced stock performance, which contributes to the importance of the ESG agenda.

A Generalized Entropy Approach to Portfolio Selection under a Hidden Markov Model

This paper develops a dynamic portfolio selection model incorporating economic uncertainty for business cycles. It is assumed that the financial market at each point in time is defined by a hidden Markov model, which is characterized by the overall equity market returns and volatility. The risk associated with investment decisions is measured by the exponential Rényi entropy criterion, which summarizes the uncertainty in portfolio returns. Assuming asset returns are projected by a regime-switching regression model on the two market risk factors, we develop an entropy-based dynamic portfolio selection model constrained with the wealth surplus being greater than or equal to the shortfall over a target and the probability of shortfall being less than or equal to a specified level. In the empirical analysis, we use the select sector ETFs to test the asset pricing model and examine the portfolio performance. Weekly financial data from 31 December 1998 to 30 December 2018 is employed for the estimation of the hidden Markov model including the asset return parameters, while the out-of-sample period from 3 January 2019 to 30 April 2022 is used for portfolio performance testing. It is found that, under both the empirical Sharpe and return to entropy ratios, the dynamic portfolio under the proposed strategy is much improved in contrast with mean variance models.

A CEEMDAN-Based Entropy Approach Measuring Multiscale Information Flow between Macroeconomic Conditions and Stock Returns of BRICS

We model a mixture of asymmetric and nonlinear bidirectional and unidirectional causality between four macroeconomic variables (exchange rate, GDP, global economic policy uncertainty, and relative CPI) and stock returns of BRICS economies in the frequency-domain using the information flow theory. The Complete Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition with Adaptive Noise (CEEMDAN)-based Rényi effective transfer entropy approach is used to establish dynamic flow of information between macroeconomic variables and stock returns of BRICS. The original return series suggested insignificant information flow between most macroeconomic variables and stock returns. However, we reveal both asymmetric and tail dependent analyses at diverse scales between macroeconomic variables and stock returns of BRICS economies. Moreover, we find negative significant flow of information between the variables, in that knowing the history of one variable (either stock or macroeconomic variable), in this case, indicates considerably more uncertainty than knowing the history of only the other variable (either stock or macroeconomic variable). We also observe that global economic policy uncertainty has the most significant adverse causal relationship with stock returns of BRICS, especially in the long term. These results have important implications that investors and policymakers should take into account. Regulators should consider instituting sound policy actions geared towards minimising long-term effects of external shocks and uncertainties.

The Link between Asset Value and Fear Sentiment during Covid-19 Pandemic

This article explores the role of global financial instruments as hedging or safe-haven assets in the Covid-19 pandemic crisis, which has weakened the global economy, by linking it to the investor's fear sentiment perspective. Correspondingly, it analyses the effects of shocks in the VIX index, which represents the global investor's fear sentiment, on shocks in some investment assets during the ongoing pandemic. Eight major financial instruments from different asset classes are tested along with the VIX index to achieve this goal. The analysis covers a 156-week time series and assays the variables from symmetric and intertemporal perspectives. The findings show that the most robust asset is the American Dollar fiat currency, followed partly by the Euro and gold. BTC also has been safe for a short time.Alternate :Bu makale, küresel ekonomiyi zayıflatan Covid-19 pandemi krizinde riskten korunma veya güvenli liman varlıkları olarak küresel finansal araçların rolünü yatırımcının korku hissiyatı perspektifiyle ilişkilendirerek araştırmaktadır. Buna bağlı olarak, küresel yatırımcının korku hissiyatını temsil eden VIX endeksindeki şokların, devam eden pandemi sırasında bazı yatırım varlıklarındaki şoklar üzerindeki etkilerini analiz etmektedir. Bu amaca ulaşmak için farklı varlık sınıflarından sekiz ana finansal araç, VIX endeksi ile birlikte test edilmektedir. Analiz, 156 haftalık bir zaman serisini kapsamakta ve değişkenleri simetrik ve zamanlar arası perspektiflerden tahlil etmektedir. Bulgular, en sağlam varlığın Amerikan Doları itibari para birimi olduğunu, ardından kısmen Euro ve altının geldiğini göstermektedir. BTC'nin ise kısa süreliğine sağlam durduğu söylenebilir.

