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This article tests the effect of a novel credit card payment format—repayment-by-purchase—on consumers' payments toward credit card debt. In contrast to typical balance repayment, where consumers make repayments relative to a total amount owed, repayment-by-purchase prompts consumers to select items (e.g., a Starbucks coffee) or categories of purchase (e.g., restaurant and café purchases) and to make payments toward their related debt. A field experiment first suggests that customers who opted into repayment-by-purchase paid 12.18% more toward their statement balance than a control group. Subsequently, five lab experiments show that consumers repaying-by-purchase increase repayment by an average of 22.47% over typical balance repayment. Process evidence suggests that these differences may be driven by repayment-by-purchase's power to increase purchase salience, which in turns increases perceptions of progress toward reducing debt. Consistent with this theory, the effect of repayment-by-purchase on bill repayment emerges regardless of whether consumers repay durable versus nondurable goods, and for specific items or categories of purchases, as long as the bill uses labels that are concrete enough to raise past purchase salience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How does creditor health affect the pass-through of monetary policy to households? Using data on the universe of U.S. credit unions, I document that creditor asset losses increase the sensitivity of consumer credit to monetary policy. Identification exploits plausibly exogenous variation in asset losses and high-frequency identification of monetary policy shocks. Weaker lenders can respond more if they face financial frictions that easing alleviates. The estimates imply constraints on monetary policy become more costly in financial crises featuring creditor asset losses and that an additional benefit of monetary easing is that it weakens the causal, contractionary effect of asset losses. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix , which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How does household exposure to a natural disaster affect higher education investments? Using variation in flooding from Hurricane Harvey (2017), we find that college-aged adults from flooded blocks in Houston are 7% less likely than counterparts to have student loans after Harvey, with larger effects in areas with more potential first-generation students. We find a similar relative decline in enrollment at more exposed Texas universities and colleges and a shift toward majors with higher expected earnings. Our results highlight a decrease in the quantity but an increase in the intensity of investments in human capital after the storm. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix , which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We show that search frictions in credit markets affect accepted interest rates and loan sizes and distort consumption. Using data on car loan applications and originations not intermediated by car dealers, we isolate quasi-exogenous variation in both the costs and benefits to searching for credit. After identifying lender-specific policies that price risk discontinuously, we study the differential response to offered interest rates by borrowers who face high and low search costs. High-search-cost borrowers are 10 |$\%$| more likely to accept loan offers with higher markups, consequently originating smaller loans and purchasing older and less expensive cars than lower-search-cost borrowers. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix , which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers and practitioners in financial services utilize a wide range of empirical techniques to assess risk and value. In cases where known performance is used to predict future performance of a new asset, the risk of bias is present when samples are uncontrolled by the analyst. Propensity score matching is a statistical methodology commonly used in medical and social science research to address issues related to experimental design when random assignment of cases is not possible. This common method has been almost absent from financial risk modeling and portfolio underwriting, primarily due to the different objectives for this sector relative to medicine and social sciences. In this application note, we demonstrate how propensity score matching can be considered as a practical tool to inform portfolio underwriting outside of experimental design. Using a portfolio of distressed consumer credit accounts, we demonstrate that propensity score matching can be used to predict both account-level and portfolio-level risk and argue that propensity score matching should be included in the methodological toolbox of researchers and practitioners engaged in risk modeling and valuation activities of portfolios of consumer assets, particularly in contexts with limited observations, a large number of potential modeling features, or highly imbalanced covariates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the impact of financial factors outside of a defined contribution (DC) plan on retirement readiness for public-sector participants. The study reveals that a significant number of households experience monthly unfunded spending spikes, which can lead to increased credit card debt and the likelihood of taking a plan loan. The research emphasizes the importance of emergency savings in preventing a cycle of increasing debt that can negatively affect retirement readiness. It also highlights the role of overall financial wellness programs, such as budget webinars and emergency savings, in improving retirement planning. The study considers demographic factors and references external sources to support its findings. [Extracted from the article]

