This paper investigates various theories explaining banks' overbidding in the fixed rate tenders of the European Central Bank (ECB). Using auction data from both the Bundesbank and the ECB, we show that none of the theories can on its own explain the observed overbidding. This implies that the...

We study private firms' strategic disclosure of financial statements in shaping bank lending decisions and structuring debt contracts in informationally opaque credit markets. Using a unique dataset of loan applications by small businesses to a large bank, we document that the availability of...

We use a unique data set that comprises each bank's bids in the Eurosystem's main refinancing operations and its recourse to the LOLR facility (a) to derive banks' willingness-to-pay for liquidity through a one-week repo and (b) to show that a bank's willingness-to-pay is a good indicator for...

We use a unique data set that comprises each bank’s bids in the Eurosystem’s main refinancing operations and its recourse to the LOLR facility (a) to derive banks’ willingness-to-pay for liquidity through a one-week repo and (b) to show that a bank’s willingness-to-pay is a good...

Recent U.S. legislation (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act) allows commercial banks to enter merchant banking, i.e. hold equity in non-financial firms. A stylised auction-theoretic model is developed to investigate the effects of bank equity stakes in firms on the competition in bank loans. The main...

We study specialized lending in a credit market competition model with private information. Two banks, equipped with similar data processing systems, possess "general" signals regarding the borrower's quality. However, the specialized bank gains an additional advantage through further...