Asset Insulators

57 Pages Posted: 19 Jul 2016 Last revised: 2 Oct 2016

See all articles by Gabriel Chodorow-Reich

Gabriel Chodorow-Reich

Harvard University Department of Economics

Andra C. Ghent

University of Utah - David Eccles School of Business

Valentin Haddad

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) - Anderson School of Management; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: May 28, 2016

Abstract

We propose that financial institutions can act as asset insulators, holding assets for the long run to protect their valuations from consequences of exposure to financial markets. We illustrate the empirical relevance of this theory for the balance sheet behavior of a large class of intermediaries, life insurance companies. The pass-through from assets to equity is an especially informative metric for distinguishing the asset insulator theory from Modigliani-Miller or other standard models. We estimate the pass-through using security-level data on insurers’ holdings matched to corporate bond returns. Uniquely consistent with the insulator view, outside of the 2008-2009 crisis insurers lose as little as 10 cents in response to a dollar drop in asset values, while during the crisis the pass-through rises to roughly 1. The rise in pass-through highlights the fragility of insulation exactly when it is most valuable.

JEL Classification: G01, G11, G22, G23

Suggested Citation

Chodorow-Reich, Gabriel and Ghent, Andra C. and Haddad, Valentin, Asset Insulators (May 28, 2016). 2nd Annual Financial Institutions, Regulation and Corporate Governance Conference, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2810553 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2810553

Gabriel Chodorow-Reich

Harvard University Department of Economics ( email )

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HOME PAGE: http://scholar.harvard.edu/chodorow-reich

Andra C. Ghent (Contact Author)

University of Utah - David Eccles School of Business ( email )

1645 E Campus Center Dr
Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9303
United States

Valentin Haddad

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) - Anderson School of Management ( email )

110 Westwood Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1481
United States

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) ( email )

1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

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