Sovereign debt crises are difficult to solve. This paper studies the "holdout problem", meaning the risk that creditors refuse to participate in a debt restructuring. We document a large variation in holdout rates, based on a comprehensive new dataset of 23 bond restructurings with external...

Sovereign debt crises are difficult to solve. This paper studies the "holdout problem", meaning the risk that creditors refuse to participate in a debt restructuring. We document a large variation in holdout rates, based on a comprehensive new dataset of 23 bond restructurings with external...

This paper studies the relationship between sovereign debt default and annual GDP growth taking into account the depth of a debt restructuring and distinguishing between commercial and official sovereign debt restructurings. Analyzing 73 default episodes in 117 countries over the period...

The wave of sovereign defaults in the early 1980s and the string of debt crises in subsequent decades have fostered proposals involving policy interventions in sovereign debt restructurings. The global financial crisis and the recent global pandemic have further reignited this discussion among...

The paper looks at the powers of the States to unilaterally modify their debt obligations in the context of sovereign debt restructurings. Drawing on the national case law on the unilateral modifications of domestic debt, the paper argues that the States entering into sovereign bonds act in...

This paper studies the relationship between sovereign debt default and annual GDP growth taking into account the depth of a debt restructuring and distinguishing between commercial and official sovereign debt restructurings. Analyzing 73 default episodes in 117 countries over the period...

This paper studies the relationship between sovereign debt default and annual GDP growth taking into account the depth of a debt restructuring and distinguishing between private and official deals, as well as between debt flow and stock reduction. Analyzing 520 restructuring episodes, over the...

This paper provides an overview of the ongoing debate on the international Sovereign Debt Restructuring Mechanism (SDRM) architecture by highlighting two key aspects, the contractual and the statutory approach, while also alluding to alternatives that have been set forth, such as arbitration,...

This chapter surveys some of the actors in sovereign debt restructurings. Millhouse’s quote above underscores the number and diversity of players in municipal insolvencies. Nevertheless, the number and heterogeneity of the actors involved in municipal and corporate bankruptcies pale in...

This paper complements the empirical literature on sovereign debt restructurings by analyzing potential determinants of (near-term) follow-up restructurings after a restructuring has taken place. The probability of follow-up restructurings is estimated by means of survival models using a unique...