Abstract: I study how bankruptcy law firm advertisements affect credit recovery of households in financial distress. Exploiting the border discontinuity strategy associated with the geographic unit in which local TV advertisements are sold, I empirically uncover bankruptcy filings and credit recovery related to exogenous variations in bankruptcy law firm advertisements. I first document a significant advertising effect on filing rates and show that advertising-induced filers are similar to existing filers. I then find a positive effect of advertisements on credit outcomes including credit score, new homeownership, and foreclosure. I interpret these findings as evidence that lawyers address information frictions in households’ assessment of the bankruptcy option.

Abstract: We study the corporate-loan pricing decisions of a major Greek bank during the Greek Financial Crisis. A unique aspect of our dataset is that we  observe both the interest rate  and the "breakeven rate" of each loan, as computed by the bank's own loan-pricing department (in effect, the loan's marginal cost). We document that low-breakeven-rate (safer) borrowers are charged significant markups, whereas high-breakeven-rate (riskier) borrowers are charged small and sometimes even negative markups. We rationalize this de facto cross-subsidization of riskier borrowers by safer borrowers through the lens of a dynamic model featuring depressed collateral values, impaired capital-market access, and limit pricing.

Abstract: We examine the contribution of different lending channels to the auto loan market in times of crisis. Specifically, we explore auto lending from traditional banks, credit unions, and finance companies (nonbanks) over the past two decades with special emphasis on the Great Recession and the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that banks provided weak support during the pandemic, thus losing market share and continuing a trend that emerged following the Great Recession. Nonbank market share during this period grew most significantly for subprime borrowers and in counties with stronger bank dependence. These findings contrast with the experience during the Great Recession, when banks contributed the most resilient credit to the auto loan market. Our paper highlights nonbanks' critical role in the auto loan market in times of crisis, particularly for the subprime segment.