Different market characteristics and investor behavior render the use of underpricing, widely used for equity IPOs, inadequate as a measure of gains from primary market allocations in corporate bonds. We propose a measure that reflects the illiquidity costs that investors save by avoiding...

Using a regulatory version of TRACE data that include almost all primary and secondary market trades in corporate bonds over the period 2010-2017, we provide the first comprehensive study on the primary market for corporate bonds. Secondary market illiquidity can drive gains from primary market...