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'The Commitment Value of the Debt : a Reappraissal'

Author

Listed:
  • Bernard Franck

    (CREM - Centre de recherche en économie et management - UNICAEN - Université de Caen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - UR - Université de Rennes - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

  • Nicolas Le Pape

    (CREM - Centre de recherche en économie et management - UNICAEN - Université de Caen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - UR - Université de Rennes - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

Abstract

We analyze the strategic use of the debt in a duopoly model of Cournot competition. We consider a two stage model where debt acts as a commitment variable and we characterize subgame perfect equilibria. We differ from several models based on the strategic value of the debt such as Wanzenried [Wanzenried G. (2003), "Capital Structure Decisions and Output Market Competition Under Demand Uncertainty", International Journal of Industrial Organization 21, 171-200.] in showing that, if one assumes that the debt level acts as a commitment device, it is incorrect to consider bankruptcy risk as a strategic variable. We demonstrate properties concerning the influence of price volatility and product differentiation upon equilibrium values of production, default risk and debt obligation.
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Suggested Citation

  • Bernard Franck & Nicolas Le Pape, 2008. "'The Commitment Value of the Debt : a Reappraissal'," Post-Print halshs-00277605, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-00277605
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Vojislav Maksimovic, 1988. "Capital Structure in Repeated Oligopolies," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 19(3), pages 389-407, Autumn.
    2. Wanzenried, Gabrielle, 2003. "Capital structure decisions and output market competition under demand uncertainty," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 171-200, February.
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    9. James A. Brander & Tracy R. Lewis, 1988. "Bankruptcy Costs and the Theory of Oligopoly," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 21(2), pages 221-243, May.
    10. Glazer Jacob, 1994. "The Strategic Effects of Long-Term Debt in Imperfect Competition," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 62(2), pages 428-443, April.
    11. Ho‐Chyuan Chen, 2005. "Strategic Debt And Rjv Competition," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(2), pages 149-161, June.
    12. John S. Hughes & Jennifer L. Kao & Arijit Mukherji, 1998. "Oligopoly, Financial Structure, and Resolution of Uncertainty," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(1), pages 67-88, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Federico Etro, 2010. "Endogenous market structures and the optimal financial structure," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 43(4), pages 1333-1352, November.
    2. Bernard Franck & Nicolas Le Pape, 2020. "The limited liability effect: Implications for anticompetitive horizontal mergers," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 22(6), pages 2082-2102, December.
    3. Tetsuya Shinkai & Takao Ohkawa & Makoto Okamura & Kozo Harimaya, 2015. "Strategic Delegation of Indebted Firms in a Duopoly with Uncertain Demand," Discussion Paper Series 135, School of Economics, Kwansei Gakuin University, revised Sep 2015.
    4. Magali Pedro Costa & Cesaltina Pires, 2014. "Capital Structure, Product Market Competition and Default Risk," CEFAGE-UE Working Papers 2014_14, University of Evora, CEFAGE-UE (Portugal).
    5. Tetsuya Shinkai & Takao Ohkawa & Makoto Okamura & Kozo Harimaya, 2012. "Why did the Dutch East India Co. outperform the British East India Co.? —A theoretical explanation based on the objective of the firm and limited liability—," Discussion Paper Series 96, School of Economics, Kwansei Gakuin University, revised Dec 2012.
    6. Barnard Franck & Nicolas Le Pape, 2010. "Bankruptcy Risk, Product Market Competition and Horizontal Mergers," TEPP Working Paper 2010-19, TEPP.
    7. Federico Etro, 2010. "Endogenous Market Structures and Contract Theory," Working Papers 181, University of Milano-Bicocca, Department of Economics, revised Mar 2010.
    8. Sai Zhao & Lei Fang, 2023. "Debt financing, first‐mover advantage, and vertical product differentiation," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 44(1), pages 502-514, January.
    9. Tetsuya Shinkai & Takao Ohkawa & Makoto Okamura & Kozo Harimaya, 2012. "Delegation and Limited Liability in a Modern Capitalistic Economy," Discussion Paper Series 87, School of Economics, Kwansei Gakuin University, revised Apr 2012.
    10. Takao Ohkawa & Tetsuya Shinkai & Makoto Okamura & Kozo Harimaya, 2012. "Endogenous Determination of the Liability Rule in Oligopolistic Markets," Discussion Paper Series 91, School of Economics, Kwansei Gakuin University, revised Jul 2012.

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