Intellectual property rights reform and the cost of corporate debt |
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Affiliation: | 1. School of Economics, UCD Dublin 4, Dublin, Ireland;2. Montpellier Business School, Montpellier, France;3. Fordham University, Bank of Finland and University of Sydney, 45 Columbus Avenue, #511, Martino Hall, New York, NY 10023, USA;4. Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA;1. la Caixa, Spain;2. Union College, USA |
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Abstract: | This paper investigates the role of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection on the cost of bank loans for firms in 48 countries. Using substantial reforms of patent rights as a source of identifying variation, the paper provides strong evidence that borrowers from countries that underwent IPR reform experience significant reductions in the cost of bank debt. Importantly, the effects of IPR reform on loan rates are significantly larger in industries that are more IP-intensive. Additional analysis shows that in the wake of reforms borrowers obtain larger size loans, which indicates that improvements in IPR are associated with greater credit availability. IPR reform also increases foreign lenders participation in loan syndicates. Overall, these findings suggest that legal protection afforded to intellectual property has a significant impact on the cost of corporate borrowing and the ability of innovative firms to raise debt capital. |
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Keywords: | Intellectual property rights Bank loans O34 G21 G30 |
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