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The Fed Put and Bank Risk-Taking Evidence from the Loan Book

Author

Listed:
  • Xudong An
  • Saket Hegde
  • Harren Jan

  • Mete Kilic

  • Rodney Ramcharan

Abstract

This paper shows that monetary policy influences bank credit policy through the risk-taking channel. Using option prices on Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announcement days, we measure the impact of monetary policy on bank equity tail risks and link them to loan-level regulatory data. Banks that experience a decline in tail risk lend more to riskier firms and ease loan terms in the three weeks after the FOMC announcement. These effects are concentrated among banks with short-term compensation structures and in competitive credit markets. Our results isolate the impact of bank risk-taking in loan supply from confounding forces such as endogenous credit demand and highlight how institutional frictions mediate the risk-taking channel of monetary policy

Suggested Citation

  • Xudong An & Saket Hegde & Harren Jan & Mete Kilic & Rodney Ramcharan, 2025. "The Fed Put and Bank Risk-Taking Evidence from the Loan Book," Working Papers 25-42, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedpwp:102288
    DOI: 10.21799/frbp.wp.2025.42
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    JEL classification:

    • E52 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Monetary Policy
    • G12 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Asset Pricing; Trading Volume; Bond Interest Rates
    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages

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