Without a Trace: The Importance of Information in Markets

Abstract

Economists and practitioners alike would agree that information plays an important role in capital markets. But the practical job of gathering, organizing and disseminating information in markets is too often left to chance. This paper dramatizes the difficulties that can occur when that happens by using the high yield market as an example. The transition from rapid expansion in the 1980s to stable growth in the 1990s was not without its informational road-bumps. The main point of the paper is to emphasize the importance of the informational role being played by industry organizations such as the Loan Syndication and Trading Association (LSTA) in the U.S.

Keywords: Syndicated loan market, financial markets, information and market efficiency

JEL Classification: E44, G14, O16