We develop a framework to explore the effect of credit ratings on loan origination and securitization. In the model, banks privately screen and originate loans and then issue securities that are backed by loan cash flows. Issued securities are rated and sold to investors.Without ratings, banks...

A new form of lending using digital collateral has recently emerged, most prominently in low and middle income countries. Digital collateral (DC) relies on "lockout" technology, which allows the lender to temporarily disable the low value of the collateral to the borrower without physically...