Commercial Bank- a non-state credit institution that carries out universal banking operations for legal entities and individuals (settlement, payment operations, attraction of deposits, provision of loans, as well as operations in the securities market and intermediary operations).

Commercial bank passive operations- this is the activity of the bank to accumulate its own and borrowed funds for the purpose of their placement.

These are operations for the placement of borrowed and own funds of a commercial bank in order to generate income and create conditions for banking operations.

Active operations of a commercial bank- this is first of all credit operations, investment operations, operations on formation of property jar, settlement and cash operations, commission and intermediary(factoring, leasing, forfaiting, etc.).

The main types of active operations of a commercial bank are:

Providing loans to legal entities and individuals on various terms and conditions;

Operations with securities on its own behalf and at its own expense;

Investment;

REPO transactions;

Foreign exchange dealing operations;

Non-traditional operations of commercial banks.

Credit operations - these are the lender's placement operations

free resources in various loans provided to clients on terms of payment, urgency and repayment. Banks can place their resources on the interbank market, providing loans to other banks or opening deposit accounts with them.

Banks can purchase securities (shares, bonds) of other issuers or the state in order to receive income on them due to exchange rate differences. Credit institutions can also make accounting transactions with bills - purchase of bills before their due date.

Direct investments represent a direct investment of bank funds in production, the acquisition of real assets. Portfolio investments are carried out in the form of buying securities or providing long-term cash loans. Banks make transactions for the purchase of securities with a mandatory subsequent sale (REPO transactions) of the same issue and in the same quantity after a period specified by the contract at a specified price.

Foreign exchange trading operations refer to intermediary activities for the purchase and sale of currency. The task of the bank in this area is to provide its clients with the opportunity to convert their assets in foreign currency from one currency to another.

Non-traditional operations of commercial banks include operations that can be performed by organizations other than commercial banks:

Settlement and cash services;

Trust (trust) operations;

Leasing operations;

- to attract funds and active - to place funds.

Asset management is understood as the ways and procedure for placing own and borrowed funds in order to generate income and ensure the liquidity of a commercial bank. With regard to commercial banks, this is the distribution of cash, loans, investments
into securities and other assets. When placing funds, special attention is paid to lending operations and investments in securities.

The placement of bank funds in various types of assets depends on existing laws and regulations, the need to maintain a high level of liquidity and the need to receive a fairly high income. The choice of the asset management method depends on the specific conditions in which the bank operates, the goals it sets for itself, and, of course, the competence of the bank's management. But when using any method of asset management, entering the credit markets, buying and selling securities, providing their clients with a variety of services for making cash settlements, issuing guarantees, etc., banks must constantly monitor the state of their liabilities, the availability of free funds, terms of demanding deposits, the cost of attracted capital and savings.

Active transactions are secondary to passive ones. Their size and timing directly depend on the same parameters as passive operations. A commercial bank can place only those resources that have been attracted as a result of passive operations, and since the bulk of passive operations are not their own, but borrowed funds, the bank must form its active operations in such a way that the terms of return of money to the bank correspond to the timing of their return clients. In this case, the bank will be solvent, financially stable, which will undoubtedly attract additional clients to it.

Active banking operations are divided into several groups.

Credit operations

This group occupies a dominant position in the structure of active operations, it is she who brings the greatest income.

Credit operations mean the provision of money to individuals and legal entities on terms of repayment, urgency and payment.

These operations are regulated by the bank's credit policy. In terms of terms and amounts, they must correspond to passive transactions.

Active operations are secondary in relation to passive ones, since banks place not only their own funds, but also those belonging to clients. If most of the liabilities are attracted for a short period, then he will not be able to issue long-term loans.

Commission and intermediary operations

Leasing operations

Leasing operations - long-term lease, based on crediting. An organization that needs to buy equipment contacts the bank with a request to purchase it and then lease it.