This article makes a key contribution to the comparative political economy literature by accounting for the macroeconomic role of household finance. Based on post-Keynesian theories of finance and the financialization literature, we place house prices and mortgage credit squarely at the center of the macroeconomy, as speculative house price cycles can facilitate homeowner consumption via the use of equity release mortgages. Through an econometric evaluation of eighteen advanced economies from 1980 to 2019, we demonstrate that household debt is determined by house price inflation, and that rising household debt contributes to GDP growth, while business debt has negative growth effects. These results are consistent across countries with different growth models and financial systems. This suggests that the varieties of capitalism's focus on corporate finance is misplaced and that the growth models approach needs a theory of house prices, mortgage credit, and financial cycles to adequately conceptualize how debt-driven growth operates across advanced economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing interest in exploring contemporary financialisation in terms of the geographies of debt. Many economic geographers have adopted a financial ecologies approach to explain these geographies. While this approach provides analytical benefits, it nonetheless analyses debt almost exclusively in terms of consumer finance, thereby overlooking the relations of production in which many indebted households engage. To address this issue, I develop the agrarian financial ecologies concept, which both directs analysis towards the diversity of credit–debt relations in rural economies, and highlights the relationship between land, labour and debt in the process of agricultural production. I apply this concept to study farm household debt in Cambodia, where indebtedness has become a widespread problem among farmers facing rapid economic transformation in the countryside. By focusing on land and labour, I demonstrate how diverse credit–debt relations within Cambodia's agrarian financial ecology have produced uneven socio‐spatial outcomes, namely debt‐driven land dispossession. This paper advances geographic theory about the dynamics of value production, circulation and appropriation within geographies of debt. It also extends the empirical remit of existing financial ecologies scholarship by attending to the credit–debt relations that characterise many agrarian livelihoods today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with global imbalances as an increasingly important issue in our age. While the literature establishes that current accounts are inversely related to the ratio of income to consumption inequality in OECD, our study finds that this relationship is reversed in Asia. That ratio has much to do with various schemes of consumption smoothing, which are affected by policy interventions to alleviate the effects of rising income inequality. Different policies may generate opposite outcomes. In OECD, policy encourages consumer credit and deficit spending among low-income people so that consumption inequality is kept artificially low, leading up to a current account deficit. In Asia, policy promotes output growth via high savings with no well-developed smoothing schemes designed to help poor households, so that consumption inequality moves in line with income inequality, with excess savings recycled into a current account surplus. Hence, any reduction in global imbalances requires both regions to adjust their policies for mitigating income inequality and optimizing smoothing schemes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploiting a unique high-frequency, individual-level database, we (1) construct individual-level, incentive-compatible proxies of impulsivity based on video gaming behavior and (2) use these proxies to evaluate predictions concerning how impulsivity shapes individuals' responses to a relaxation of credit constraints as captured by receiving a credit card. We discover that precard gaming intensity—as measured by the frequency and amount of game expenditures—is strongly and positively associated with (a) the probability of defaulting on credit card debt in the future, (b) postcard expenditures on luxury and addictive items, (c) surges in consumption spending immediately after receiving the credit card, and (d) rapid debt accumulation after obtaining the card. Differences in financial literacy, income, income variability, education, and demographics do not drive the results. The results are consistent with (1) neurological and psychological studies stressing that excessive gaming is associated with impulse control deficiencies and (2) behavioral theories stressing that impulsivity, i.e., time-inconsistent preferences for immediate gratification and ineffective strategies for avoiding myopic cues and temptations, substantially influence individual expenditure patterns and borrowing decisions when liquidity constraints are relaxed. This paper was accepted by Kay Giesecke, finance. Funding: C. Lin acknowledges the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Project 72192841] and the Research Grant Council of the Hong Kong SAR, China [Project T35-710/20-R]. Supplemental Material: The data files and online appendix are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.4931. