BA Graduate Programs
Permanent URI for this community
Browse
Browsing BA Graduate Programs by Issue Date
Now showing 1 - 20 of 83
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item Managing Multi-generation Workforce in USA(2005) Arnaout, Marwan AdnanThe changing workforce is one of the most extraordinary and significant challenges facing U.S. organizations today. The demographic changes in the American workforce have the potential to affect many aspects of organizational management and its efficiency. Both the population and the workforce have become increasingly diverse, and these population changes will continue for many years. Today's workforce is more diverse than ever. One diversity issue that has not been generally recognized is generational differences. Human Resource Managers are facing the challenge of connecting company values to a diverse workforce. To attract, retain and motivate two very different generations of workers (e.g. Baby Boomers and Generation X), managers must understand their unique perspectives and the national events that shaped their values. To maximize performance, the two generations need to work together in harmony, bridging the generational divide through shared values. The purpose of this study was to determine the demographic characteristics of Baby Boomers and Generation X, their motivator factors, the generation disparity between them, and an effective strategy to diminish this disparity. A survey questionnaire was used as a method for collecting data. Out of the 70 surveys sent to Human Resource Managers of American customer service companies located in the State of California, 57 completed the questionnaires and valid surveys were returned. Therefore, the overall response rate was 81 percent. The findings indicate that loyalty, work ethic, commitment, respect, being workaholics, self-reliant, and ambitious are the outstanding characteristics of Baby Boomers; while need for personal gratification, technology skills, being self-focused, creative, liking challenges, being adaptable, and needing personal growth are the one of Generation X. The findings state that retirement plan, benefits, and salary are the motivation factors for Baby Boomers, while training, salary, and reward are the ones for Generation X. The findings point out that work ethics, attitude, and working style are the areas of conflicts and tensions between Baby Boomers and Generation X. The findings of this study indicate that a disparity does exist between Baby Boomers and Generation X and there is a need to bridge it by proposing several ways of intervention. To deal with this issue, the most effective strategy is opening all communication channels. Finally, this study can be a framework for Human Resource Managers and can help them in managing multi-generation workforce by building strength and unity through group diversity which will be the power to propel their organization into new dimensions of performance and efficiency.Item Assessment of Small and Medium Size Enterprise (SME) Environment in Lebanon(2005) Hagopian, Alexan EdgarWhile SME or Small and Medium Size Enterprises is a widespread term echoed assertively in globalized and highly integrated world economies as a catalyst for real and rapid economic transformation, it remains of limited echo in the Lebanese economy even though much of Lebanon's businesses are SMEs. The underlying study aims at assessing the fundamental and environmental foundation upon which the Lebanese SMEs rest with the aim arriving at recommendations that would create a favorable environment for SMEs in Lebanon. In such an attempt, this project aims to define SMEs in Lebanon, to conduct an exploratory research at the micro- and macro-environmental levels, to highlight environmental obstacles, and to raise recommendations for developing a more enabling environment for these SMEs. After arriving at an appropriate definition of the SMEs in Lebanon as business enterprises with workforce sizes not exceeding forty employees, the study reviews the Lebanese macroeconomic environment embodying the SMEs along with the legal and financial frameworks within which these SMEs operate to highlight a set of descriptive hypotheses revolving around the influential factors on the employment decisions, the business investment decisions, the registration patterns, the past performance, and the future expectations. In addition and in light of the data gathered from the field survey of fifty four SMEs, the research examines the possibility of a relationship between these decisions on one hand and the demographics - gender, age, educational background, experience - of the SME owners, and location, size, sector, date and manner of establishment, and legal status or business type of the SME, on the other hand. At the end, recommendations to develop an enabling environment for the Lebanese SMEs are briefly presented based on the observations noted throughout this preliminary research.Item Bond Immunization: Beyond the Theory(2005) Missakian, Hagop AntranikSeveral authors in financial investments have investigated the validity of immunization in theory and in applied work. These authors assume different immunized portfolios, apply a few changes in interest rates, and evaluate the process by examining the results. In this study, we examine different portfolios and define the scope of bond diversification and the selection process of the bonds in order to have more immunized outcomes. Actually, we find that forming immunized portfolios from composites of only two bonds simplifies the selection process and serves in maximizing the overall return of the investment. We also rely on different websites to gather information on various bonds currently