The owner of the subject of the transaction is the bank, it is he who makes the payment, and the lessee, who regularly makes payments to the bank, uses the equipment.

The disadvantage of leasing is high fees, which include, in addition to paying for credit resources, amortization and commission.

The disadvantage for the bank is the fact that the lease agreement can be concluded for a period shorter than the equipment depreciation period. If the lessee does not want to buy out the leased asset or renew the contract, the bank will have equipment that it does not need. If you do not find a new counterparty, you will have to sell it at a loss for yourself, so as not to spend money on maintenance.

Factoring operations

Factoring is the acquisition of receivables. If the seller and the buyer of the goods prescribe in the agreement that the shipment will take place now, and the payment will take place later, the seller can offer the debt to the bank and immediately receive 80-90% of it. The rest will come after the buyer has settled with the bank.

The bank, transferring the rest of the amount to the seller, will deduct the cost of its services. When agreeing to factoring, it is worth remembering that it is always more expensive than a loan, since the bank risks a lot by providing money to one person and hoping to get it from another.

Factoring with and without recourse is possible. In the first case, in the absence of payment from the buyer, the seller will have to return the money to the bank. In the second, all risks are borne by the bank. Naturally, the choice of the second option leads to an increase in the commission.

Operations with securities

Investment

Investment transactions mean the purchase of securities. The level of income and risk received depends on the chosen strategy and the formed portfolio of securities. If the goal is to maximize income, then the investment will be high-risk. If the bank's priority is stability, even at the cost of reducing profits, then securities of the most reliable issuers will be purchased.

Accounting and loan

Accounting for securities, such as bills of exchange. In the case of him, the holder of the bill transfers it to the bank by endorsement and receives most of the amount indicated in the bill, minus the cost of banking services. After the expiry of the term indicated on the bill, the bank will present it for payment.

1. Content and classification of active operations of the bank

2. The structure and quality of assets of a commercial bank

3. Liquid assets and factors affecting the bank's liquidity

4. Assessment and indicators of liquidity of a commercial bank

8.1. Content and classification of active operations of the bank

Active operations of banks are operations through which banks allocate resources at their disposal to generate profit and maintain their liquidity, and, consequently, to ensure financial stability. Active operations include resource allocation operations.

Active transactions are secondary to passive ones. This is primarily due to the fact that a commercial bank can place only those resources that it attracted as a result of passive operations, and these are borrowed funds, and the bank must form its active operations in such a way that the terms for returning money to the bank correspond to the terms of their return to customers. In this case, the bank will be solvent, financially stable, which will undoubtedly attract additional clients to it.

There are many classifications of active operations according to one principle or another. The most common classification of active transactions by economic content, which consists of:

Loan operations;

Settlement transactions;

Cash transactions;

Investment and stock transactions;

Foreign exchange transactions;

Warranty operations.

Loan operations are operations to provide funds to the borrower for a specified period and for a specified fee. Settlement operations are operations for crediting and debiting funds from clients' accounts, including for payment of their obligations to counterparties.

Cash operations are operations for accepting and withdrawing cash.

Investment and stock transactions are operations on the bank investing its funds in securities and shares of non-bank structures for the purpose of joint economic, financial and commercial activities, as well as placing funds in the form of term deposits in other credit institutions.

Foreign exchange transactions are transactions for the purchase and sale of foreign currency and other currency values, including precious metals in coins and bullion.

Guarantee operations are operations until the bank issues a guarantee (surety) for the payment of a client's debt to a third party upon the occurrence of certain conditions (may be in the form of a commission).

Commercial banks carry out active operations within the framework of available resources, that is, within the limits of cash balances on a correspondent account and in cash.

