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High-Yield Debt Covenants and Their Real Effects

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High-yield debt, including leveraged loans, is characterized by incurrence financial covenants, or “cov-lite” provisions. Unlike, traditional, maintenance covenants, incurrence covenants preserve equity control rights but trigger pre-specified restrictions on the borrower’s actions once the covenant threshold is crossed. We show that restricted actions impose significant constraints on investments: Similar to the effects of the shift of control rights to creditors in traditional loans, the drop in investment under incurrence covenants is large and sudden. This evidence suggests a new shock amplification mechanism through contractual restrictions that are at play for a highly levered corporate sector long before default or bankruptcy.

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  • Falk Bräuning & Victoria Ivashina & Ali Ozdagli, 2022. "High-Yield Debt Covenants and Their Real Effects," Working Papers 22-5, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedbwp:93873
    DOI: 10.29412/res.wp.2022.05
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    Cited by:

    1. Sharjil M. Haque, 2023. "Does Private Equity Over-Lever Portfolio Companies?," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2023-009, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    2. Falk Bräuning & Gustavo Joaquim & Hillary Stein, 2023. "Interest Expenses, Coverage Ratio, and Firm Distress," Current Policy Perspectives 96664, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    high-yield debt; corporate debt; covenants; incurrence covenants; cov-lite; amplification mechanisms; contracts; contingent contracting;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • G31 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Capital Budgeting; Fixed Investment and Inventory Studies
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • G33 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Bankruptcy; Liquidation

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