We examine the returns to investors in publicly traded stock in new industries. We examine data from the United States on sellers of own-brand personal computers, airlines and airplane manufacturers, automobile manufacturers, railroads, and telegraphs. We find that a relatively small number of...

Heightened counterparty risk during the recent financial crisis has raised questions about the role clearinghouses play in global financial stability. Empirical identification of the effect of centralized clearing on counterparty risk is challenging because of the co-incidence of macro-economic...

This paper studies the influence of the legal environment and economic conditions on the form taken by life insurance company incorporations between 1900 and 1949. It identifies three key factors associated with mutual formation - low initial capital requirements for mutuals, regulatory...

The era of the National Banking System (1863-1913) has been a puzzling one for monetary theorists and economic historians for well over a century. The puzzles associated with this period take various forms. Despite calculations of high profit rates on note issue for certain periods of the era,...

During the period of the National Banking System (1863-1913), national banks could issue bank notes backed by holdings of eligible U.S. government securities. This paper presents an overview of the legal and financial history of this period. It begins with the reasons the National Banking System...

This paper provides a summary of the main features of U.S. financial and banking data during the period of the National Banking System (1863-1914). The purpose of the paper is to provide an overview of the stylized facts associated with the era, with an emphasis on those impinging on national...

In the U.S., corporate bankruptcies generally go through the court system for resolution, whereas bank failures are resolved by bank regulatory agencies. The goal of corporate bankruptcy is to maximize the value of the firm as a quot;going concernquot; in liquidation to the shareholders. In a...

The paper studies the market reaction to the withdrawal of a prominent private bank - Kuhn Loeb - from the board of several firms. The event study shows that although Kuhn Loeb added significant value to the firms where it had a board seat, most of this value came from reduced industry...

Speculators are often portrayed in literature, film and the media as evil businessmen who prey upon markets. Or they are portrayed as fools, who art with their money. The popular portraits accepted by the culture, while colorful, are ill-informed.This article looks at the view held of...

A negative real interest rate has guaranteed macroeconomic equilibrium during every emergency in the United States since the early 19th century, except the Great Depression in the 1930s when deflation interfered with the interest rate mechanism. During the Great Depression, the interest rate...