trading in the market. Furthermore, we form a number of immunized portfolios using different pairs of these bonds. Because the path of interest rates is unknown, we simulate every possible path that interest rates may have for a five years time horizon by using a program in Microsoft Excel, which also calculates the end results of each portfolio in relation to each path of interest rates. Because the range of the outcomes is quite large, we use different statistical summaries and tests in order to evaluate the overall outcome of the portfolios and eventually to validate the theory of immunization. We use histograms to plot the outcomes of each portfolio and realize that not all portfolios' outcomes have normal distributions as their corresponding data are scattered away from the mean thus increasing the risk of not being able to meet the obligation. The analysis shows that although all the selected portfolios have means greater than the desired outcome, these portfolios do not have similar risks nor do they have the same probabilities in scoring satisfactory results and we find a relation between the risk and the realized yield of the portfolios. We conclude by saying that immunization is workable and our analysis provides enough proof to be able to validate this theory especially that we do not use rebalancing in our study, which is one of the problems of the theory, yet we still have positive results.Item Customer Satisfaction in Financial Institutions(2005) Sarkissian, Nayiri K.In this paper, we study the service quality factors of customer satisfaction in financial institutions. We discuss the results using the stepwise discriminant analysis based on data collected from customers of a leading bank in Lebanon. The approach enables us to assess a coefficient of ten service quality factors related to customer satisfaction, which are as follows: 1- Employees Cooperation (Responsiveness) 2- Working Environment (Tangible) 3- Dressing code (Tangible) 4- Employees good and professional behavior (Courtesy) 5- Employees speed in performance (Competence) 6- Employees knowledge of the products (Competence) 7- News update to customers (Competence) 8- Employees motivation (Competence) 9- Waiting line system (Tangible) 10- Communication over the telephone (Courtesy) We find the factors have the highest loadings, which are employees' knowledge, employees' cooperation, waiting in line system and telecommunication with the branch. In order to facilitate managerial action, we discuss how specific service quality factors should be interpreted to enable us to enhance customer satisfaction. This approach and findings have significant implications for managing customer satisfaction in the financial industry.Item Gold Price Determinants: An Empirical Study(2005) Sajian, TorosThis paper demonstrates an empirical link between gold price, consumer price index, Euro exchange rate, the Brent oil price and the Dow Johns industrial average. The research shows that there is a relationship between the gold price and each of the other variables, each one alone and all together. In the first part, simple regression models are used to find out the relationship between the gold and the other variables. ln the last part of the paper, we do a multiple regression model by taking all the dependent variables together to find their relationship with the gold price, using concurrent economic data from 1997 to 2005.Item Evaluating the Services of a Primary Health Care Center Case Study: Howard Karagheusian Commemorative Corporation - Beirut, Lebanon(2007) Ohanian, Serop HaroutiounPrimary Health Care Centers aim at responding to people's health needs and demands and at safeguarding, promoting and restoring health. However, health is not an aim per se, but a condition for human development and well-being. The underlying study seeks to evaluate the services of one of the active Primary Health Care Centers (PHC) in Lebanon, the Howard Karagheusian, Commemorative (HKCC). In this attempt, this project defines the role of a Primary Health Care (PHC) in comparison with an Emergency Medical Assistance (EMA), hence summarizes the characteristics of both centers and to focus on the particular services of HKCC as a PHC. After arriving at an appropriate definition of PHC and EMA, the study highlights the impact of HKCC as a PHC in Bourj Hammoud. For this purpose, a set of questions was distributed to the visitors and staff members of HKCC to explore the level of the respondents' satisfaction and their corresponding suggestions. Descriptive hypothesis statements revolving around the characteristics of a PHC comparing it to the characteristics of HKCC were developed. Two hundred and nine visitors and twenty two staff members at HKCC during the month of March 2007 have responded to this survey. The research examines the possibility of a relationship between the frequency of the visits of the clients on the one hand and the level satisfaction of the clients with the services of HKCC on the other hand. At the end, recommendations were given to HKCC management and board of directors to improve the services of HKCC based on the observations noted throughout this preliminary exploratory research.Item Quality Online Banking Services in Lebanon(2007) Ramadan, Izzat IbrahimThe popularity of banking services delivered over the Internet (online banking services) is increasing in recent years. In the highly competitive Internet banking environment, high service quality is essential for survival of banks. This leads to the fact, that a good understanding of the attributes that customers use to judge service quality is necessary in order for the bank to be able to monitor and enhance its services performance and improve its overall