We examine changes in banks' market-to-book ratios over the last decade, focusing on the dramatic and persistent declines witnessed during the financial crisis. The extent of the decline and its persistence cannot be explained by the delayed recognition of losses. Rather, it is declines in the...

Using administrative account level data, we study the largest financial inclusion program in India that led to 255 million new bank account openings. About 77% of these accounts maintain a positive balance. While the initial usage remains quite infrequent, it gradually converges to that of...

Bank balance sheet lending is commonly viewed as the predominant form of lending. We document and study two margins of adjustment that are usually absent from this view using microdata in the $10 trillion U.S. residential mortgage market. We first document the limits of the shadow bank...

We develop a theory of bank liquidity (cash reserve) requirements. Because cash is both observable and riskless, greater cash holdings improve bank incentives to manage risk in the remaining, non-cash portfolio of risky assets. In a model with a single bank, cash is held voluntarily to stem...