An important question in banking is how strict supervision affects bank lending and in turn local business activity. Forcing banks to recognize losses could choke off lending and amplify local economic woes, especially after financial crises. But stricter supervision could also lead to changes...

This paper examines how audit oversight by a public-sector regulator affects investors' assessments of reporting credibility. We analyze whether market responses to unexpected earnings releases increase following the introduction of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), as...

We investigate the impact of reporting regulation on corporate innovation activity. Exploiting thresholds in Europe's regulation and a major enforcement reform in Germany, we find that forcing a greater share of firms to publicly disclose their financial statements reduces firms' innovative...

We examine how competition amongst lenders exacerbates risk taking during a boom using a simple proxy for the risk of a bank's loan portfolio--the average physical distance of borrowers from banks' branches. The evolution of lending distances is cyclical, lengthening considerably during an...

This study analyzes information production and trading behavior of banks with lending relationships. We combine trade-by-trade supervisory data and credit-registry data to examine banks' proprietary trading in borrower stocks around a large number of corporate events. We find that relationship...

The rise of shale gas and tight oil development has triggered a major debate about hydraulic fracturing (HF). In an effort to mitigate risks from HF, especially with respect to water quality, many U.S. states have introduced disclosure mandates for HF wells and fracturing fluids. We use this...

The rise of shale gas and tight oil development has triggered a major debate about hydraulic fracturing (HF). In an effort to mitigate risks from HF, especially with respect to water quality, many U.S. states have introduced disclosure mandates for HF wells and fracturing fluids. We use this...