service quality. The purpose of this study is to provide insight into how customers perceive the quality of online banking services and to develop an instrument consisting of different service quality dimensions that can be used to measure the quality of such services. Using an already developed model for measuring the quality of online services, a modified theoretical model (instrument) for measuring the quality of online banking services has been developed. A quantitative research method including the design and distribution of a questionnaire has been used, and empirical data was collected on which statistical analysis has been performed. As a result of the conducted analysis, the initial theoretical model has been modified, so that the final version of the model (instrument) for measuring quality of online banking services includes five quality dimensions (Service Performance, Security and Privacy, Overall Quality, Communication and Efficiency) with total of 36 items (questions). Furthermore, based on the modified theoretical model, customer satisfaction with different aspects of the online banking services has been evaluated. Based on the results of the Analysis of the Empirical Data, managerial recommendations are given. Suggestions for further research on quality of online banking services are also offered.Item The Process of Going Public: Incentives and Obstacles: Case of Lebanon(2008) Kazandjian, Sebouh A.A privately held firm, which is concerned about the disadvantages of using too much debt, will sometimes resort to going public. The process of selling shares to the public is known as an Initial Public Offering (IPO). Upon going public, the firm's ownership structure gets diluted and pressure is imposed on management in order to achieve projected or targeted results. Any underperformance by the firm will result in decreasing the stock price, thus, lowering the overall value of the firm and the investor's confidence. This study intends to provide an understanding of the initial public offering (IPO) process in Lebanon. The objective is to highlight the IPO process, its benefits, obstacles and disincentives. The methodology used is a survey of privately held companies in Lebanon in addition to statistical and financial analysis. We have found that the IPO process in Lebanon is still in its infancy when compared to most developed countries or even most Arab countries that have active stock markets. The political and economic instability of the country has not been encouraging many businesses to go through the IPO adventure. The number of IPO's has remained muted in recent years. The Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE), the only stock exchange in the country, was established in the 1920s and was the first in the Middle East. The BSE is currently characterized by a limited number of listed domestic companies with a low daily volume of trading. Beirut Stock Index is highly volatile due to the instability in the country. Upon examining a number of listed Lebanese companies, I found that their stock prices are not strongly affected by the political and economic conditions which currently govern the country. These companies are performing well and are generally closely held, which means that the majority of the shares are under the control of management. On the other hand, these companies have a high level of reliance on their businesses outside Lebanon. These two reasons together with others, have made these companies immune to many changes or troubling events in the country. The study proceeds as follows: Section I provides an overview of the Lebanese economy and the different components of the economy. Section II describes the common forms of business in Lebanon with the brief understanding of rules and regulations related to these businesses.. Section III discusses the history of the Beirut Stock Exchange, the administration, the listing requirements, the costs of going public, the rules concerning foreign investors and the correlation with other stock markets. Section IV analyses the pros and cons of going public in Lebanon through a survey conducted for this reason. Section V includes a financial analysis of four Lebanese publicly traded companies. Section VI concludes this paper.Item Human Resource Playing Strategic & Business Partner Roles in the Lebanese Banking Industry(2008) Libarian, ChristaporThe Human Resource function has undergone a tremendous change over time. Until mid 90's, large organizations looked at the Human Resource Department (HRD) mostly as managers of the paperwork around hiring and paying employees. Nowadays HRDs are called upon to play new strategic roles. Today, the business of HRD is changing and there is an increased emphasis on the need to improve the effectiveness and the efficiency of Human Resource services. Organizations have started considering the HR function as one with a strategic role, focusing on optimizing performance through adequate staffing, training and talent management. Moreover, the "Business Partner" role of the HR is its competency to add value to employees through various proposals and interesting engagement programs and growth related initiatives. Today's organizations are expecting from their HRDs to go beyond the delivery of cost-effective transactional services, and provide value added services and expertise in terms of how to anticipate, develop and leverage talent to create true marketplace differentiation. The primary objective of this thesis is to show how Human Resource transformed itself in the last decade and how it is still continuing to do so in order to play the new strategic roles and to become a real business partner for the organization. For this purpose we chose Bank A