General characteristics of active operations of a commercial bank are given in the following table:

Cash	Accumulation of funds on a correspondent account; Accumulation of funds at the cash desk; Placement of funds on correspondent accounts with other banks; Placement of funds on deposits with other banks.
Loan portfolio	Provision of loans to legal entities in national and foreign currencies (including overdue and prolonged ones); Provision of loans in national currency to individuals (including overdue and prolonged loans); Provision of interbank loans in national and foreign currencies (including overdue and prolonged).
Securities for sale	Investments in government and corporate securities for sale.
Investment portfolio	Investments in government and corporate securities for investments; Investments in the statutory funds of enterprises and organizations.
Property and intangible assets	Investments in fixed assets; Investments in inventory items; Investments in intangible assets.

Thus, active operations of banks are mainly operations for the issuance (placement) of various types of loans. The most common type of loan provided by banks is a short-term loan to economic agents, usually to finance the purchase of inventory. This loan can be issued with or without real collateral, but in any case, to obtain it, it is necessary to have financial reporting documents characterizing the financial position of the borrower, so that the bank can at any time assess the likelihood of timely repayment of the loan.

8.2. The structure and quality of assets of a commercial bank

The structure of assets is understood as the ratio of different quality items of the assets of the bank's balance sheet. The quality of a bank's assets is determined by the appropriate structure of its assets, diversification of active operations, the volume of risky assets, the volume of critical and defective assets, and signs of asset volatility.

There are different approaches to determining the structure of banking assets. Basically, the assets of commercial banks are divided into four = categories:

Cash and cash equivalents;

Investments in securities;

Loans;

Buildings and constructions.

The first component of banking assets is “Cash and Equivalent Funds”. Control and regulatory authorities require banks to keep some of the funds in cash or in the form of demand deposits in accounts with other banks. In addition, cash is needed to change money, return deposits, satisfy loan requests, and cover various operating expenses, including staff salaries, materials and services. The article “Cash and Equivalent Funds” covers funds in accounts with the Central Bank and other commercial banks, banknotes and coins, as well as payment documents in the collection process. An important reserve is, of course, cash in bank safes. But the bank's management naturally strives to reduce their size to the minimum, determined by security considerations. In addition, in Russia, the costs of protecting and insuring cash on hand are very significant; cash does not bring income. Funds on accounts with correspondent banks also practically do not generate income. Therefore, the item "Cash and Equivalent Funds" is the most liquid for the bank, but the least profitable.

As for the item "Securities", today most of all investments in securities fall on government securities. Investments in short-term government securities are usually less profitable, but are highly liquid assets with zero risk of default and little risk of changes in market rates. Long-term securities usually generate high returns over a long period. To increase bank revenues, it is common to invest in government bonds and, to a limited extent, in first-class corporate bonds.

The main activity of commercial banks in terms of generating income is the provision of loans. By investing funds in various types of credit operations, the bank's management considers it a top priority to obtain a high income while meeting the needs of customers for a loan. The degree, liquidity of a particular credit transaction is not of paramount importance.

The quality of assets is determined by their liquidity, the volume of risky assets, the proportion of critical and defective assets, and the volume of income-generating assets. To ensure the daily ability of the bank to meet its obligations, the structure of the assets of a commercial bank must meet the qualitative requirements of liquidity. For this purpose, all bank assets are divided into groups according to the degree of liquidity, depending on the maturity date. Bank assets are divided into highly liquid assets (i.e. assets that provide instant liquidity); liquid assets, assets of long-term liquidity.

Instant liquidity assets (highly liquid) include: cash and equivalent funds, funds on accounts with the Central Bank, government debt, funds on correspondent accounts with non-resident banks of OECD member countries in hard currency, investments in domestic foreign currency loan bonds minus funds , received as payment for foreign exchange shares and funds received on the bank's correspondent account from the sale of securities. These funds are classified as liquid ones, since they are subject to immediate withdrawal from the bank's circulation, if necessary.

