This paper aims at testing empirically the three major theoretical reasons why banks resort to collateral: reduction of loan loss in the event of default, adverse selection, and moral hazard. This investigation is performed by testing whether the reasons vary according to the type of collateral....

We examine why banks resort to collateral, and whether their reasons vary according to the type of collateral. We use a unique dataset of bank loans granted to French distressed firms, which contains full information on the type and value of collaterals and the cause of firm default. Our work...

Literature on ex-ante efficiency of bankruptcy procedures investigates how these procedures influence the behavior of managers and creditors. We extend this literature by explaining how bankruptcy law can influence the design of debt contracts through the recovery process. We develop a model of...

We investigate whether collateral helps to solve adverse selection problems. Theory predicts a negative relationship between presence of collateral and risk premium, as collateral constitutes a signalling instrument for the borrower to be charged with a lower risk premium. However, bankers’...

We investigate the impact of bank competition on the use of collateral in loan contracts. We develop a theoretical model incorporating information asymmetries in a spatial competition framework where banks choose between screening the borrower and asking for collateral. We show that the presence...