and Bank B *, two major leading Lebanese banks to examine how far their Human Resource Departments succeed in playing the new roles. To achieve the purpose of this thesis, we conducted a literature review on the subject and collected information from 102 bank employees (from the banks mentioned above). The major findings of this thesis show that Human Resource departments in the Lebanese banking industry are playing very satisfactory Traditional and Administrative roles, and they are on their way of becoming Strategic Partners but they still need time to become actual Business Partners. Also we found that the Strategic and Business Partner roles of HR were the ones that had a stronger impact on the overall performance of the banks. * We have concealed the names of the banks for confidentiality purposesItem Employee Motivation and Its Impact on Employee Performance: Empirical Study Conducted in Two Lebanese Companies(2008) Akahian, Christine KevorkIn today's fast paced and competitive workplace environment, motivating employees for better job performance is very crucial for not only the organization's success but also its survival. Motivation in the workplace is one of the greatest challenges for managers. High levels of motivations are directly connected to high employee performance. A lack of motivation in the workplace is a major issue for managers and unfortunately many business managers today are not aware of the effects that motivation can and does have on their business. The purpose of this study is to understand the importance and effects of motivation on employee performance by identifying the most important motivational factors. This was done by studying two companies one of which is considered to well apply the various motivational techniques while the other one applies them in a lesser degree. The methodology used to obtain the information and data needed was through two sets of questionnaires distributed to employees and managers in both companies. The results were analyzed using various statistical techniques such as descriptive analysis, comparative analysis, hypothesis testing, and correlation and regression analysis. As a result of the conducted analysis, in both companies, we were able to see how using motivational techniques affected positively on employee performance, and how using it less frequently or not at all had a negative impact.Item The Effect of Information Technology Use on Banks' Performance in Lebanon: Empirical Study Conducted on Lebanese Banks(2008) Modad, Rola NayefIn today's open and liberal financial market which promotes competition and the importance of customer service's satisfaction, banks should be able to compete in the markets. New dimensions and new horizons are being explored by the banks in order to satisfy the largest numbers of customers, become more competitive, improve their performance and be able to meet the constant changing needs of the market. The purpose of this study was to understand Information Technology and its effect on the banks' performance. For this the need of new technology was identified, the achievements through technological innovations were described and the impact on the banks' business activities was studies. The study involved a group of banks in Lebanon; one of them is the first to apply information technology while the five other banks have been using IT more recently. The methodology used to obtain the data needed was through two sets of questionnaires, related to the use of IT and to the banks' performance, and distributed to employees and managers. The results were analyzed using various statistical techniques such as hypothesis testing, correlation analysis and regression analysis. As a result of the conducted analysis, in all the banks, we were able to see how using information technology affected positively the performances of the banks by increasing productivity and business activity.Item Corporate Social Responsibility in Lebanon(2008) Sagherian, Hera HrayrThe popularity and importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) is increasing in recent years. In fact, being active in CSR is becoming a competitive advantage for many international companies. Furthermore, in order to survive and compete in a global market, companies need to engage in CSR activities, because CSR is becoming a criterion for investment opportunities and expansion plans. The purpose of this study is to provide insight into how well Lebanese companies and industries, understand and implement CSR. Focusing on the concepts and theories presented in literature, a qualitative research method including the design and administration of a questionnaire has been used. Data was collected through in-depth interviews and analyzed qualitatively to explore the situation of CSR in few companies of different industries in Lebanon. As a result of the conducted analysis, hypotheses were posed that will help further research uncover the constituents of CSR in Lebanon and its effect on Lebanese companies.Item An Assessment of the Airline Industry in Lebanon's Uncertain Environment(2008) Kouatly, Tamador DallalThis research aims at examining the macro environment of the airline industry at a global, regional and domestic level to identify relevant driving forces outside a company's boundaries bearing on strategic decisions an airline company ultimately makes. It will also observe the impact of different political and security events pertaining to Lebanon on traffic & sales variations and analyze current competitive environment of airlines, with a special focus on market attractiveness to foreign carriers considering the relevant external forces. It aspires to cover the subject from a strategic management perspective.Item