Bank-Lending Channel of Monetary Policy Transmission: Evidence from ASEAN

Abstract

This article examines the existence of a bank-lending channel in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) using a sample of 328 banks from 2009 to 2015. The findings confirm that a bank-lending channel is effective. In particular, we find that consumer loans and commercial loans are sensitive to changes in monetary policy, but mortgage and corporate loans are not. We also find that commercial banks are vulnerable to monetary policy changes, but both investment and Islamic banks are not. On the contrary, special purpose banks are able to overcome the effect of monetary policy tightening by supplying more loans. The effectiveness of a bank-lending channel in ASEAN also holds when we control for the differences in governance structure of the countries. Policymakers need to take these into consideration in designing an effective monetary policy.