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on Corporate Finance |
| By: | Abruzzo, Nicole (Independent); Park, Yang-Ho (Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.)) |
| Abstract: | Margin regulation raises two policy concerns. First, an alignment of margins to volatility can amplify procyclicality, leading to a build-up of excess leverage in good times and a forced deleverage in bad times. Second, competition among central counterparties (CCPs) can result in lower margin levels in order to attract more trading volume, which is referred to as a "race to the bottom." Motivated by these issues, we empirically analyze the determinants of margin changes by using a data set of various futures margins from Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group. We first find that CME Group raises margins quickly following volatility spikes but does not immediately lower margins following volatility declines, implying that margin-induced procyclicality is more of a concern in recessions than in expansions. In addition, we find some evidence that the margin difference between CME Group and its competitor, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), is an important driver of margin changes after changes in other margin determinants are controlled for, implying that competition may be factored into margin setting. |
| Keywords: | Margin; futures; volatility; central counterparties; procyclicality; race to the bottom; and Dodd-Frank Act |
| JEL: | G01 G18 G28 |
| Date: | 2014–09–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedgfe:2014-86&r=cfn |
| By: | Javier Bianchi; Saki Bigio |
| Abstract: | We develop a new framework to study the implementation of monetary policy through the banking system. Banks finance illiquid loans by issuing deposits. Deposit transfers across banks must be settled using central bank reserves. Transfers are random and therefore create liquidity risk, which in turn determines the supply of credit and the money multiplier. We study how different shocks to the banking system and monetary policy affect the economy by altering the trade-off between profiting from lending and incurring greater liquidity risk. We calibrate our model to study quantitatively why banks have recently increased their reserve holdings but have not expanded lending despite policy efforts. Our analysis underscores an important role of disruptions in interbank markets, followed by a persistent credit demand shock. |
| JEL: | E0 E4 E51 E52 G01 G1 G11 G18 G20 G21 |
| Date: | 2014–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:20490&r=cfn |
| By: | Serena Frazzoni; Maria Luisa Mancusi (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore; Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore); Zeno Rotondi; Maurizio Sobrero; Andrea Vezzulli |
| Abstract: | This paper assesses the role of relationship lending in explaining simultaneously the innovation activity of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME), their probability to export (i.e. the extensive margin) and their share of exports on total sales conditional on exporting (i.e. the intensive margin). We adopt a measure of informational tightness based on the ratio of firm’s debt with its main bank to firm’s total assets. Our results show that the strength of the bank-firm relation has a positive impact on both SME’s probability to export and their export margins. This positive effect is only marginally mediated by the SME’s increased propensity to introduce product innovation. We further discuss the financial and non-financial channels through which the intensity of bank-firm relationship supports SMEs’ international activities. |
| Keywords: | margins of export, bank-firm relationships, innovation, localized knowledge spillovers |
| JEL: | F10 G20 G21 O30 |
| Date: | 2014–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ctc:serie1:def18&r=cfn |