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated a network of financial institutions in Korea using the Korea Consumer Credit Panel (KCCP). It is assumed that each consumer borrows from multiple institutions, so those institutions share risks from the same consumers regardless of the quality or type of loan. We constructed a financial network comprising those institutions and computed a contagion index based on their interconnections using a weight of probability of default for the individual borrowers. We found strong connection between banking institutions and credit card firms because of the convenience of making small loans using credit cards. However, with a weighted probability of default to the linkages among institutions, the connections between banking institutions and savings banks, non-credit card finance corporations and merchant banks are stronger than others, while banking institutions hold a central position and are exposed to the largest amount of loans individually. The contagion index hit a peak in 2013Q1 and then fell rapidly, before fluctuating at a relatively low level from 2016 to 2017Q2. The results enabled authorities to monitor systemic risk from the level of consumer credit, while accounting for specific types of consumers and their probability of default. This paper's main contribution is its construction of a network of financial institutions from the level of consumer credit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Buy-now-pay-later" (BNPL) is a relatively unregulated FinTech innovation that provides consumers with easy access to credit for retail purchases. BNPL spending is projected to reach $1 trillion by 2025, but we know little about its effects. Using banking data for 10.6 million U.S. consumers, we investigate the effects of BNPL on leading indicators of users' financial health. We find that new BNPL users experience rapid increases in bank overdraft charges and credit card interest and fees compared with nonusers, consistent with BNPL facilitating overborrowing. An instrumental variable exploiting consumers' pre-BNPL shopping habits bolsters our inferences. Our results inform regulatory investigations into the effects of BNPL on users' financial health and expand academia's understanding of an important consumer credit innovation. This paper was accepted by Camelia Kuhnen, finance. Funding: E. deHaan acknowledges financial support from Stanford University; B. Lourie and C. Zhu acknowledge financial support from University of California Irvine. Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.03266. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Zeitschrift für Bankrecht und Bankwirtschaft is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The aim of this paper is to analyse the evolution of Spanish households' indebtedness and financial vulnerability over the course of this century using micro-data from the Household Finance and Consumption Survey. Our results show a growing debt participation of Spanish households and an increase in the stock of outstanding debt of indebted households, a trend that reversed with the end of the Great Recession. Moreover, the percentage of financially vulnerable households according to three indicators grew dramatically until the end of the downward phase of the last economic cycle and showed considerable signs of improvement during the second half of 2010s. These results, nonetheless, call attention to the number of Spanish households being unable to service their debts in the face of an economic downturn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As iii many other areas of financial consumer law, the European Court of Justice heralds a strong protective approach to the financier's duty to assess the creditworthiness of the consumer. But enhancing deterrence above all by means of contract law does not set afair and efficient balance between the quite diverse incentives of both parties in adjusting to the policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Household debt in Thailand has become a serious problem, particularly for the elderly, because they have less ability to pay debts compared to the working population. Therefore, better understanding of the elderly's debt and delinquency is crucial in policy formulation for the aged society. Previous works have focused on the elderly's debt, either at the macro or individual levels. Little is known about geographic differences at the regional level. Knowing where the elderly debt and delinquency tend to cluster could guide area-specific policies to tackle the elderly financial stability. This research aims to examine the spatio-temporal distribution of the debt and delinquency of the near-elderly population (age 50–59) and the elderly (age 60 and above) using data from the National Credit Bureau of Thailand from 2008 to 2019. The analysis focuses on various types of loans. Spatial clusters are identified by Moran's I and Local Geary statistics. The results show that the pattern of elderly debt and delinquency generally follows the life cycle hypothesis, except for credit card and business-related loans. There exist spatial clusters and spatial differences in different types of loans, suggesting regional heterogeneities that require area-specific policy responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic downturns represent an inevitable challenge that nations and businesses must confront, presenting considerable risks. As a result, it becomes imperative for them to formulate strategies to secure their survival. The world has recently experienced an economic downturn due to a pandemic. COVID-19 has caused a significant economic crisis, leading to job losses and disruptions across various sectors worldwide, including the Philippines. The study utilizes economic indicators to determine patterns, meanings, and subsequent opportunities. Specifically, the study sought to identify relevant economic indicators, find patterns and meaning within each indicator and among indicators, and determine implications from findings. Content analysis was used in the study. It is a qualitative research method to identify and interpret themes, meanings, and patterns. The materials used include eleven Philippine economic indicators, namely, the Philippine Stock Exchange Composite Index, Balance of Trade, Core Inflation Rate, Consumer Spending, Tourist Arrivals, Consumer Confidence, Consumer Credit, Gold Reserves, Foreign Exchange Reserves, and Money Supply M2, and Interest Rate. In conclusion, the study determined that the collective surge in economic activities is positively related to the rise of inflation; increased interest rates potentially mitigated the rise in inflation, and other factors negated the trade deficits and gold reserve fluctuations. The Philippine economy is on the path to recovery, and the unique