The aim of this study is to investigate the bank-specific, industry-specific, and macroeconomic determinants of the financial performance of banks in Central and Eastern European Countries. For this purpose, first we determined the factors affecting performance, based on findings in the literature. We constructed a financial performance index (FPI) based on CAMEL ratios and then ran the computed index on the aforementioned determinants. In the analysis, we used unbalanced panel data covering the period 2009-2014, which were collected from the BankScope database, World Development Indicators, and the Financial Structure and Development Dataset. We conducted an empirical analysis using fixed-effect panel regression. Our results suggest that the asset quality and earnings of banks are negatively affected by size, and positively affected by business mix and inflation. Capital adequacy and liquidity were found to be negatively affected by size and positively affected by bank concentration and economic growth.
The paper analyses the firm-level factors that encourage companies from the Gulf countries to conduct investments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) using mergers and acquisitions. Numerous local investors do not seem to be deterred by dissuasive locational variables and ineffective integration in the MENA region. Trade agreements amongst MENA countries, e.g., Arab Maghreb Union, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and the Arab Cooperation Council did not enhance foreign direct investment (FDI) between those nations due to structural gaps and incongruences. Therefore, the aim of this research consists in investigating the extent to which GCC firms' decisions to conduct investments in MENA region are explained by their characteristics (size, age, performance, state ownership, and debt structure). Those factors are assumed to exert an influence on M&A decisions along with other institutional and economic factors. The findings reveal that while firm's size and performance exert a positive effect on a firm's decision to expand within MENA region, state ownership has a negative influence. The study also aligns with the results from more mainstream research
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