We study the influence of credit default swaps (CDS) trading on the costs of bond intermediation. After CDS initiation, CDS firms pay 12-28% (8-20 basis points) lower underwriting fees than similar non-CDS firms do. Underwriting fees decline more for riskier issuers and illiquid bonds for which...

We first wrote and circulated our “Rookie's Guide” paper about the academic labor market for newly minted finance PhDs twenty years ago. It passed hand-to-hand and via photocopies of photocopies sent using snail mail (or, back then, we just called it ‘mail'). Since then, much has changed...

We quantify the value of social status using market prices for Delaware license plates. Delaware plates are numbered sequentially, are private property, and can be legally bequeathed or traded in a secondary market. License plates offer no direct economic benefit other than authorizing the...

We quantify the value of social status using market prices for Delaware license plates. Delaware plates are numbered sequentially, are private property, and can be legally bequeathed or traded in a secondary market. License plates offer no direct economic benefit other than authorizing the...