Liquid assets include, in addition to the listed highly liquid assets, all loans issued by a credit institution in rubles and foreign currency, with a maturity within the next 30 days (excluding loans extended at least once and newly issued to repay previously issued loans), and also other payments in favor of a credit institution to be transferred within the next 30 days (debtors, as well as overpayment amounts to be returned to the credit institution as of the reporting date from the reserve fund).

Long-term liquidity assets include all loans issued by a credit institution in rubles and foreign currency with a remaining maturity of more than a year, as well as 50% of guarantees and sureties issued by the bank for a period of more than a year, loans overdue minus loans guaranteed by the Government, secured securities, secured by precious metals. Establishing a rational structure of assets, the bank must comply with liquidity requirements, and therefore, have a sufficient amount of highly liquid, liquid and long-term liquid funds in relation to liabilities, taking into account their terms, amounts and types, and comply with the standards of instant, current and long-term liquidity.

The instant liquidity ratio is calculated as the ratio of the amount of the bank's highly liquid assets to the amount of its liabilities on demand accounts. The current liquidity ratio is the ratio of the amount of a credit institution's liquid assets to the amount of its liabilities on demand accounts and for a period of up to 30 days. The long-term liquidity ratio is defined as the ratio of loans issued by the bank with a maturity of over a year to the credit institution's capital and liabilities over a year.

8.3. Liquid assets and factors affecting the bank's liquidity

Taking into account the types of liquid assets used to fulfill its obligations by the bank, they distinguish between liquidity accumulated by the bank (cash, highly liquid securities) and purchased, more precisely, newly acquired (attracted interbank loans, issuance of bank bills, deposit and savings certificates). Compliance with these signs of the bank's liquidity (timeliness of fulfillment of obligations and without losses) is due to many internal and external factors that determine the quality of the bank's activities and the state of the external environment.

Internal factors include:

The quality of the bank's assets;

The quality of the funds raised;

Maturity of assets and liabilities;

Competent management;

Bank image.

The quality of the bank's assets reflects three properties: liquidity, riskiness, profitability.

Asset liquidity is the ability of assets to be transformed into cash without losses through their sale or repayment of obligations by the debtor (borrower), while the degree of possible losses is determined by the riskiness of the assets.

The bank's liquidity is also determined by the quality of the borrowed funds, i.e. liquidity of liabilities, stability of deposits and moderate dependence on external borrowing.

The liquidity of liabilities characterizes the speed of their repayment, which means the degree of revolving for the bank while maintaining the total amount of attracted funds at a certain level. The liquidity of liabilities reflects their term structure. If the bank's attracted resources are dominated by deposits or loans with short maturities, then the liquidity of liabilities is high, and accordingly this can create problems with the liquidity of the bank as a whole. In such a situation, the bank must often replace some borrowed funds with others.

A serious impact on the bank's liquidity is exerted by the conjugation of assets and liabilities in terms of amounts and terms. The fulfillment of obligations by the bank to the client presupposes the coordination of the terms for which the funds are invested with those for which their depositors provided. Ignoring this rule in the activities of a bank, which operates primarily on borrowed resources, will inevitably lead to the impossibility of timely and full fulfillment of obligations by the bank to creditors.

The internal factors, on which the degree of the bank's liquidity depends, also includes management, i.e. the system for managing the bank's activities in general and liquidity in particular. The quality of bank management is expressed in the presence and content of banking policy; rational organizational structure of the bank, which allows solving strategic and current tasks at a high level; in the development of an appropriate mechanism for managing the bank's assets and liabilities; in a clear definition of the content of various procedures, including those related to making the most responsible decisions.

Among the factors determining the bank's liquidity is its image. The positive image of the bank in market conditions allows it to gain an advantage over other banks in attracting resources and thus quickly eliminate the lack of liquidity. It is easier for a reputable bank to ensure the stability of its deposit base. He has more opportunities to establish contacts with financially stable clients, which means that he has a higher quality of assets.

The bank's first-class image allows it to develop ties with foreign partners, which also contributes to strengthening its financial condition and liquidity.

