Basel III Capital Accord Implementation: Impacts and Implications on Banking System Stability

The 2010 Basel III Capital Accord aims to strengthen banks’ capital adequacy. The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision proposed refined definitions of the three capital tiers, increased the minimum risk-weighted capital requirements, and introduced a capital conservation buffer and a counter-cyclical buffer. These proposals aim to raise the banks’ higher-quality capital and improve the banks’ ability to withstand financial shocks. This study explores the impacts of Basel III’s implementation by assessing: (1) change in bank lending, (2) change in bank solvency from banks’ risk-taking, and (3) change in the banks’ resilience to adverse stress scenarios from higher capital requirements.