The scarcity of suitable proxies for asymmetric information has impeded empirical research from providing reliable evidence on whether information risk shapes equity pricing. In re-examining this unresolved question, we rely on firms' geographic distance from financial centers to gauge...

We examine the impact of auditor choice on debt pricing in firms' early public years when they are lesser known. Our evidence suggests that retaining a Big Six auditor, which can reduce debt monitoring costs by enhancing the credibility of financial statements, enables young firms to lower their...

We revisit the unsettled question of the effects of information asymmetry on corporate hedging by testing three relevant theories. Exploiting mergers or closures of brokerage firms as plausibly exogenous information asymmetry events, we find that treatment firms significantly reduce...