Financial markets and their economic functions

A financial market is a market where financial instruments are exchanged or traded. Financial markets provide the following three major economic functions:

1) Price discovery

2) Liquidity

3) Reduction of transaction costs

1) Price discovery function means that transactions between buyers and sellers of financial instruments in a financial market determine the price of the traded asset. At the same time the required return from the investment of funds is determined by the participants in a financial market. The motivation for those seeking funds (deficit units) depends on the required return that investors demand. It is these functions of financial markets that signal how the funds available from those who want to lend or invest funds will be allocated among those needing funds and raise those funds by issuing financial instruments. 

2) Liquidity functionprovides an opportunity for investors to sell a financial instrument, since it is referred to as a measure of the ability to sell an asset at its fair market value at any time. Without liquidity, an investor would be forced to hold a financial instrument until conditions arise to sell it or the issuer is contractually obligated to pay it off. Debt instrument is liquidated when it matures, and equity instrument is until the company is either voluntarily or involuntarily liquidated. All financial markets provide some form of liquidity. However, different financial markets are characterized by the degree of liquidity. 

3) The function of reduction of transaction costs is performed, when financial market participants are charged and/or bear the costs of trading a financial instrument. In market economies the economic rationale for the existence of institutions and instruments is related to transaction costs, thus the surviving institutions and instruments are those that have the lowest transaction costs.

The key attributes determining transaction costs are   asset specificity,   uncertainty,  frequency of occurrence.

 

Asset specificityis related to the way transaction is organized and executed. It is lower when an asset can be easily put to alternative use, can be deployed for different tasks without significant costs. 

Transactions are also related to uncertainty, which has (1) external sources (when events change beyond control of the contracting parties), and (2) depends on opportunistic behavior of the contracting parties. If changes in external events are readily verifiable, then it is possible to make adaptations to original contracts, taking into account problems caused by external uncertainty. In this case there is a possibility to control transaction costs.  However, when circumstances are not easily observable, opportunism creates incentives for contracting parties to review the initial contract and creates moral hazard problems.  The higher the uncertainty, the more opportunistic behavior may be observed, and the higher transaction costs may be born.

Frequency of occurrence plays an important role in determining if a transaction should take place within the market or within the firm. A one-time transaction may reduce costs when it is executed in the market. Conversely, frequent transactions require detailed contracting and should take place within a firm in order to reduce the costs. 

When assets are specific, transactions are frequent, and there are significant uncertainties intra-firm transactions may be the least costly. And, vice versa, if assets are non-specific, transactions are infrequent, and there are no significant uncertainties least costly may be market transactions.

The mentioned attributes of transactions and the underlying incentive problems are related to behavioural assumptions about the transacting parties. The economists (Coase (1932, 1960, 1988), Williamson (1975, 1985), Akerlof (1971) and others) have contributed to transactions costs economics by analyzing behaviour of the human beings, assumed generally self-serving and rational in their conduct, and also behaving opportunistically. Opportunistic behaviour was understood as involving actions with incomplete and distorted information that may intentionally mislead the other party. This type of behavior requires efforts of ex ante screening of transaction parties, and ex post safeguards as well as mutual restraint among the parties, which leads to specific transaction costs.