The state of banks' liquidity also depends on a number of external factors. These include:

General political and economic situation in the country;

Development of the securities market and the interbank market;

The system of refinancing commercial banks by the Bank of Russia;

The effectiveness of the supervisory functions of the Bank of Russia.

The general political and economic situation in the country creates the preconditions for the development of banking operations and the successful functioning of the banking system, ensures the stability of the economic basis of banks' activities, and strengthens the confidence of domestic and foreign investors in banks. Without these conditions, banks are unable to create a stable deposit base, achieve profitability of operations, improve their tools and management system, and improve the quality of their assets.

The development of the securities market makes it possible to provide an optimal system of liquid funds without loss of profitability, since the fastest way of converting bank assets into cash in most foreign countries is associated with the functioning of the stock market.

The development of the interbank market contributes to the rapid redistribution of temporarily free cash resources between banks. To maintain its liquidity, a bank can raise funds from the interbank market for different periods, including one day. The promptness of receiving funds from the interbank market depends on the general financial situation, the organization of the interbank market, and the authority of the bank.

Another factor is closely related to this factor - the system of refinancing of commercial banks by the Bank of Russia. A loan from the Bank of Russia becomes a source of replenishment of liquid assets of a commercial bank.

The effectiveness of the supervisory functions of the Bank of Russia determines the degree of interaction of the state supervisory authority with commercial banks in terms of liquidity management. The Bank of Russia has the right to establish certain liquidity ratios, orienting banks to comply with these ratios. The more accurately the established indicators reflect the real state of the bank's liquidity, the more opportunities the bank itself and the supervisor have to timely identify liquidity problems and eliminate them.

8.4. Assessment and indicators of liquidity of a commercial bank

In modern Russian practice, two methods of assessing liquidity are used: by means of ratios and based on cash flow. The ratio method is based on estimated liquidity indicators established by the Bank of Russia. Currently, there are three such indicators:

H2- the standard of instant liquidity of the bank. It regulates the risk of loss of liquidity by the bank within one operating day. Limit value 15%;

H3- the standard of the current liquidity of the bank. It regulates the risk of loss of liquidity by the bank within the next 30 calendar days to the date of calculation of the standard. Limit value 50%;

H4- standard of long-term liquidity of the bank. Regulates the risk of loss of liquidity by the bank as a result of placing funds in long-term assets. Limit value 120%

Along with the state regulation of banks' liquidity through the establishment of economic standards in Russia, liquidity assessment is being developed based on the calculated liquid position: general and in the context of different currencies. With this method, liquidity is understood as a flow (with the method of coefficients - as a reserve).

The liquidity position of a bank reflects the ratio of its monetary claims and liabilities for a certain period. If for a period (by a certain date) claims on customers (assets) exceed the bank's liabilities, there will be an excess of liquidity, if liabilities, which mean an outflow of funds, exceed claims (receipts) - a lack of liquidity.

The liquidity position is assessed as of the current date and all subsequent ones, i.e. for the future. To determine the liquidity position, a restructured balance sheet is drawn up, in which assets and liabilities are classified by maturity and demand.

There are two main approaches to asset management.

General fund method ... This method is one of the simplest to apply in practice.

Funds placed by a commercial bank in the course of its activities come from various sources and have different qualities.

The essence of this method is to combine all available resources into a "common pot" for their further distribution among assets in accordance with the preferences of the bank. As long as the placement of funds corresponds to the achievement of the goals set by the bank, when conducting specific active operations, it is not taken into account from what sources of funds they are carried out.

Asset Allocation Method (Funds Conversion) ... The essence of this method is to compare the assets and liabilities of the bank in terms of terms and amounts. For this, the sources and main directions of funds allocation are grouped and compared in such a way that the funds of a certain group of liabilities are placed in certain groups of assets, taking into account the profitability of investments and maintaining the bank's liquidity.