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Capital, Liquidity, and Funding Ratios

Bank capital, liquidity versus capital, NSFR, loans-to-deposit ratio, and reserve asset cost terms.

Capital, liquidity, and funding ratios measure different parts of bank resilience: loss absorption, cash availability, stable funding, loan funding, and reserve-asset costs. This branch covers bank capital, liquidity versus capital, net stable funding ratio, loans-to-deposit ratio, and reserve asset cost.

Use these pages when a ratio or balance-sheet term changes solvency analysis, liquidity review, funding stability, lending capacity, or supervisory context.

What This Branch Covers

TermUse it for
Bank CapitalLoss-absorbing resources and regulatory capital context.
Liquidity vs CapitalDistinguishing cash resources from loss-absorbing capital.
Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR)Stable-funding analysis over a longer horizon.
Loans-to-Deposit RatioLoan funding and deposit-dependence analysis.
Reserve Asset CostCost or opportunity cost of holding reserve assets.

Decision Lens

Start by separating solvency from liquidity. A bank can be liquid but weakly capitalized, or well capitalized but under funding pressure; the ratio being used should match the risk being evaluated.

Evaluation Checklist

  • Identify capital components, liquid assets, deposits, loans, wholesale funding, reserves, reporting period, and regulatory framework.
  • Separate capital adequacy, liquidity coverage, stable funding, loan funding, and reserve cost.
  • Check call reports, regulatory disclosures, audited statements, footnotes, liquidity reports, and supervisory materials.
  • Review whether the ratio changes solvency, funding stability, lending capacity, deposit risk, or market confidence.
  • Treat regulatory, accounting, investment, and supervisory conclusions as professional-advice areas.

Common Mistakes

  • Using liquidity assets as a substitute for capital.
  • Treating a single ratio as a complete bank-safety conclusion.
  • Comparing ratios across jurisdictions without checking definitions.
  • Ignoring off-balance-sheet commitments, deposit concentration, and funding maturity.

In this section

Choose a subsection first. Deeper term pages live inside each subsection, which keeps large topic hubs readable.

Bank Capital

Bank capital is the equity and regulatory loss-absorbing buffer that protects depositors, creditors, and the banking system.

Liquidity vs. Capital

Liquidity and capital address different bank risks: cash availability for near-term outflows and loss absorption for solvency.

Loans-to-Deposit Ratio

The loans-to-deposit ratio compares a bank's loan book with customer deposits to assess funding reliance and liquidity risk.

Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR)

The net stable funding ratio compares available stable funding with required stable funding to assess a bank's longer-term liquidity resilience.

Reserve Asset Cost

Reserve asset cost is the opportunity or funding cost of holding required or precautionary reserve assets instead of higher-yielding assets.

Revised on Sunday, June 21, 2026