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Bank reserves are funds set aside by banks for the sole purpose of being there in case of a sudden increase in withdraws. The bank will generally loan out the rest of their cash. There is actually a minimum of reserves that a bank must keep on hand at all times. This is called the Reserve Ratio or Reserve Requirement or the liquidity ratio etc etc. It is set by the Federal Reserve and is very very rarely changed (some economists refer to it as the "Nuclear Option" in the Federal Reserve's arsenal of financial weapons).

The reason it is so important is that it helps define the creation of money. For instance, say a person deposits $100 into a bank and the Reserve Ratio is 10% (meaning that banks must keep 10% of cash on hand). The bank can then lend out $90 of that money. The person who gets the loan can then right a check to someone for $90. The bank that receives that check can then lend out $81 of that $90. The chain goes on and on, and tons of money is created just from that original $100. Now, should the reserve ratio have been %20, the bank can only lend out $80 (instead of $90), then $64 (instead of $82), etc etc. So the higher the reserve ratio, the less money creation.

In short: Bank reserves are the cash a bank keeps on hand for depositors to have access to.

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16y ago

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Related Questions

What happens when a bank has no reserves?

reserves is the money that a bank holds aside just in case they run out, they'll have money to back them up.When a bank runs out of reserves they can either get loans from the government or file bankruptcy.


Suppose a bank has 500000 in deposits a required reserve ratio of 5 percent and bank reserves of 100000 Then the bank can make new loans in the amount of how much?

required reserves is 25,000. the bank has excess reserves of 75,000, they can loan out everything but the required reserves so assuming they have no loans, they can loan up to 475,000.


List and define two types of bank reserves?

Secondary Reserves- Assets that are invested in safe, marketable, short-term securities.Primary Reserves- Cash required to operate a bank.here is a third one...Excess Reserves- Capital reserves held by a bank in excess of what is required.


What banks do when they do not have excess reserves?

reserving bank


When you borrow money from a bank where does that money come from?

When you borrow money from a bank they pull cash from the bank's reserves. This collection of cash is the net cash reserves within the bank or its network from depositors in the system.


What does a bank do to its excess reserves?

A bank typically holds excess reserves as a buffer to meet unexpected withdrawals or regulatory requirements. It can also lend out these excess reserves to generate interest income, typically through loans to customers or interbank lending. Alternatively, a bank may invest the excess reserves in short-term securities to earn a return while maintaining liquidity. Ultimately, the management of excess reserves is a key aspect of a bank's liquidity and profitability strategy.


Where does the money in central bank reserves comes from?

The Treasury


What increase the commercial bank's reserve?

foreign reserves


What is the maximum amount the bank can lend?

bank can lend amount equal to its excess reserves


What interest rate does a bank pay when borrowing reserves from the Fed?

The interest rate that a bank pays when borrowing reserves from the Federal Reserve is called the federal funds rate.


What is reserve deposit ratio?

The amount of reserves a bank has in comparison to deposits. For example, if a bank has 1 million in deposits and a reserve ratio of 20% than the bank has 200,000 in reserves. This is the money they have on hand for spontaneous withdrawls


What has the author Giovanni Majnoni written?

Giovanni Majnoni has written: 'The dynamics of foreign bank ownership' -- subject(s): Banks and banking, Foreign Investments, Privatization 'Bank capital and loan loss reserves under basel ii' -- subject(s): Bank reserves, Loan loss reserves