We distinguish the impact of information technology adoption on information processing costs and agency costs by conducting a randomized control trial with a bank that adopts a new credit-scoring tool. The availability of scores significantly increases credit committees’ effort and output on difficult-to-evaluate loan applications. Output increases almost as much in a treatment where the committee receives no new information, but anticipates the score becoming available after it evaluates a application, which suggests that scores reduce incentive problems inside the credit committee. We also show that scores improve efficiency by decentralizing decision-making and equalizing marginal returns across loans.
Erasmus Finance Seminars
- Speaker(s)
- Daniel Paravisini (London School of Economics and Political Science, United Kingdom)
- Date
- Tuesday, November 12, 2013
- Location
- Rotterdam