interrelations of economic indicators imply a more stable environment in the Philippine economy. This signals a green light for investors and an opportunity for policymakers to fine-tune existing initiatives to sustain economic recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As individuals age, they typically acquire more financial obligations, such as funding their children's education or planning for retirement, which can impact their decision to utilize consumer credit. This study aims to investigate the factors influencing the decision to opt for consumer credit at PT BPR Baturaja (Perseroda), with age serving as a moderating variable. The research methodology employed is associative descriptive research. The sampling technique utilized is probability random sampling, determined by the Slovin formula, resulting in a total sample size of 322. Data analysis was conducted using the Partial Least Square (PLS) method. The research findings lead to several conclusions: Firstly, service quality exerts a positive and significant influence on the decision to choose consumer credit at PT BPR Baturaja (Perseroda). Secondly, promotion demonstrates a positive but statistically insignificant effect on the decision to choose consumer credit at PT BPR Baturaja (Perseroda). Lastly, the interest rate has a positive and significant impact on the decision to select consumer credit at PT BPR Baturaja (Perseroda). The age variable acts as a Quasi Moderator (Quasi Moderation) on the influence of service quality on the decision to choose consumer credit at PT BPR Baturaja (Perseroda). The age variable acts as a Moderation Predictor on the influence of promotions on the decision to choose consumer credit at PT BPR Baturaja (Perseroda). The age variable acts as a Pure Moderator on the influence of interest rates on the decision to choose PT BPR Baturaja (Perseroda) consumer credit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Throughout the 21st century, US households have experienced unprecedented levels of leverage. This dynamic has been exacerbated by income shortfalls during the COVID-19 crisis. Leveraging and deleveraging decisions affect household consumption. This study investigates the effect of the dynamics of household leverage and consumption on the stock market. Design/methodology/approach: The authors explore the relation between household leverage and consumption in the context of the consumption capital asset pricing model (CCAPM). The authors test the model's implication that leverage has a negative risk premium by transforming the asset pricing restriction into an unconditional linear factor model and estimate the model using the general method of moments procedure. The authors run time-series regressions to estimate individual stocks' exposures to leverage, and cross-sectional regressions to investigate the leverage risk premium. Findings: The authors show that shocks to household debt have strong and lasting effects on consumption growth. The authors extend the CCAPM to accommodate this effect and find, using various test assets, a negative risk premium associated with household deleveraging. Looking at individual stocks the authors show that the deleveraging risk premium is not explained by well-known risk factors. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the literature on the role of leverage in economics and finance by establishing a relation between household leverage and spending decisions. The authors provide novel evidence that households' leveraging and deleveraging decisions can be a fundamental and influential force in determining asset prices. Further, this paper argues that household leverage might explain the small, persistent, and predictable component in consumption growth hypothesised in the long-run risk asset pricing literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document explores the factors that have influenced the neutral real interest rate in the UK. It notes that the neutral rate has recently risen to just below 3% but is expected to decline to around 2% by 2030. Inflation expectations have primarily driven the increase in the nominal neutral rate, while the real neutral rate has risen more modestly. The UK's weak demographic and productivity prospects are projected to keep the neutral real rate at historically low levels. The document acknowledges the uncertainty in estimating the neutral rate and the challenges of accounting for structural changes in the UK. The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee has indicated the possibility of an interest rate cut in the near future. [Extracted from the article]

A randomized encouragement design yields null average effects of a credit builder loan (CBL) on consumer credit scores. But machine learning algorithms indicate the nulls are due to stark, offsetting treatment effects depending on baseline installment credit activity. Delinquency on preexisting loan obligations drives the negative effects, suggesting that adding a CBL overextends some consumers and generates negative externalities on other lenders. More favorably for the market, CBL take-up generates positive selection on score improvements. Simple changes to CBL practice, particularly to provider screening and credit bureau reporting, could ameliorate the negative effects for consumers and the market. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix , which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Contaduría y Administración is the property of Facultad de Contaduria y Administracion-Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

