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The Valuation Effects of Geographic Diversification: Evidence from U.S. Banks

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  • Martin Goetz
  • Luc Laeven
  • Ross Levine

Abstract

This paper assesses the impact of the geographic diversification of bank holding company (BHC) assets across the United States on their market valuations. Using two novel identification strategies based on the dynamic process of interstate bank deregulation, we find that exogenous increases in geographic diversity reduce BHC valuations. These findings are consistent with the view that geographic diversity makes it more difficult for shareholders and creditors to monitor firm executives, allowing corporate insiders to extract larger private benefits from firms.

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  • Martin Goetz & Luc Laeven & Ross Levine, 2011. "The Valuation Effects of Geographic Diversification: Evidence from U.S. Banks," NBER Working Papers 17660, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:17660
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    Cited by:

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    2. Brighi, Paola & Venturelli, Valeria, 2016. "How functional and geographic diversification affect bank profitability during the crisis," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 16(C), pages 1-10.
    3. Landier, Augustin & Sraer, David & Thesmar, David, 2017. "Banking integration and house price co-movement," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(1), pages 1-25.
    4. Amore, Mario Daniele & Schneider, Cédric & Žaldokas, Alminas, 2013. "Credit supply and corporate innovation," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 109(3), pages 835-855.
    5. Paola Brighi & Valeria Venturelli, 2013. "The Effect Of Revenue And Geographic Diversification On Bank Performance," Centro Studi di Banca e Finanza (CEFIN) (Center for Studies in Banking and Finance) 0043, Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Economia "Marco Biagi".
    6. Céline Meslier-Crouzille & Donald P. Morgan & Katherine Samolyk & Amine Tarazi, 2014. "The Benefits of Intrastate and Interstate Geographic Diversification in Banking," Working Papers hal-00950504, HAL.
    7. Meslier, Céline & Morgan, Donald P. & Samolyk, Katherine & Tarazi, Amine, 2016. "The benefits and costs of geographic diversification in banking," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 287-317.
    8. Khan, Abu & Hassan, M. Kabir & Maroney, Neal & Boujlil, Rhada & Ozkan, Bora, 2020. "Efficiency, diversification, and performance of US banks," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 101-117.
    9. Céline Meslier-Crouzille & Donald P. Morgan & Katherine Samolyk & Amine Tarazi, 2015. "The Benefits of Geographic Diversification in Banking," Working Papers hal-01155170, HAL.
    10. Paola Brighi & Valeria Venturelli, 2013. "The Effect Of Revenue And Geographic Diversification On Bank Performance," Centro Studi di Banca e Finanza (CEFIN) (Center for Studies in Banking and Finance) 13103, Universita di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Economia "Marco Biagi".
    11. Dafna Avraham & Patricia Selvaggi & James Vickery, 2012. "A Structural view of U.S. bank holding companies," Economic Policy Review, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, issue 07, pages 65-81.
    12. Angus Armstrong & Tatiana Fic, 2014. "Bank Diversification and Valuation: International Evidence," National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) Discussion Papers 438, National Institute of Economic and Social Research.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance
    • L22 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Organization and Market Structure

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