Finance seminar with Brian Melzer, Tuck School of Business
The Department of Finance is proud to announce the upcoming seminar with Brian Melzer, Tuck School of Business.
Brian Melzer will present:
Loan Contracting in the Presence of Usury Limits: Evidence from Automobile Lending
Authors:
Brian T. Melzer
Aaron Schroeder
Abstract:
We study the effects of interest rate ceilings on the market for automobile loans. We find that loan contracting and the organization of the loan market adjust to facilitate loans to risky borrowers. When usury restrictions bind, automobile dealers finance a greater share of their customers' purchases, which allows them to price credit risk through the mark-up on the product sale rather than the loan interest rate. Despite having little effect on who receives credit, usury limits therefore have a substantial effect on who provides credit and on the terms of credit granted. Usury limits may harm defaulting borrowers, who face greater liabilities in default than they would if loan contracts were unconstrained.
Location:
Solbjerg Plads 3,
2000 Frederiksberg
Room: SPs14