Macroprudential policy with convertible debt

Abstract

This paper studies the effectiveness of countercyclical capital requirements and contingent convertible capital (CoCos) in limiting financial instability, and its associated influence on the real economy. To do this, I augment both features into a standard business cycle framework with an equity market and a banking sector. The model is calibrated to real U.S. data and used for simulations. The findings suggest that a countercyclical capital adequacy rule and CoCos provide an effective dual approach to macroprudential policy. On the one hand, a capital adequacy rule mitigates the build-up of systemic risk through a capital buffer. On the other hand, CoCos are able to reduce the impact of a sudden decline in bank capital.