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The Secured Credit Premium and the Issuance of Secured Debt

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  • Efraim Benmelech
  • Nitish Kumar
  • Raghuram Rajan

Abstract

Credit spreads for secured debt are lower than for unsecured debt, especially when a firm’s credit quality deteriorates, the economy slows, or average credit spreads widen. Yet investment grade firms tend to be reluctant to issue secured debt at all times. In contrast, we find that for firms that are rated below-investment grade, the likelihood of secured debt issuance increases as firm’s credit quality deteriorates, the economy slows, or average credit spreads widen. This differential pattern of issue behavior is consistent with highly rated firms seeing unencumbered collateral as a form of insurance, to be used only in extremis.

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  • Efraim Benmelech & Nitish Kumar & Raghuram Rajan, 2020. "The Secured Credit Premium and the Issuance of Secured Debt," NBER Working Papers 26799, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:26799
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    Cited by:

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    2. Choi, Sangyup & Willems, Tim & Yoo, Seung Yong, 2024. "Revisiting the monetary transmission mechanism through an industry-level differential approach," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    3. Efraim Benmelech & Nitish Kumar & Raghuram Rajan, 2024. "The Decline of Secured Debt," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 79(1), pages 35-93, February.
    4. Dainelli, Francesco & Bet, Gianmarco & Fabrizi, Eugenio, 2024. "The financial health of a company and the risk of its default: Back to the future," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 95(PB).
    5. Sun, Chenhe & Ji, Yinuo & Chen, Zhenyun, 2023. "Insider selling and credit spread of corporate bonds1," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 58(PB).

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    JEL classification:

    • E44 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Financial Markets and the Macroeconomy
    • E51 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Money Supply; Credit; Money Multipliers
    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • G23 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Non-bank Financial Institutions; Financial Instruments; Institutional Investors
    • G33 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Bankruptcy; Liquidation

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