Factors of Success for a Sample of Lebanese Entrepreneurs(2010) Barbour, Dany CharbelEntrepreneurship in Lebanon is gaining more importance. Its role is becoming crucial in the development of the Lebanese community. Entrepreneurial activity is becoming a vital one to any country in terms of creating jobs, invigorating markets, and generating innovation. Generally to become an entrepreneur, an individual must follow a certain path called "entrepreneurial process." To become a successful entrepreneur, there are certain factors of success an individual should possess. I will be studying whether the successful Lebanese entrepreneurs possess these factors of success that are revealed in literature related to entrepreneurship. The methodology used to study my research question was through the analysis of data obtained by administering a questionnaire that pertained to the major factors of entrepreneurship. The sample of my study was 71 entrepreneurs, all clients of a major international bank in Lebanon. The data was analyzed using statistical techniques such as cross-tabulations, hypothesis testing, analysis of variance, correlation & regression. Our results indicate that Lebanese successful entrepreneurs are similar in many ways to successful entrepreneurs described in literature but that they also show so many idiosyncrasies.Item Negative Returns Produce Higher Co-movement and Higher Variance in U.S. and Regional Stock Markets(2010) Basmadjian, Raffi K.The study of cross-border links in stock market returns is a key issue in specialized finance. The existing literature studies the effect of volatility on stock index co-movement, the relation between the tail returns of two financial assets and the stock index co-movement in post-crisis events, all of which lead to a higher correlation in stock returns. In this paper, we analyze the effects of negative returns of 18 US and 40 regional stock indexes on the magnitude of the co-movement of these stock indexes and on the magnitude of their total variances. We find empirical evidence that negative returns increase the co-movement of these stock indexes as well as the variance of returns. Then we relate this differential correlation of negative returns to behavioral finance, in particular to loss aversion, and specifically the disposition effect, in the sense that the fear of investors in realizing losses leads to a smaller volume of trading, which results in less liquidity and hence higher transaction risk on one hand, and more volatility and hence higher variance of returns on the other hand.Item Consumer Motivation When Shopping at Malls: Case of Lebanese Consumer(2010) El Chafei, OussamaThe study is about consumer motives when shopping at malls. It presents a brief summary of what researchers, psychologists and academicians have done regarding classifying shoppers in general and mall shoppers in particular according to their behavior, motives and satisfactions. The study summarizes the evolution of the marketing concepts, motivation theories, emergence of malls and goes into differentiating mall shoppers' experience and motives into hedonic motives and utilitarian motives. Using already established and tested items for hedonism and for utilitarianism, the study test these items on 770 active shoppers in City Mall, Beirut, Lebanon. The study presents the effect of demographic factors on the motives of mall shopping. It studies the effect of mall visits and mall spending on these motives. The study presents active shoppers' appraisal of specific areas at City Mall and calls for improvement. This study is very important to mall administrators and mall developers as it reflects the profile of active shoppers with their spending patterns and their number of small visits.Item The Impact of the Macro-environment on the Performance of Airlines Operating in Lebanon: Empirical Study Conducted in Eighteen Airlines Operating in Lebanon(2010) Feslian, Maria BedrosAirlines, these last few years, have been attracting the attention of the world because of the major tragedies they are producing. Often, the macro-environment is the major driver of the dramatic events hitting the airline industry. Airlines operating in Lebanon are as strongly affected by the macro-environment as any other airline. The literature review suggests the following: airlines that systematically scan and review their macro-environment using the appropriate scanning and forecasting techniques to then formulate or reformulate strategies based on the findings of the environmental scanning register high performance scores. I will be studying whether the airlines operating in Lebanon that use the proper approach to scanning and the suitable scanning tools or techniques display first-rate or exceptional results compared to airlines using adhoc approaches. The methodology used to study my research question was through the analysis of the data obtained by administering a questionnaire. The sample of my study was eighteen airline managers or supervisors. At the time of my study, there were only thirty-four airlines operating flights to and from Lebanon. Thus, my sample represents 52.94% of the entire population. The results were analyzed using various statistical techniques such as descriptive analysis, hypothesis testing, regression, and factor analysis. Our results indicate that airlines operating in Lebanon that follow the appropriate channels when it comes to scanning their macro-environment and that strategize according to the findings of the environmental scanning exhibit a certain difference in performance compared to airlines that do not follow the appropriate channels; however, the difference is not significant.Item The Performance of U.S. Equity Mutual