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Did Fair-Value Accounting Contribute to the Financial Crisis?

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  • Christian Laux
  • Christian Leuz

Abstract

The recent financial crisis has led to a major debate about fair-value accounting. Many critics have argued that fair-value accounting, often also called mark-to-market accounting, has significantly contributed to the financial crisis or, at least, exacerbated its severity. In this paper, we assess these arguments and examine the role of fair-value accounting in the financial crisis using descriptive data and empirical evidence. Based on our analysis, it is unlikely that fair-value accounting added to the severity of the current financial crisis in a major way. While there may have been downward spirals or asset-fire sales in certain markets, we find little evidence that these effects are the result of fair-value accounting. We also find little support for claims that fair-value accounting leads to excessive write-downs of banks’ assets. If anything, empirical evidence to date points in the opposite direction, that is, towards overvaluation of bank assets.

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Bibliographic Info

Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 15515.

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Date of creation: Nov 2009
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:15515

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Cited by:
  1. Upper, Christian, 2011. "Simulation methods to assess the danger of contagion in interbank markets," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 7(3), pages 111-125, August.
  2. Phillip Anthony O’Hara, 2011. "International Subprime Crisis and Recession: Emerging Macroprudential, Monetary, Fiscal and Global Governance," Panoeconomicus, Savez ekonomista Vojvodine, Novi Sad, Serbia, vol. 58(1), pages 1-17, March.
  3. Antonio Parbonetti & Andrea Menini & Michel Magnan, 2011. "Fair Value Accounting: Information or Confusion for Financial Markets?," CIRANO Working Papers 2011s-56, CIRANO.
  4. David Procházka, 2011. "The Role of Fair Value Measurement in the Recent Financial Crunch," Prague Economic Papers, University of Economics, Prague, vol. 2011(1), pages 71-88.
  5. Andrew Ellul & Chotibhak Jotikasthira & Christian T. Lundblad & Yihui Wang, 2012. "Is Historical Cost Accounting a Panacea? Market Stress, Incentive Distortions, and Gains Trading," FMG Discussion Papers dp701, Financial Markets Group.
  6. Bernard Gumb & Philippe Dupuy & Stéphane Jaumier, 2012. "De L'Impact Des Normes Comptables Sur Le Comportement Des Managers : Le Cas Des Trésoriers D'Entreprise," Grenoble Ecole de Management (Post-Print) hal-00691040, HAL.
  7. Nicoleta Farcane & Delia Deliu & Maria Gheorghian, 2011. "Auditing Fair Values In A Sensitive Socio-Economical Context," Annales Universitatis Apulensis Series Oeconomica, Faculty of Sciences, "1 Decembrie 1918" University, Alba Iulia, vol. 2(13), pages 19.
  8. Sebastian Brauer & Carl-Friedrich Leuschner & Frank Westermann, 2011. "Does the Introduction of IFRS Change the Timeliness of Loss Recognition? Evidence from German Firms," Working Papers 87, Institute of Empirical Economic Research.
  9. Nicolas Veron, 2011. "Keeping the Promise of Global Accounting Standards," Policy Briefs PB11-11, Peterson Institute for International Economics.
  10. Jannis Bischof & Ulf Brüggemann & Holger Daske, 2012. "Fair Value Reclassifications of Financial Assets during the Financial Crisis," SFB 649 Discussion Papers SFB649DP2012-010, Sonderforschungsbereich 649, Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany.
  11. Mary E. Barth & Javier Gomez-Biscarri & Ron Kasznik & Germán López-Espinosa, 2012. "Fair Value Accounting, Earnings Management and the use of Available-for-Sale Instruments by Bank Managers," Faculty Working Papers 05/12, School of Economics and Business Administration, University of Navarra.
  12. Mary Barth & Wayne Landsman, 2010. "How did Financial Reporting Contribute to the Financial Crisis?," European Accounting Review, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 399-423.
  13. Jack Cathey & David Schauer & Richard Schroeder, 2012. "The Impact of FSP FAS 157-4 on Commercial Banks," International Advances in Economic Research, Springer, vol. 18(1), pages 15-27, February.

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