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Once Upon a Loan: How Folk Tales Shape Access to Credit

Author

Listed:
  • Jean-Baptiste Marigo

    (LaRGE Research Center, Université de Strasbourg)

  • Laurent Weill

    (LaRGE Research Center, Université de Strasbourg)

Abstract

We investigate the effect of folklore on firms’ access to credit. Using firm-level data on a large sample of 38,000 firms covering 124 countries and 274 cultural societies over the 2005-2022 period, we test the hypothesis that oral traditions linking risk-taking to success or failure influence access to credit. We find that folklore affects access to credit. Oral traditions associated with successful challenges increase access to credit, while those associated with unsuccessful challenges decrease access to credit. We further show that folklore influences access to credit through borrower discouragement and loan approval.

Suggested Citation

  • Jean-Baptiste Marigo & Laurent Weill, 2024. "Once Upon a Loan: How Folk Tales Shape Access to Credit," Working Papers of LaRGE Research Center 2024-06, Laboratoire de Recherche en Gestion et Economie (LaRGE), Université de Strasbourg.
    • Handle: RePEc:lar:wpaper:2024-06
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    File URL: http://ifs.u-strasbg.fr/large/publications/2024/2024-06.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    culture; folklore; access to credit; borrower discouragement.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • O16 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Financial Markets; Saving and Capital Investment; Corporate Finance and Governance
    • Z10 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - General
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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