A well-known disadvantage of using equity as a risk management tool, is that by
reducing debt, a firm reduces the interest tax shield that debt provides. In contrast,managers using the other broad tools of risk management, operational adjustments and
use of targeted financial instruments, typically have greater flexibility to avoid
disadvantageous tax consequences of their risk management actions. As a corollary,
managers can increase a firm’s debt capacity by reducing risks operationally or with
targeted financial instruments. Another disadvantage of managing risk via the capital
structure is that a reduction in debt can create or exacerbate certain agency problems.