There is a lot of ground we could cover, but I think that is best done through our discussion, so let me be extremely brief in my opening remarks.
Raising new capital on the open market can be difficult and costly for many banks, implying that, in the short run, capital is determined by earnings and changes in asset values. Changes in the value of capital, particularly when a bank's capital is not much higher than the level demanded by regulators or the market, potentially affects the bank's cost of funds.