We offer a new test of the ex ante theory of collateral. Theory states that lenders rely less on collateral if they … have better information about borrowers. We test this by contrasting the use of collateral between formal and – better … informed – informal lenders in a developing financial market. Indeed, formal lenders rely about 40% more often on collateral …

, collateral values, and debt limits. We show that the collateral premium of a durable asset will become the lowest right before a …

, collateral values, and debt limits. We show that the collateral premium of a durable asset will become the lowest right before a …

The ex ante theory of collateral states that better informed lenders, such as informal lenders, rely less on collateral …. We test this by contrasting the use of collateral between formal and informal lenders in the same market. Indeed, formal … lenders rely more often on collateral, controlling for conventional determinants of collateral. Moreover, better information …