Funds in the First Decade of 21st Century with Selected Indexes(2010) Al Hourani, Mohammed A.Several studies stated that managers achieve superior returns while others stated they do not. This paper studies the performance of 200 U.S. equity mutual funds in the first decade of 21st century using four Indexes S&P500, DJIA, Russell3000 and NASDAQ as benchmarks which give this study its importance. I found that mutual funds outperformed the market before and after expenses when compared to S&P500 and DIJA; outperformed the market before expenses but do not generate abnormal profit after expenses when compared to Russell 3000; do not generate abnormal profit before expenses and underperformed the market after expenses when compared to NASDAQ. I concluded that estimated beta and actual beta are equal only for S&P500.Item Stress Testing of Four Lebanese Banks(2011) Nadjarian, AniBanks are the pillars of the financial system. If one bank fails, the base is threatened and a domino effect might be provoked. Moreover, the failure could expand outside the borders of the country due to the globalization and liberalization of the financial markets. Therefore, the existence of a single regime, the Basel Accord, to safeguard the financial system was crucial. One of the purposes of this thesis is to shed light on the rules and regulations set by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. The regular updates of the rules and the regulations reflect the importance of this regime on the economy. The base of these regulations originated by Basel I. the latter was replaced by Basel II, and today, there are serious discussions about Basel III which aims at introducing better risk management approaches. The evolution of these regulations was essential to the global economy. The common international standards helped the banks all over the world to operate towards the same goal, which is complying with the minimum standards set by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. From the first day of the evolution of the international standards, the Lebanese banks proceeded in taking measures to apply the minimum required standards. The Lebanese banks' financial ratios show that they essentially comply with the minimum required standards. However, a question perplexed of how the performance of important ratios will be, if a sudden unexpected situation occurs in Lebanon. In other words, will the Lebanese banks be ready to withstand future possible unexpected crashes? To answer this question, stress testing is performed on a sample of four Lebanese banks. Stress testing, the main objective of this thesis, is one of the requirements of Basel rules and regulations. The stress testing is performed by adopting three stress tests. The first is by looking for the effects of increased asset risk for which banks have control. The second is by studying the effects of unexpected adverse stock movements. And the last is by adopting a standardized measure which is Value at Risk, as recommended by Basel II. These three stress tests are based on relatively recent contribution of option pricing to valuing the equity of a financial institution. The results of the stress tests revealed that the sampled Lebanese banks are capable of absorbing unexpected losses for a certain period of time. Additionally, the thesis highlights the importance of the equity of a bank to protect the bank's solvency against the risk of possible losses. The first part of the thesis covers the evolution of the Basel rules and regulations. The second part covers these rules and regulations implemented within the Lebanese banking sector. The third part presents the adopted approaches and the results of performing stress tests on a sample of Lebanese banks under different scenarios.Item Margin Lending & Factors Influencing Debit Interest Rates: A Case Study of a Lebanese Investment Bank(2011) Barikian, Annie SandraInvestment Banking has widely spread in Lebanon during the past decade. Several banks took the lead in this field and attracted many local and international clients to either trade securities or purchase their structured products on the prevailing stock exchange markets. To facilitate the trade transactions of the clients, investment banks offer loans against shares, namely margin loans. The principle condition of the overdraft facilities is the debit interest rate which plays a big role in drawing the clients' attention or on the contrary drive them away. The principal objective of the thesis is to find out what are the factors that the management and the credit committee of an investment bank take into consideration while charging debit interest rates on different overdraft accounts. Specifically, I wanted to identify the nature of the relation between the portfolio riskiness and the debit interest rate. For this purpose, I chose a leading Lebanese investment bank to examine its decision making method in applying debit interest rates on the accounts of the clients benefitting from margin facilities. To achieve the goal of this thesis, I gathered information relating to the clients holding margin accounts with the bank mentioned above for the period staring 2007 and ending 2009. The foremost findings of the research demonstrate that there are many factors other than portfolio riskiness, such as wealth and discount and loans rate that affect the debit interest rates. It turned out that the riskiness of portfolio, measured by beta, is negatively related with the debit interest rates exceptionally during the period of time chosen for this thesis. This negative relation was due to the outburst of the financial crisis which played a big role in affecting the debit interest rates opposite to their normal direction.