THE IMPACT OF RISK MANAGEMENT ON FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF COMMERCIAL BANKS IN AFGHANISTAN

Professionals, scholars and bank regulators consider risk management as the core pillar for efficient bank management. This study aimed to assess the impact of risk management on financial performance of all nine commercial banks operating in Afghanistan. The core objectives of the study were to established the effect of liquidity risk on financial performance of commercial banks in Afghanistan, to determine the effect of capital adequacy ratio on financial performance of commercial banks in Afghanistan and to find out the impact of operational efficiency on financial performance of selected commercial banks in Afghanistan as well as to assess the effect of bank size as controlled variable on financial performance of commercial banks in Afghanistan. Secondary data was collected from quarterly reports and financial statements of these banks 2016-2021. Descriptive and inferential statistics mainly correlation and regression techniques were applied using E-views econometrics software. After data analysis, the study found that there exists positive association between liquidity risk management and financial performance of selected commercial banks of Afghanistan. The study also asserted positive correlation between capital adequacy and financial performance of commercial banks in Afghanistan. Moreover, the study also found significant positive relationship between operational efficiency and financial performance of commercial banks in Afghanistan following by the positive statistically significant correlation between size of the banks and financial performance respectively. The panel regression of fixed effect analysis indicated that all independent variables positively predicts the dependent variable financial performance whereas control variable “size of the bank” exert greatest impact on the financial performance of selected commercial banks in Afghanistan. Hence, possible important suggestions and recommendations are provided for better control and management of future possible risks in this regard.