Sky Blog
Thank you for inviting me to speak here today (April 20).1 I will begin by looking back at the global financial crisis and the great recession, which were arriving on the horizon at about this time 10 years ago. …
It’s been five years since Concepcion made “clear” that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) preempts state laws that forbid class action waivers. Concepcion did not protect arbitration agreements from laws of general applicability (such as unconscionability), but it …
The legal advisory market for major corporate transactions is dominated by a relatively small number of elite law firms. What value do these law firms provide? Regulatory expertise, innovative drafting, speed of execution, and reputational cachet have all been offered …
I am delighted to have this opportunity to speak at West Virginia University. Thanks to Brian Cushing for inviting me here today.1
Gathered in this part of West Virginia, we are located in the Fifth Federal Reserve District, which …
The UK Government triggered on March 29, 2017, Article 50 TEU. As a result, the UK is likely to have exited the EU by March 2019.
In a speech delivered on January 17, Prime Minister (“PM”) May explained …
Whether in large auction markets involving worldwide sales of, say, automobiles or in more specialized forums like the Tsukiji, Tokyo, fish market, auctioneers provide a platform for buyers and sellers to interact.[1] They also play an important role in …
The blockchain protocol (a form of a ‘distributed ledger system’) was originally designed as a platform to process Bitcoin transactions. The protocol enables peer-to-peer transactions and eliminates the need for a trusted intermediary to verify and process the transactions.
The …
In our recent paper, we discuss the economic case for regulating shadow banking and ask three questions. First, what is shadow banking? Second, why should it be regulated? And third, what’s an efficient way to regulate it? We focus on …
Many financial institutions1 have implemented the three Lines of Defense (LoD) model to help define their risk management frameworks and bolster supervisors’ (e.g., desk heads and senior traders) abilities to monitor risk.2 However, as frameworks for managing financial …
Developments in private and public markets are changing the role equity plays in the United States, i.e., what “stock” means as a matter not only of investment and corporate governance, but also of political economy. For several generations, a broad …
The election of Donald Trump in November has substantially increased the likelihood of major tax reform in the near future. While it is uncertain what shape such reform will take, there has been renewed interest in the so-called “Blueprint” for …
A central topic in financial economics is how the allocation of cash flow and control rights among providers of corporate finance should evolve with firm performance. Theoretically, allowing for a transfer of control to creditors when a firm is in …
In our recent paper, we provide strong empirical evidence that banks play an active role in shaping borrowers’ tax planning. Our evidence is drawn from a comprehensive analysis of the impact of debt covenant violations on corporate tax avoidance.
Covenants …
Recent advances in financial technology (FinTech) have dramatically transformed the financial landscape with respect to the way we access, invest, and transfer financial capital. In our recent article, we explore a promising avenue for the use of natural-language processing in …
On January 26 the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) released its first set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on the Fundamental Review of the Trading Book (FRTB). The BCBS published the FRTB in January 2016 with the intent to …
President Donald J. Trump’s “America’s Infrastructure First” plan is one of the Trump Administration’s priorities during his first 100 days in office. Throughout the campaign, President Trump heralded his plan to build and restore highways, tunnels, airports, bridges, and water …
Operating risk is a major concern for firm management and stakeholders. Stark examples of losses due to corporate operations include BP’s $17.2 billion loss in June 2010 following the Deepwater Horizon incident (Wong and Yousuf, 2010) and Freeport-McMoRan’s $13.9 billion …
In a bank examination, regulators evaluate a financial institution’s compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The process is generally non-public, and the bank examination privilege helps keep it confidential. But questions have recently arisen about how the privilege is meant …