In order to evaluate the performance of socially responsible investment (SRI) funds, we propose some models which use data envelopment analysis and can be computed in all phases of the business cycle. These models focus on the most crucial elements of an investment in mutual funds.In the...

Theoretical models imply fund size and performance should be negatively linked. However, empiricists have failed to uncover consistent support for this negative relation. Using a new econometric framework which includes fund-specific sensitivities to decreasing returns to scale, we find a both...

This article confirms the existence of substantial economies of scale in trading and post-trading financial market infrastructures (FMI), using the panel data of thirty stock exchanges, twenty-nine clearing houses, and twenty-three central securities depositories from thirty-six countries. We...

We study the interdependencies between transaction costs, portfolio characteristics, and mutual fund performance. Using a novel dataset of actual mutual fund trades, we find that, controlling for investment style, larger funds realize lower percentage transaction costs than smaller funds. Larger...

We extend the model of Berk and Green (2004) to investigate the impact of two frictions, search costs and fi nancial constraints, on mutual fund performance. Our model predicts the survival of underperforming funds and delivers two new predictions: 1) differences in performance across funds are...

We study the role of liquidity management tools (LMTs) in mitigating financial fragility in investment funds during the COVID-19 market distress. We employ a unique dataset that reports the availability of different types of LMTs in a sample of Irish-domiciled corporate bond funds. We find that...

Limited partnerships are attractive investment vehicles for investors because, as limited partners, investors cannot lose more than their invested capital despite the leverage of the partnership's portfolio. Consistent with this, the availability of tax losses to a limited partner is also more...

The literature dealing with price setting and quality assumes by default that investors believe that mutual funds are vertically differentiated. We consider also the case where they do not believe it and we show that it may call the market into question. To solve this problem we assume the...

Following the Pension Protection Act of 2006, there was a sharp increase in the use of TDFs as default investment options in defined contribution retirement plans. We document large differences in realized TDF returns and risk profiles, even for funds with the same target retirement date. Using...

The investment fund sector has expanded dramatically since the crisis of 2008-2009. As the sector grows, so do the implications of its risk-taking for the wider financial system and real economy. This paper provides empirical evidence for the existence of widespread risk-taking incentives in the...