We find that clients with stronger past trading relationships with a dealer receive consistently better prices in corporate bond trading. The top 1% of relationship clients face a sizeable 67% drop in transaction costs relative to the median client—an effect which is particularly strong during...

We study trading costs and dealer behavior in U.S. corporate bond markets from 2006 to 2016. Despite a temporary spike during the financial crisis, average trade execution costs have not increased notably over time. However, alternative measures, including dealer capital commitment over various...

We study regime switching features of liquidity risk in corporate bond premiums. Within a sample period ranging from July 2002 to April 2015, we first compute a liquidity risk index for BBB bonds, which considers various liquidity risk facets based on principal component analysis. Second, we...

We study corporate bond offerings, including underwriting syndicate structure, primary placement transactions, and secondary market outcomes. Syndicate structure and allocations vary with issue complexity and risk, and across investment grade and high yield issues. The syndicate...

In this paper we challenge the view that corporate bonds are always arm's length debt. We analyze the effect of bond ratings on the stock price return to acquirers in M&A transactions, which tend to have significant effects on creditor wealth. We find acquirers abnormal returns to be higher if...

In this paper we challenge the view that corporate bonds are always arm's length debt. We analyze the effect of bond ratings on the stock price return to acquirers in M&A transactions, which tend to have significant effects on creditor wealth. We find acquirers abnormal returns to be higher if...

We examine the relative impact of Moody's and S&P ratings on bond yields and find that at issuance, yields on split rated bonds with superior Moody's ratings are about 8 basis points lower than yields on split rated bonds with superior S&P ratings. This suggests that investors differentiate...

Insurance companies often follow highly correlated investment strategies. As major investors in corporate bonds, their investment commonalities subject investors to fire-sale risk when regulatory restrictions prompt widespread divestment of a bond following a rating downgrade. Reflective of...

In this study we highlight the importance of liquidity risk, especially in periods of market stress, and advocate in favour of an explicit consideration of a liquidity premium when using mark-to-model methodologies to value financial assets.For European corporate bonds, we show that the...