We use credit report data to study consumer financial distress in America. We report large, persistent disparities in financial distress across regions. To understand these patterns, we conduct a "movers" analysis. For collections and default, there is only weak convergence following a move, suggesting these types of distress are not primarily caused by place-based factors (e.g., local economic conditions and state laws) but instead reflect person-based characteristics (e.g., financial literacy and risk preferences). In contrast, for personal bankruptcy, we find a sizable place-based effect, which is consistent with anecdotal evidence on how local legal factors influence personal bankruptcy. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix, which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the relationship between household debt and residents' health. Using the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) database, we find that household debt has a negative effect, which shows asymmetry and persistence on residents' health. Further heterogeneity analysis reveals that an increase in the debt level of non-over-indebted households has a more significant negative impact on residents' health, and, therefore, households need to consider the possible impact on health welfare of increases in their debt level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most countries are still nations of homeowners, i.e. owning-centric despite home ownership being an economically irrational tenure due to its long-term financial risk. Seemingly, pre-existing social and institutional factors also shape people's tenure decisions, which supports a cultural explanation of tenure decisions. This paper frames the examination of tenure decisions from a cultural perspective in Malaysia, a Southeast Asian country with a strong home ownership tradition characterised by inflated house prices in its major cities and high household debts. A qualitative approach was adopted, involving a focus group discussion (FGD) and an open-ended online questionnaire survey (OQS). Two input categories (parental and societal) and five cultural determinants (filial piety, parental care, emulation, virtue signalling and status symbol) of tenure decisions were discerned. Considering the current trajectory of the global economy and local housing market, an honest reconsideration of the home ownership culture in Malaysia is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Federal regulators in 2010 amended lending rules to allow federal credit unions (FCU) to originate short‐term, small‐dollar amount loans, with an annual percentage rate of up to 1000 basis points above the otherwise imposed interest rate ceiling of 18 percent. The purpose of the change in policy was to allow FCUs the ability to provide their members with an alternative to payday loans. We find the decision to originate these higher‐interest loans is primarily influenced by the characteristics of a credit union's environment. Credit unions located in minority neighborhoods and in markets with fewer traditional financial services are more likely to participate in the payday alternative loan program. Participation in the program is shown to improve earnings performance without adversely affecting participants' loan quality. These results suggest credit unions can provide lower‐priced alternatives to payday loans that are beneficial to members and their credit unions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young people form the primary target demographic of new 'buy now pay later' (BNPL) and digital credit services. Despite consistent data showing young people as a cohort are particularly vulnerable to unsustainable levels of indebtedness, little is known about how young people define and make sense of the experience of being in debt through consumer credit services. This paper explores how indebtedness is experienced and understood in relation to wellbeing through a qualitative study using interviews alongside arts-based participatory methods of bodymapping and sandboxing with 24 young people in the Hunter region of NSW, Australia. These methods enabled particular attention to the embodied and affective elements related to the experience of indebtedness to understand debt's significance for wellbeing for young people. The embodied and affective registers of indebtedness are integral for understanding the conditions informing how wellbeing is negotiated and felt in this context. This study considers the role of BNPL services in young people's economic lives as part of broader processes of financialisation, and the significance of extended and ubiquitous forms of credit for young people's wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines two values that have long motivated work in economic anthropology: the value of denunciatory critique and the value of thinking otherwise. Through a retrospective analysis of research that I have conducted on consumer debt in Brazil, I offer two different versions of that research based on whether the story is driven by the first value of denunciation or by the second of thinking otherwise. In doing so, I suggest ways to address the limitations of both anthropology focused on denunciatory critique and the more recent development of an "anthropology of the good" by outlining what I call an anthropology of wisdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with how Justice and Development Party (AKP) governments navigated the politics of household indebtedness in Turkey and utilized it towards the 2023 elections. It argues that household debt is a political tool with positive and negative consequences for incumbent governments. Households have been able to access debt instruments such as credit cards, consumer credit, car loans, and mortgages in Turkey since the onset of financialisation in the 2000s. AKP governments have benefited from the micro-level household wealth/debt accumulation as well as its macro-level economic implications for the construction-led, credit-dependent economic growth model. On the other hand, household debt has had destructive societal consequences such as bankruptcies, divorces, and suicides that became commonplace in the opposition narratives. Pinpointing the responsibility for indebtedness among households, financial system, regulatory agencies, and government, as well as devising policy solutions, has become a political struggle in the months leading up to the 2023 