Municipal financial vulnerability in pandemic crises: a framework for analysis

Purpose>This paper explores how global pandemic crises affect the financial vulnerability of municipalities.Design/methodology/approach>This paper is developed from the relevant literature an analytical framework to examine municipal financial vulnerability before a global pandemic crisis and in its immediate aftermath by mapping and systematizing its dimensions and sources. To illustrate how it can be used and evaluate its robustness and flexibility, such a tool was applied to Portugal and Italy, two countries that particularly suffered from the Covid-19 crisis.Findings>The application of the analytical framework has shown how financially vulnerable municipalities are to global pandemic crises. Financial vulnerability relates to issues ranging from institutional design to internal financial conditions and the perception of the capacity to cope with a crisis. Results further reveal that vulnerability has an inherent contingent nature in time and space and can lead to paradoxical outcomes.Research limitations/implications>This paper provides a tool that can be useful for both academic and public policy purposes, to further appreciate municipal financial vulnerability, especially during crises.Practical implications>Municipalities can use the framework to better manage their financial vulnerability, strengthening their anticipatory and copying capacities, while oversight authorities can use it to help municipalities become less financially vulnerable or, at least, more aware of their financial vulnerability.Originality/value>Municipal financial vulnerability to global shocks has not been explored extensively. Also, the Covid-19 pandemic is different from previous global crises as it affected society overnight with the implementation of lockdown and social distancing measures.

The traditional Italian Universities' reaction to the pandemic emergency: The role of the intellectual capital

Purpose>The lockdown imposed to avoid the increase in the number of infections caused by the pandemic emergency declared in January 2020 has unavoidably compromised the normal functioning of the Universities. They have been forced to stop the operation of their traditional student-oriented activities. In this light, the present work aims to analyse how traditional Italian Universities continue to deliver services to their students during the emergency.Design/methodology/approach>Qualitative explorative research was done. The paper used a multiple case study focused on two main public universities located in Rome (Italy). The data was collected using action research with participant observation. The activities observed before and during the health emergency are those related to the second mission and their services.Findings>Until the pandemic emergency arose, in the organizations analysed, the work was done traditionally. When the lockdown started the main instruments adopted to teach and provide the related services to students were the digital tools. Therefore, these devices represent how these organizations could immediately react to face the challenge arising from the impossibility to physically meet the students while continuing to support them in their educational path. Based on the findings obtained these universities fall into the “corporate entrepreneurship” definition.Research limitations/implications>The present work has managerial and academic implications. The academic implications can be summarized in two main points: the work (1) promptly analysed the changes necessary to overcome the problematics caused by the pandemic emergency;(2) contributes to the debate concerning the transfer of knowledge using digital tools and their relevance on the intellectual capital. One of the limits of the work is that only two Italian traditional universities are analysed and that the study focuses on universities located in a same city.Practical implications>On the other hand, in referent to managerial implications, this paper highlights how the corporate entrepreneurial view could be useful to support an inspected challenge that could happened in a certain historical period. Therefore, a real implementation of the entrepreneurial concepts is preferred.Originality/value>The paper discussed an original and contemporary topic not yet investigated since it refers to the Universities' reaction to the pandemic emergency in 2020, with the focus on their ability to maintain the intellectual capital value and give more points that could be investigate in the future, as, e.g. a selection of more than three traditional universities or with a comparative case study, useful in highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of the decisions taken in different contexts, considering: (1) telematic universities and traditional universities;or (2) universities located in other countries. Another future line of enquiry could be to focus the analysis on the effective quality of the MOOCs applied at the universities' activities, using the students' opinions obtainable through OPIS (Rilevazione Opinione degli Studenti) or through direct interviews.

Measuring Growth, Development and Progress

We live in a rapidly changing, uncertain environment. The political and economic strength of countries and regions is changing based on their capabilities to become more resilient, futureoriented and knowledge-based. In this environment, basic economic indicators like growth measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) do not measure future readiness, resilience to change, or development in general, as they are based on past decisions. This paper argues that in order to be able to successfully adapt to the changing environment, economic and social achievements have to be measured not by growth indicators, but by development ones, which highlight real progress and convergence. Among them, intangible asset and intangible investment indicators are especially crucial, as they measure the real health of the economy and society. The key competitive factor on which progress will be based is human capital with good health, knowledge and skills. The paper proves that countries with excellent growth results lag behind in terms of development achievements, measured by the mentioned intangibles. This discrepancy may lead to a dangerous development trap situation. The paper uses statistical data of different countries to prove its suggestions.

