Which markets do institutions use to change exposure to credit risk? Using a unique data set of transactions in corporate bonds and credit default swaps (CDS) by large financial institutions, we show that simultaneous transactions in both markets are rare, with an average institution having an...

Classical asset pricing theory assumes \perfect markets" which means that nancial markets are frictionless. However, in the real world nancial frictions exists. Recently the nancial literature has focused more on these frictions and on how they a ect asset prices. This thesis contributes to the...

Theory predicts that there is a close link between bank credit supply and the evolution of the business cycle. Yet fluctuations in bank-loan supply have been hard to quantify in the time-series. While loan issuance falls in recessions, it is not clear if this is due to demand or supply. We...