elections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Is the association between debt and feeling of depression so fundamental that it occurs across time and place? Are some countries better at mitigating the depression related to debt than others? This paper addresses these questions by taking advantage of three harmonised longitudinal surveys, consisting of older adults in 21 European countries and the US. A series of logistic regression models show that, net of differences in other socioeconomic variables, people with household non-mortgage debt have higher odds of depression, measured using dichotomised versions of depressive symptom scores, in all countries. These associations are in many countries as strong as the association between low education level and depression. The association is particularly strong in countries with poor debt discharge legislation or low levels of indebtedness, both of which may be regarded as indicators of stigma related to debts. Overtime the association between debt and depression seems to be elevated within countries when the unemployment rate increases. These findings demonstrate how the links between debt and mental health are embedded in its institutional and economic contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that rising household indebtedness is associated with the decline of organised labour. Over the last decades, the financial system is increasingly financing working-class households, and recent research shows that indebted employees become more risk-averse at the workplace on the fear of losing their job and defaulting. Thus, since union formation or participation is commonly punished with redundancy, rising household indebtedness is likely to be associated with the aggregate reduction in unionisation. This study examines this argument for a high-, a mid-, and low-unionisation economy over the period 1965–2018: Sweden, Japan, and South Korea, respectively. Regression analysis provides robust support in favour of this argument. The results also suggest that financial regulation and social norms about personal insolvency matter for the size of the effects of household debt on unionisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the relationship between labor unions and firms' decisions to violate debt covenants. We find that firms with high unionization rates are more likely to violate debt covenants than firms with low unionization rates. This relationship is stronger for firms with larger cash reserves. Our analysis also reveals that debt covenant violations lead to a lower probability of a strike. Additionally, we find that high-unionization firms are in better financial condition prior to covenant violations than low-unionization firms. Our study confirms the existing literature by showing that long-term abnormal stock returns after covenant violations are significantly positive. However, our results also show that high-unionization firms experience smaller stock returns compared to low-unionization firms. Furthermore, we provide evidence that high-unionization firms tend to manipulate earnings downward before covenant violations. These findings suggest that firms may strategically violate debt covenants to gain bargaining flexibility and force labor unions to make concessions in subsequent negotiations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present research aims at analysing the regulation of debt advice at European level contained in Directive 2023/2225. The research reveals, at this date, at the national level, the lack of express regulation for the conduct of independent, impartial counselling of people in debt or about to become in debt. The research also identifies that the only category of counselling known and regulated at the national level, where credit is the main source of indebtedness, is consumer counselling by creditors and credit intermediaries. The regulation of independent debt advice under Directive 2023/2225 has yet to be transposed at the national level. The challenge of identifying the entity/entities that will provide independent debt advice is the one to which this study responds, and has profound social-economic implications, as this category of advice is a solution to prevent over-indebtedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On 18 October 2023, the EU adopted the long-awaited New Consumer Credit Directive. This directive will replace the 2008 Consumer Credit Directive which has been criticized for two main reasons. First, the information paradigm of consumer protection reflected in the directive has been widely regarded as incapable of protecting consumers against irresponsible lending. Second, the directive has been viewed unfit for ensuring consumer protection in an increasingly digital marketplace. To remedy the shortcomings of the old directive, the revised directive widens the scope of its application, tailors the existing rules to the consumer needs in the online lending environment, and introduces new, more protective rules. But does this suffice to ensure responsible lending in the digital consumer credit markets? To answer this question, this article critically assesses the key changes introduced by the New Consumer Credit Directive, against the backdrop of the large-scale irresponsible lending practices that have troubled the consumer credit markets across Europe over the last decade or more. It concludes that the revised directive represents a major step forward in combating such practices and protecting European consumers against overindebtedness in the digital marketplace. At the same time, however, the effectiveness of the new directive will depend considerably on its implementation and enforcement in the EU Member States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using panel data from 2012 to 2018, this article investigates the long‐term impact of household debt on household consumption, which is very important to the sustainable development of economy. The result shows that total household debt has a