This paper seeks to encompass elements of both the Modigliani and Miller (1958, 1963) and Jensen and Meckling (1976) approaches to optimal capital structure within a unified framework with shadow costs of incomplete information. Making the most of the major work of Merton (1987), Leland (1996, 1998) and Bellalah (2001a), we put forward a model that reflects the interaction of financing decision...

This paper examines the optimal mix and priority structure of bank and market debt using a tax shield-bankruptcy cost tradeoff model where the only unique feature of banks is their ability to renegotiate. Closed-form expressions are derived for the values of renegotiable bank debt, non-renegotiable market debt, equity, and levered firm values. Optimal debt structure hinges upon ex post bargaini...

I study the implications of various bankruptcy regimes for student loans on college investment, human capital accumulation, and earnings in a heterogeneous life-cycle economy with risky human capital investment. The option to discharge one’s debt under a liquidation regime helps alleviate some of the risk of investing in human capital. However, dischargeability triggers exclusion from borrowing...

Moody's endorses the Basel Committee's proposal to use banks' internal risk assessments to re®ne the Basel Accord's risk weights on bank assets and commitments. External risk assessments, such as Moody's credit ratings, will likely play a supporting role as direct inputs into banks' internal rating systems and as tools for benchmarking and validating those systems. However, the widespread use o...

This paper empirically tests the determinants of foreign currency hedging using a large sample of UK non-financial firms. I find, unlike similar studies using US data, strong evidence of a relationship between expected financial distress costs and the foreign currency hedging decision and more significantly the foreign currency only hedging decision. This contrast in the findings between this s...

In this paper, we have revised and updated our earlier study in order to analyze the most recent (second) draft of the BIS’s proposed reforms of bank capital requirements. We conduct Monte-Carlo experiments using data on defaults and severity rates on publicly-traded US corporate bonds over the 1981–1999 period. Analyzing the whole period and various sub-periods, it is clear that the most recen...

The empty creditor problem arises when a debtholder has obtained insurance against default but otherwise retains control rights in and outside bankruptcy. We analyze this problem from an ex ante and ex post perspective in a formal model of debt with limited commitment, by comparing contracting outcomes with and without insurance through credit default swaps (CDS). We show that CDS, and the empt...

I consider the implications of alternative bankruptcy regimes for student loans in a heterogeneous model of life-cycle earnings and risky human capital accumulation. Findings suggest that the ability level of high-school graduates drives the decision to enroll in college, while the initial human capital level is crucial for completing college. Also, the correlation between parental wealth and a...

This paper employs bond transaction data from 2002 and 2011 to investigate the trading activity and price dynamics of defaulted corporate bonds, aiming to shed light on the impact of financial distress on trading liquidity and market frictions. We find that, following default, bonds experience more active trading, wider bid-ask spreads, and a sharp drop in prices followed by price reversals. Fu...

This paper develops a framework for analyzing the impact of macroeconomic conditions on credit risk and dynamic capital structure choice. We begin by observing that when cash flows depend on current economic conditions, there will be a benefit for firms to adapt their default and financing policies to the position of the economy in the business cycle phase. We then demonstrate that this simple ...