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Financial contracts and the legal treatment of informed investors

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Author Info
Mitchell Berlin
Loretta J. Mester

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Abstract

The authors explore the economic rationale for equitable subordination, a legal doctrine that permits a firm's claimants to seek to subordinate an informed investor's financial claim in bankruptcy court. Fear of equitable subordination is often cited as a reason that banks in the U.S. are wary of taking an active management role in their borrowing firms. The authors show that an optimally designed menu of claims for a large investor will include features that resemble equitable subordination. The authors' model provides a partial rationale for a financial system in which powerful creditors do not generally hold blended debt and equity claims.

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Paper provided by Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia in its series Working Papers with number 99-8.

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Date of creation: 1999
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Handle: RePEc:fip:fedpwp:99-8

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Keywords: Bankruptcy;

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    Other versions:
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    Other versions:
  11. Berglof, Erik & von Thadden, Ernst-Ludwig, 1994. "Short-Term versus Long-Term Interests: Capital Structure with Multiple Investors," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 109(4), pages 1055-84, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  18. David E. Weinstein & Yishay Yafeh, 1998. "On the Costs of a Bank-Centered Financial System: Evidence from the Changing Main Bank Relations in Japan," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 53(2), pages 635-672, 04. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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