significant crowding‐out impact on long‐term household consumption, whereas nonhousing debt has no significant effect on it. In addition, we also find that the debt of high‐asset families has a weaker impact on long‐term household consumption; the debt of rural families, however, has a greater crowding‐out effect, which means that increasing rural families' leverage will have a greater negative impact on household consumption. Finally, household debt's negative effect on long‐term consumption was not found in older families, whereas it is found at significant level in middle‐aged families. The above results have important implications for China's policy to stimulate consumption and promote sustainable economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Zeitschrift für Bankrecht und Bankwirtschaft is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article expands the investigation of systematic investing to broadly syndicated, leveraged loans. The results reveal that systematic exposures to (short-term) value, momentum, illiquidity, quality, low risk, carry, and a combination thereof are well rewarded. Monthly rebalanced long-only factor portfolios exhibit impressive Sharpe and information ratios, as well as economically and statistically significant alphas. While the performance of factor portfolios declines over longer investment horizons, it remains significant. A key implication of this research is that active credit managers employing factor-neutral loan trading strategies are potentially overlooking a viable source of incremental returns. Thus, the authors propose factor construction/screening approaches that are easy to use and implement from a practical perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions on the initial exponential growth of the infected population and the final exponential decay of the infected population. We employ a Bayesian dynamic model to test whether there is learning, a random walk pattern, or another type of learning with evolving epidemiological data over time across 168 countries and 41,706 country-date observations. Although we show that Bayesian learning is not taking place, most policy measures appear to assert some effect. In particular, we show that economic policy variables are of importance for the main epidemiological parameters derived from the policy learning model. In an empirical second-stage application, we further investigate the underlying dynamics between the epidemiological parameters and household debt repayments, a key economic variable, in the UK. Results show no Bayesian learning, although a higher transmission rate would increase household debt repayments, while the recovery rate would have a negative impact. Therefore, suboptimal learning is taking place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online consumer credit services play a vital role in the contemporary consumer market. To foster their sustainable development, it is essential to establish and strengthen the relevant risk management mechanism. This study proposes an intelligent management framework called the consumer default risk portrait (CDRP) to mitigate the default risks associated with online consumer loans. The CDRP framework combines traditional credit information and Internet platform data to depict the portrait of consumer default risks. It consists of four modules: addressing data imbalances, establishing relationships between user characteristics and the default risk, analyzing the influence of different variables on default, and ultimately presenting personalized consumer profiles. Empirical findings reveal that "Repayment Periods", "Loan Amount", and "Debt to Income Type" emerge as the three variables with the most significant impact on default. "Re-payment Periods" and "Debt to Income Type" demonstrate a positive correlation with default probability, while a lower "Loan Amount" corresponds to a higher likelihood of default. Additionally, our verification highlights that the significance of variables varies across different samples, thereby presenting a personalized portrait from a single sample. In conclusion, the proposed framework provides valuable suggestions and insights for financial institutions and Internet platform managers to improve the market environment of online consumer credit services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Societies place a responsibility on individuals to pay what they owe on time, establishing a coercive apparatus for debt collection and enforcement when they do not, coupled with consumer protection and debt resolution measures to protect the vulnerable. Methods: An analysis of in-depth interviews with 28 people with both payment diffculties and vulnerabilities from ill-health, using Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory to explore the experiences of vulnerable defaulters as they try to exercise the personal responsibility placed on them by society. Results: It finds that they encounter barriers in exercising the personal responsibility which primarily arise in encounters with inflexible and bureaucratic routines -- of creditors, debt enforcement agents and even money advisers whose role is to help vulnerable people. These systematically undermine defaulters' self-effcacy, and leaving them facing prolonged periods of payment diiffculties. Discussion: The findings are discussed in the light of Bandura's Theory and lessons drawn for the policies and practices of creditors, debt enforcement bodies, and money advisers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of society, the number of female-headed households is on the rise. Based on the data from the China Household Finance Survey (CHFS) in 2019, this paper establishes a Tobit model to study the influence of female-headed households on household debt risk. Results indicate that female-headed households can substantially reduce household debt risk, and this conclusion still holds after overcoming endogeneity issues. Further tests on the mediating effect reveal that risk aversion