In this paper we focus on the assumption of a common efficient frontier when performing an efficiency study for the banking sector. The fact that environmental factors that are not appropriately controlled may easily bias efficiency estimates. First, we estimate a common cost and profit...

This paper brings to the forefront the assumptions that we make when focussingon a particular type of explanation for bank profitability. We evaluate a broad field of research by introducing a general framework for a profit maximizing bank and demonstrate how different types of models can be...

A persistent paradox in stochastic frontier efficiency research is that we cannot compare the X-efficiency of firms without assuming these firms to operate under a common frontier. In this paper, we address this imbalance by constructing so-called metafrontiers. Specifically, we build on recent...