This paper illustrates how a misclassification cost matrix can be incorporated into an evolutionary classification system for bankruptcy prediction. Most classification systems for predicting bankruptcy have attempted to minimize misclassifications. The minimizing misclassification approach assumes that Type I and Type II error costs for misclassifications are equal. There is evidence that thes...

This empirical study analyzes the value destruction in US and German firms prior and around their bankruptcy announcement and makes a matched sample comparison between the two bankruptcy codes. The dataset consists of 1160 US and 116 German firms, having filed for bankruptcy between 1999 and 2007. Different market and balance sheet based data are used to explain the divergent stock reaction aro...

We use a heterogeneous-agent model, in which labor income is risky and markets are incomplete, to analyze consumer debt portfolios of secured and unsecured debt in the US. Compared with previous research, we emphasize the role of durables which not only generate utility but also serve as debt collateral. This allows a meaningful joint analysis of secured and unsecured debt and introduces endoge...

Free lunches arise when benefits of public or private organizational forms are estimated without regard to the associated costs. Two forms of the free lunch fallacy are prevalent in the literature on privatisation and deregulation. First, transfers from employees and transfers associated with tax evasion are treated as if they are net gains. Second, the benefits of market discipline, arising fr...

This article presents a contingent claim valuation of a callable convertible bond with the issuer’s credit risk. The optimal call, voluntary conversion, and bankruptcy strategies are jointly determined by shareholders and bondholders to maximize the equity value and the bond value, respectively. This model not only incorporates tax benefits, bankruptcy costs, refunding costs, and a call notice ...

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of the choice of cut-off points, sampling procedures, and the business cycle on the accuracy of bankruptcy prediction models. Misclassification can result in erroneous predictions leading to prohibitive costs to firms, investors and the economy. To test the impact of the choice of cut-off points and sampling procedures, three bankruptcy predict...

The financial crisis of 2007-2008 and the current sovereign debt crisis in Europe have focused attention on the macroeconomic consequences of debt financing. In this paper, we turn our attention to the use of debt finance in the corporate sector and study the generalequilibrium effects of debt finance on investment and growth. More precisely, we analyze underinvestment in equilibrium when marke...