Publisher Article

Imperfect Information Transmission from Banks to Investors: Macroeconomic Implications


Abstract: Our goal is to elucidate the interaction of banks' screening effort and strategic information production in loan-backed asset markets using a general equilibrium framework. Asset quality is unobserved by investors, but banks may purchase error-prone ratings. The premium paid on highly rated assets emerges as the main determinant of banks' screening effort. The fact that rating strategies reflect banks' private information about asset quality helps keep this premium high. Conventional regulatory policies interfere with this decision margin, thereby reducing signaling value of high ratings and exacerbating the credit misallocation problem. We propose a tax/subsidy scheme that induces efficiency.

JEL Classification: G01; G24; G28;

https://doi.org/10.20955/wp.2018.018

Status: Forthcoming in Journal of Monetary Economics

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File(s): File format is text/html https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmoneco.2019.12.002
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Bibliographic Information

Provider: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

Part of Series: Working Papers

Publication Date: 2021-03

Volume: 118

Issue: March 2021

Pages: 87-98

Note: Publisher DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmoneco.2019.12.002

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