29 mai 2017, 10h30–12h00
Toulouse
Salle MS001
Department Seminar
Résumé
We analyze the supply side of credit card markets, and the pricing and marketing strategies of issuers. First, card issuers target less-educated customers with more steeply back-loaded and hidden fees (e.g. higher late and over-limit fees). Second, issuers use rewards programs to screen for unobservable borrower types. Finally, we use increases in state-level unemployment insurance (UI) as positive shocks to creditworthiness and show that issuers rely more on back-loaded (hidden) fees when UI increases, especially for less-educated customers. This result documents a novel trade-off: card issuers weigh short-term fee maximization against increases in credit risk, when using back-loaded fees.