Credit ratings and social capital

Ashrafee Hossain, Takdir Hossain, Anand Jha and Mbodja Mougoué

Journal of Corporate Finance, 2023, vol. 78, issue C

Abstract: We posit that credit ratings are higher for firms headquartered in high social capital regions, where managers are more likely to be trustworthy. To test this hypothesis, 9460 corporate debt ratings of US firms from 2001– 2015 was examined. We find that firms headquartered in a county with high social capital in the US have a higher credit rating. This effect is incremental and economically comparable to that of corporate social responsibility. Additional tests suggest that the impact of social capital on ratings is likely because analysts find them more credible. We conclude that credit analysts may consider the social norm around the firm's headquarters when rating firms.

Keywords: Social capital; Credit rating; Social norm; Financial crisis; CSR; Trust (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G24 G40 Z13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:corfin:v:78:y:2023:i:c:s092911992200181x

DOI: 10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2022.102338

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