We use an agent-based stock-flow consistent model of a closed economy without technological change that considers different classes of households, status consumption and a Minskyan banking sector to analyze the relationship between rising saving rates, the accumulation and distribution of...

Historically high household debt in several economies is calling for a deleveraging, but according to some economists, this adjustment can slow GDP growth by weighing on consumption. Using a sample of advanced and emerging market economies, this paper finds evidence of a negative relationship...

Financial contracts are complicated and consumers often do not grasp them in their entirety. This may lead to financial mistakes. We develop a quantitative theory of unsecured credit and equilibrium default in a market with sophisticated and naïve borrowers who sometimes misunderstand their...

We explore how personality traits are related to household borrowing behavior. Using survey data representative for the Netherlands, we consider the Big Five personality traits (openness, conscientiousness, agreeableness, extraversion and neuroticism), as well as the belief that one is master of...

We study the impact of the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) on access to consumer credit since 1999 using an individual-level panel and three distinct identification strategies: a regression discontinuity design centered on a CRA-eligibility cutoff; a comparison of neighboring census blocks; and...

This paper finds that stricter laws regulating third-party debt collection reduce the number of third-party debt collectors, lower the recovery rates on delinquent credit card loans, and lead to a modest decrease in the openings of new revolving lines of credit. Further, stricter third-party...

In the wake of the Global Financial Crisis, a significant research effort has been made to better understand the links between household debt levels, financial stability risks, and the ongoing implications of the ‘debt overhang’ for economic growth. However, accurately measuring the...

With the aim of quantifying the effect of the decrease in interest rates on consumer loans (both credit cards and personal loans, in local currency to the non-financial private sector) in Argentina between March and December 2020, monthly error correction models are estimated, and counterfactual...

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown once again that it is often the poor who suffer from economic downturn in times of crisis. As was the case in the financial crisis of 2008, we now have an opportunity to rethink the role of consumer credit in society and design and create a legal framework that...

This paper investigates the degree of dispersion in the loan pricing of commercial banks and its association with competitive conditions in the banking industry of a large emerging economy. To quantify the lending rate variability in consumer loans, we utilize a new indexation mechanism...

Fintechs are believed to help expand credit access to underserved consumers without taking on additional risk. We compare the performance efficiency of LendingClub's unsecured personal loans with similar loans originated by banks. Using stochastic frontier estimation, we decompose the observed...

The consumer debt of households in Germany totals in the triple-digit billions and is characterized by a wide range of interest rates. Despite the high volume of debt, many people do not know the terms of their consumer credit contracts. This report analyzes new survey data on general knowledge...

This paper proposes a model that associates borrower credit risk with the cash flow method to assess the economic value of a consumer credit portfolio. A Monte Carlo simulation applying the method to an illustrative loan reveals that the lending standards of the institution, captured in the...

This paper analyzes the effects of the cut in the legal maximum interest rate (from 27.4% to 24%) that occurred in February of 2018 on loan interest rates, the default rates, and the loan approval rate of borrowers in the non-banking sector. We use the difference-in-difference identification...