Modeling default dependence for measuring and managing portfolio credit risk is one of the most challenging problems in modern finance. The standard industry model is a multi-variate Gaussian latent-variable model, where the latent variables are associated with log asset value processes. These...

In this paper we value a callable snowball floater, a complex interest rate instrument with variable coupon payments, which depend on the prevailing interest rates in arrears and recursively on previous coupon payments. The embedded option requires solving an optimal stopping problem using the...

We explore the link between a firm's stock returns and its credit risk using a simple insight from structural models following Merton (1974): risk premia on equity and credit instruments are related because all claims on assets must earn the same compensation per unit of risk. Consistent with...

We empirically study whether systematic over-the-counter (OTC) market frictions drive the large unexplained common factor in yield spread changes. Using transaction data on U.S. corporate bonds, we find that marketwide inventory, search, and bargaining frictions explain 23.4% of the variation of...

We show that the mixed evidence on how financial leverage affects stock returns can be reconciled by accounting for firms' debt maturity structures. In our model, firms jointly optimize leverage and debt maturity by balancing benefits and rollover risk of short-term relative to long-term debt....