The period since the global financial crisis of 2008 has been characterized by the emergence of a broad set of tech-driven financial companies ("fintech" companies), acting in parallel with traditional banking services.
... See More + Although the new players are ramping up competition, pushing digital transformation and exerting pressure on the global financial sector, their services appear to be highly complementary to the ones provided by the more established banks, which are also embracing these technologies.
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This paper documents to what extent firms from developing countries borrow short versus long term, using data on corporate bond and syndicated loan markets.
... See More + Contrary to claims in the literature based on firm balance sheets, firms from developing countries borrow through bonds and syndicated loans at maturities similar to those obtained by developed country firms. The composition and use of financing matters. Firms from developing countries borrow shorter term in domestic bond markets, but the differences in international issuances (accounting for most of the proceeds) are significantly smaller. Developing country firms borrow longer term in syndicated loan markets, which they partially use for infrastructure projects. However, only large firms from developing countries (similar in size to those from developed ones) issue bonds and syndicated loans. The short-termism in developing countries is partly explained by a lower proportion of firms using these markets, with more firms relying on other shorter-term instruments.
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Policy Research Working Paper WPS8222 OCT 19, 2017
This paper studies the extent to which access to domestic and international bond markets and syndicated loan markets and switches across them impact corporate debt maturity.
... See More + Using world issuance activity during 1991-2014, the paper shows that different markets provide financing at different terms and that the importance of each market varies over time. Thus, the type of debt issued and its composition affect corporate maturity. During the global financial crisis of 2008-09, firms issued more bonds and, in developing countries, also more domestic loans. Because these markets are of longer maturity, the substitution across them allowed the largest firms that switched markets to maintain their average borrowing maturity, even when the maturity within each market declined for switchers and non-switchers. This evidence suggests that firms use different debt markets as complements and substitutes, and that compositional effects across firms and markets have a material impact on firm-specific and aggregate maturity.
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Policy Research Working Paper WPS7815 SEP 08, 2016
This paper documents how firms in Arab countries issue equity, corporate bonds, and syndicated loans in domestic and international markets to obtain financing and grow.
... See More + Using a new data set on issuance activity and firm performance, the paper finds that capital raising through these markets has grown rapidly since the early 1990s and involved an increasing number of issuing firms. Whereas the amounts raised (relative to gross domestic product) in equity and loan markets stand well with respect to international standards, bond issuance activity lags behind. Yet, bond financing has gained importance over time. Equity issuances primarily take place domestically, while bonds and loans are mostly issued internationally, display long maturities, and entail low levels of credit risk. Issuing firms are larger, grow faster, and are more leveraged than non-issuers. While issuers tend to be larger ex ante than non-issuers, the size gap between them seems to widen over time.
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Policy Research Working Paper WPS7756 JUL 20, 2016
Cortina Lorente,Juan Jose; Ismail,Soha Ismail Ahmed Aly; Schmukler,Sergio L.Disclosed