This paper presents a macro-economic methodology for evaluating the forward-looking Sharpe Ratios of the equity and debt components of the United States public company capital structure. Using this framework, it is shown that the equity and debt Sharpe Ratios are both time variant and disparate....

We examine the factors that influence borrower's choice between structured finance (SF) and straight debt finance (SDF). Using a sample of 12,075 Western European loans and bonds issued between 2000 and 2011, we find that borrowers choose SF when they seek long-term financing and funding cost...

The tax bias in favour of debt finance under the corporate income tax means that corporate debt ratios exceed the socially optimal level. This creates a rationale for thin-capitalization rules limiting the amount of debt that qualifies for interest deductibility. This paper sets up a model of...

We present a DSGE model where firms optimally choose among alternative instruments of external finance. The model is used to explain the evolving composition of corporate debt during the financial crisis of 2008-09, namely the observed shift from bank finance to bond finance, at a time when the...

We study rollover risk and collateral value in a dynamic asset pricing model with endogenous debt financing by extending the framework of Geanakoplos (2009) with a generic binomial tree and time-varying heterogeneous beliefs. Optimistic borrowers face rollover risk if the belief dispersion...

This paper examines how good borrowers use the design of performance sensitive debt contracts to alleviate financial constraints. I show that borrowers use a convex pricing grid (i.e., a contract where the increase in the loan spread following a decline in performance exceeds the decrease in the...

Whether to invest in process development that can reduce the unit cost and thereby raise future profits or to conserve cash and reduce the likelihood of bankruptcy is a key concern faced by many startups firms that have taken on debt. We explore this concern by examining the production quantity...