Real estate risk, yield modelling and market sentiment: the impact on pricing in European office markets

Purpose>The financial and economic turmoil that resulted from the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), included a marked increase in the volatility in real estate markets. Property asset prices were impacted by the real economy and market sentiment, particularly concerning the determination of risk. In an economic downturn, the perception of investment risk becomes increasingly important relative to overall total returns, and thus impacts on yields and performance of assets. In a recovery phase, and particularly within an environment of historically low government bonds, risk and return compete for importance. The aim of this paper is to assess the interrelationships and impacts on pricing between real estate risk, yield modelling outcomes and market sentiment in selective European city office markets.Design/methodology/approach>This paper specifically considers the modelling of commercial property pricing in relation to the appetite for risk in the financial markets. The paper expands on previous work by determining a specific measure of risk pricing in relationship to changing financial market sentiment. The methodology underpinning the research specifically examines the scope for using national and international risk pricing within specific real estate markets in Europe.Findings>This paper addresses whether there is a difference between the impact of risk on the pricing of real estate in international versus regional cities in Europe. The analysis, therefore, determines which city centre office markets in Europe have been most impacted by globalisation including the magnitude on real estate prices and market volatility. The outcome of the paper provides important insights into how changes in risk preferences in the international capital markets have driven and continues to drive yield movements under different market conditions.Research limitations/implications>The paper considers the driving forces which have led to the volatile movements of yields, emanating from the GFC.Practical implications>This paper considers the property market effects on pricing of commercial real estate and the drivers in selected European cities.Originality/value>The outcome of the paper provides important insights into how changes in risk preferences in the international capital markets have driven and continue to drive the yield movements in different real estate markets in Europe.

The impact of external factors on housing prices in Lithuania

Purpose>This paper aims to identify the external factors that have the greatest impact on housing prices in Lithuania.Design/methodology/approach>The econometric analysis includes stationarity test, Granger causality test, correlation analysis, linear and non-linear regression modes, threshold regression and autoregressive distributed lag models. The analysis is performed based on 137 external factors that can be grouped into macroeconomic, business, financial, real estate market, labour market indicators and expectations.Findings>The research reveals that housing price largely depends on macroeconomic indicators such as gross domestic product growth and consumer spending. Cash and deposits of households are the most important indicators from the group of financial indicators. The impact of financial, business and labour market indicators on housing price varies depending on the stage of the economic cycle.Practical implications>Real estate market experts and policymakers can monitor the changes in external factors that have been identified as key indicators of housing prices. Based on that, they can prepare for the changes in the real estate market better and take the necessary decisions in a timely manner, if necessary.Originality/value>This study considerably adds to the existing literature by providing a better understanding of external factors that affect the housing price in Lithuania and let predict the changes in the real estate market. It is beneficial for policymakers as it lets them choose reasonable decisions aiming to stabilize the real estate market.

Debt relief: Tax inconvenience for companies already in financial distress

Orientation: The Income Tax Act has tax consequences for both the debtor and the creditor when a debt is waived as a result of a concession or compromise. This article focuses on the income tax implications for the debtor. Research purpose: Even though symmetry is achieved when calculating the tax implications for the debtor, it causes inconvenience and economic hardship. The research identified examples of where deferral relief has been granted in the Income Tax Act , and this is used as a motivation to extend similar relief for the distressed debtor. Motivation for the study: Companies were already trading under tough economic conditions before the advent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) The pandemic has compounded the situation and introduced new challenges;hence, debt waivers have become increasingly prevalent. Research approach/design and method: A qualitative research methodology was applied using the doctrinal approach in conducting the research. Main findings: Where a debt is waived in a company that is already in financial distress, this may lead to a recoupment and or capital gains that trigger immediate tax consequences for the company. Practical/managerial implications: The recoupment and/or capital gain, which is subject to tax, creates undue hardship, inconvenience on the already distressed debtor and further impacts the ability of South African Revenue Service (SARS) to collect the tax debt. Contribution/value-add: The authors seek to rectify the identified problem by suggesting that a legislative amendment be introduced to allow the distressed taxpayer relief through a deferral of inclusion in taxable income.

