accounting standards have further solidified the balance sheet approach, and suggest the trend towards fair value
accounting is likely gaining momentum.2
I hypothesize that this shift in standard setting has potentially compromised the value of the balance sheet for debt
contracting. As discussed in Holthausen and Watts (2001), Watts (2003), and Kothari et al. (2010), debt contracting parties
rely on a conservative balance sheet, with high thresholds of verifiability, to reflect the lower bound of the liquidation
value of net assets. Accounting under the balance sheet approach, however, often features estimates of asset and liability
values, as well as discretion in the timing of recognition of value changes. These value estimates—which I term ‘‘balance
sheet adjustments’’—have the potential to limit the contracting usefulness of the balance sheet by introducing error and
bias into reported asset and liability values. Because balance sheet adjustments provide unreliable signals of the
borrower’s liquidation value, lenders will, in turn, use balance sheet-based financial covenants less frequently. I therefore
hypothesize that this trend in standard setting has contributed to the change in covenant use, and that the magnitude of
balance sheet adjustments is negatively associated with the likelihood of a borrower having a balance sheet covenant.
Using a sample of 8,527 private debt agreements issued between 1996 and 2007, I document the decline in balance sheet
covenant use. I measure the borrower-specific exposure to balance sheet-based accounting rules using the Volatility Ratio (VR),
the ratio of the volatility of changes in book value over the volatility of adjusted net income, which excludes several transient
components.3 VR captures the magnitude of balance sheet adjustments such as marking investments to market and recognizing
impairment write-offs. Consistent with my prediction, I find a significant negative relation between VR and inclusion of balance
sheet covenants. I do not, however, find a significant relation between VR and inclusion of income statement covenants. The
empirical results are robust to a variety of alternative specifications, including use of different measures of balance sheet focus.
Although the subject of this study is accounting standards and how they influence the contracting usefulness of balance
sheet information, there are other plausible explanations for the pattern of declining balance sheet covenant use. I find
that the asset bases of borrowers are associated with covenant use, as borrowers with more assets in place and fewer
operating leases are more likely to have balance sheet covenants. I also find that deals with an ‘‘institutional tranche’’ (i.e.
a Term Loan Tranche B or higher), which are more likely to be sold or securitized (Wittenberg-Moerman, 2008), are less
likely to have balance sheet covenants. I interpret this as evidence that changes in the syndicated loan market have also
affected covenant use. I also examine the association between increased competition in lending and covenant use.
Although I find some evidence of covenant loosening by lenders who most aggressively expanded market share over the
sample period, the results suggest that competition has not contributed to the change in use of balance sheet covenants.
Finally, the association between VR and balance sheet covenant use is robust to these alternative explanations, consistent
with the view that changes in accounting standards have contributed to the change in covenant inclusion.
Although there is a strong association between VR and balance sheet covenant inclusion, there is no relation between
the ratio and income statement covenant use. I expect that there are two reasons for this. First, ‘‘dirty surplus’’ in US GAAP
allows many balance sheet adjustments to temporarily avoid recognition on the income statement; for example,
a valuation adjustment on an available-for-sale security is classified as other comprehensive income until the security
is sold.4 Second, when adjustments do articulate through the income statement, earnings in debt covenants is generally
มาตรฐานการบัญชีที่มีการหล่อวิธีดุล และแนะนำโน้มยุติธรรมบัญชีจะได้รับ momentum.2ผม hypothesize ที่เปลี่ยนแปลงการตั้งค่ามาตรฐานได้อาจโจมตีค่าดุลหนี้ทำสัญญา ตามที่กล่าวไว้ในบริการ และวัตต์ (2001), วัตต์ (2003), และโพธิวรคุณ et al. (2010), หนี้สัญญาอาศัยการอนุรักษ์สมดุลแผ่น เกณฑ์สูงของสาธารณ ถึงขอบล่างของการชำระบัญชีมูลค่าของสินทรัพย์สุทธิ บัญชีภายใต้วิธีการดุล อย่างไรก็ตาม มักจะมีการประเมินสินทรัพย์และหนี้สินค่า เป็นดุลพินิจในการกำหนดเวลาของการรับรู้การเปลี่ยนแปลงค่า ประเมินค่าเหล่านี้ — ซึ่งผมระยะ '' ดุลแผ่นปรับ '' — อาจจำกัดประโยชน์คู่สัญญาของงบดุล โดยการแนะนำข้อผิดพลาด และอคติเป็นรายงานค่าสินทรัพย์และหนี้สิน เนื่องจากการปรับปรุงงบดุลให้สัญญาณไม่น่าเชื่อถือของการมูลค่าเลิกกิจการของผู้กู้ ผู้ให้กู้จะ จะ ใช้ตามงบดุลการเงินสัญญาน้อยบ่อย ฉันดังนั้นhypothesize ว่า แนวโน้มนี้ในการตั้งค่ามาตรฐานมีส่วนในการใช้กติกา และที่มีขนาดของปรับปรุงงบดุลมีผลเกี่ยวข้องกับโอกาสของผู้กู้ที่มีพันธสัญญางบดุลใช้ตัวอย่างของข้อตกลงส่วนตัวหนี้ 8,527 ออกระหว่างปี 1996 และ 2007 เอกสารการลดลงในงบดุลcovenant use. I measure the borrower-specific exposure to balance sheet-based accounting rules using the Volatility Ratio (VR),the ratio of the volatility of changes in book value over the volatility of adjusted net income, which excludes several transientcomponents.3 VR captures the magnitude of balance sheet adjustments such as marking investments to market and recognizingimpairment write-offs. Consistent with my prediction, I find a significant negative relation between VR and inclusion of balancesheet covenants. I do not, however, find a significant relation between VR and inclusion of income statement covenants. Theempirical results are robust to a variety of alternative specifications, including use of different measures of balance sheet focus.Although the subject of this study is accounting standards and how they influence the contracting usefulness of balancesheet information, there are other plausible explanations for the pattern of declining balance sheet covenant use. I findthat the asset bases of borrowers are associated with covenant use, as borrowers with more assets in place and feweroperating leases are more likely to have balance sheet covenants. I also find that deals with an ‘‘institutional tranche’’ (i.e.a Term Loan Tranche B or higher), which are more likely to be sold or securitized (Wittenberg-Moerman, 2008), are lesslikely to have balance sheet covenants. I interpret this as evidence that changes in the syndicated loan market have alsoaffected covenant use. I also examine the association between increased competition in lending and covenant use.
Although I find some evidence of covenant loosening by lenders who most aggressively expanded market share over the
sample period, the results suggest that competition has not contributed to the change in use of balance sheet covenants.
Finally, the association between VR and balance sheet covenant use is robust to these alternative explanations, consistent
with the view that changes in accounting standards have contributed to the change in covenant inclusion.
Although there is a strong association between VR and balance sheet covenant inclusion, there is no relation between
the ratio and income statement covenant use. I expect that there are two reasons for this. First, ‘‘dirty surplus’’ in US GAAP
allows many balance sheet adjustments to temporarily avoid recognition on the income statement; for example,
a valuation adjustment on an available-for-sale security is classified as other comprehensive income until the security
is sold.4 Second, when adjustments do articulate through the income statement, earnings in debt covenants is generally
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