We examine whether corporate bankruptcies influence bank loan characteristics of geographically proximate firms. Controlling for industry contagion and local economic conditions, firms headquartered near a bankruptcy event experience a seven basis point increase in loan spreads. The effect is...

This paper investigates the impact of mandatory risk disclosure on the design of foreign bank debt. The Basel II and III Accords require the public disclosure of bank regulatory information under the Pillar 3 or market discipline framework. The new information details bank risk exposures and...

We analyze the role of bankers on the boards of German non-financial companies for the period from 1994 to 2005. We find that banks that are represented on a firm's board promote their own business as lenders and as M&A advisors. They also seem to act as financial experts who help firms to...