Livelihoods and Tourism: Capital Assets, Household Resiliency, and Subjective Wellbeing

Although a positive relationship between tourism and quality of life is the premise of using tourism to support biodiversity conservation, tourism scholars rarely assess the relationship between tourism and community livelihoods with rigorous empirical methods, even less so in African contexts. Focusing on communities in the Greater Virunga Landscape in Rwanda and Uganda, we conducted a household survey to acquire empirical data to test novel hypotheses about tourism’s influence on capital assets, household resiliency, and subjective wellbeing. Using inferential statistical analyses (e.g., analysis of variance, chi-square difference test, and independent sample t-tests), we compared the responses from 346 residents who have direct access to tourism livelihoods with responses collected from 224 residents not engaged in tourism. Contrary to expectations, our findings suggest that tourism may not lead to dramatic differences in access to capital assets. However, we did discover moderate influences on household resiliency and subjective wellbeing. These intangible and subjective wellbeing outcomes of tourism-based livelihood programs are challenging to assess empirically. Yet, they may be among some of the most important from a human development standpoint. As a first effort to integrate three theoretical frameworks that have, to date, seen limited application in tourism research, this study has opened the door to further work at the intersections of capital assets, family resilience, and wellbeing theories. In conclusion, we argue that incentivizing the protection of local environments through tourism must be extended to other forms of capital, while also considering more nuanced manifestations of intangible wellbeing outcomes. As such, this paper makes a significant empirical contribution to the ongoing theoretical and practical debates about the tourism-conservation relationship.

Fair Credit Markets: Using Household Balance Sheets to Promote Consumer Welfare

Access to credit can provide a path out of poverty. Improvidently granted, however, credit also can lead to financial ruin for the borrower. Unfortunately, the various regulatory approaches to consumer lending do not effectively distinguish between these two effects of the lending process. This Article develops a framework, based on the household balance sheet, that effectively distinguishes between lending that is welfare-enhancing for the borrower and lending that is potentially (indeed likely) ruinous and argues that the two types of lending should be regulated in vastly different ways. From a balance sheet perspective, various kinds of personal loans impact borrowers in vastly different ways. This difference depends on whether the loan proceeds are being used: (a) to make an investment (where the borrower hopes to earn a spread between the cost of the borrowing and the returns on the investment);(b) to fund capital expenditures (homes, cars, etc.);or (c) to fund current consumption (medical care, food, etc.). From a balance sheet perspective, this third type of lending is distinct. Such loans reduce wealth and are correlated with significant physical and mental health problems among borrowers. Payday loans are the paradigmatic example of the use of credit to fund current consumption. Loans to fund current consumption reduce the wealth of the borrower because they create a liability on the "personal balance sheet" of the borrower without creating any corresponding asset. The general category of loans to fund current consumption includes both loans used to fund unforeseen contingencies, like emergency medical care or emergency car repairs, and those used to make routine purchases. Consistent with the stated justification for creating these lending facilities, which is serving households and communities, the emergency lending facilities of the U.S. Federal Reserve should be made accessible to individuals facing emergency liquidity needs in a partnership with the nation's commercial banks. Loans that are taken out for current consumption but are not used for emergencies also should be afforded special regulatory treatment. Lenders who make nonemergency loans for current consumption should owe fiduciary duties to their borrowers. Compliance with such duties would require not only much greater disclosure than is currently mandated but also would impose a duty of suitability on lenders, which would require lenders to provide borrowers with the most appropriate loan for their needs-among other protections discussed here. These heightened duties also should be extended to borrowers when they take out a loan that increases the debt on a borrower 's balance sheet by more than 25%.

Accounting and Market Risk Measures of Polish Energy Companies

Companies in the energy sector, due to their important role in the economy and the specificity of energy sources, are exposed to many types of risk, ranging from the risk associated with the company’s operations and the global economic and political situation in the world. Energy companies are usually large capital companies whose shares are listed on the stock market. The mentioned risk factors may shape the risk level of these companies. The study aims to examine the relationship between market and accounting risk measures for Polish energy companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. This paper uses market and accounting betas in the conventional and downside approach. In addition to market measures of total risk, it also examines the variability of ROA for energy companies. The study of the relationship between market risk measures and accounting risk measures was based on Pearson’s correlation coefficient, standard linear regression, and quantile regression. The relationship between market and accounting measures of total and systematic risk was identified. Moreover, quantile regressions revealed that the slope for accounting variables varies across the quantiles. Our research shows that for energy companies not listed on the capital markets, for which no market risk measures can be derived, accounting betas and downside accounting can be useful tools in risk analysis. The contribution of the article to the risk analysis of energy companies is the use of unpopular accounting beta factors and a new modification of these coefficients for downside risk.