The BIS international banking statistics: structure and analytical use

Abstract

This study provides an introductory overview of the international banking statistics (IBS) compiled and published by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). These consist of the locational banking statistics (LBS) and the consolidated banking statistics (CBS). Both the LBS and the CBS offer specific advantages for the analysis of developments in global banking on an aggregate country basis. For example, the former are particularly suited for assessing trends in international interbank markets including interoffice positions of global banking groups, foreign currency exposures and historical breakdowns of external positions by type of instrument. The latter allow for the analysis of global banks’ consolidated positions (on a country aggregated basis), in line with consolidation practices adopted in accounting and by banking supervisors, and offer historical data on maturities of external positions. It is crucial to be aware of the comparative advantages (and disadvantages) of the LBS and CBS when conducting investigations with the BIS IBS; however, they are not always clear at first sight. Hence, when starting to use these statistics, initially they may look like a big puzzle; one has to know where to find the specific pieces and how they fit together. The aim of this article is to demonstrate how this puzzle can be solved for analyses of specific dimensions of global banking.