and housing property holding have partial mediating effects and masking effects, respectively, in the path of female-headed households affecting household debt risk. In addition, the heterogeneity analysis indicates that the influence of female-headed households on household debt risk is more significant in third-tier cities, as well as in families without children, families without elderly members, and families with more than two elderly members. The conclusions of this paper provide a reference for the relevant policy measures to reduce household debt risk and promote gender equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper revisits the policy drivers of the substantial household credit boom experienced in recent decades. While existing work has typically pointed to the retreat of the state, deregulating and substituting public safety nets by private credit, this paper brings the focus to the active use by governments of 'fiscal policy as credit policy' through homeownership subsidization. In this context, the paper introduces a new unique dataset of 550 homeownership subsidies adjustments in 51 advanced and emerging countries since 1990, which brings two important contributions. First, I show that these fiscal subsidies have been increasingly used since the 1990s and significantly contributed to the easy credit stance up to the global financial crisis in both advanced and emerging countries. Second, using panel fixed effects regressions, I find that these subsidies, and notably mortgage interest deductibility, are indeed significantly associated with household/mortgage credit expansion, with crucial distributional and financial stability implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to gain insight into the motivations behind the decision to use high-cost payday loans by households who possess mainstream credit and to determine whether this behavior has changed over time. Design/methodology/approach: Using data from Statistics Canada's Surveys of Financial Security, probit models are used to examine the sociodemographic and financial indicators associated with payday loan use. Findings: The analysis uncovers the sociodemographic and financial characteristics of payday loan-user households with access to lower-cost short-term loans. The findings indicate that the likelihood of payday loan use has risen over time. Additional analysis reveals that indicators of financial instability are positively associated with payday loan use among this group. Research limitations/implications: This research highlights the dichotomy of payday loan users and recommends policymakers tailor solutions to the specific needs of different types of payday loan users. Practical implications: This research highlights the distinguishing sociodemographic and financial characteristics of payday loan user households and recommends policymakers tailor solutions to the specific needs of different types of payday loan users. Originality/value: This is the first study, to our knowledge, to focus analysis on payday loan use of those with access to lower-cost short-term credit alternatives in Canada and to include measures of financial instability in the analysis. This research is timely given the current economic environment of high interest rates and high levels of household debt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Every year, millions of consumers around the world become victims of credit card fraud. These individuals have to appeal to their credit card companies to reverse unauthorized charges. This study aims to profile the American consumers' experience when complaints to their credit card companies about unauthorized charges fail to produce a resolution. Using a large database of consumer complaint filings with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the characteristics of these consumer complaints are identified, and the drivers of consumer financial hardship resulting from credit card fraud are determined. Design/methodology/approach: A random sample of consumer complaints about their credit card companies' perceived mishandling of cases, filed with the CFPB, is used to conduct content analysis. The resulting content analysis categories are used in a predictive model to determine the drivers of consumer hardship. Findings: In nearly one-quarter of all complaint filings, the credit card company had blamed the complainant as the party responsible for the fraudulent charges or refused to open a fraud investigation altogether. Nearly 60% of complaint reports contain expressions of emotional distress and many mention financial hardship. Nearly half of all complainants consider the fraud department operations of their credit card company as lacking in service quality, many reporting inability to reach the department or to receive a returned call. Even after CFPB intermediation, only 15% of complainants receive some form of financial relief from their credit card company. The majority of the complainants report a lack of willingness by the credit card company to reverse unauathorized charges, leaving the complainant financially responsible for them. Research limitations/implications: This study focused on data collected from consumers. Future research can expand the scope of inquiry by surveying the staff and executives in the fraud investigation departments of credit card companies to determine the norms of fraud investigation used within the industry. Social implications: This study sheds light on the financial hardship and emotional pains that consumers victimized by credit card fraud experience in dealing with their credit card companies. Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study to empirically examine American consumers' complaints about the fraud investigation operations of their credit card companies. Using data captured through the complaint filing system of a federal bureau (CFPB), the findings have implications for policymakers, regulators and credit card companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]