The Anticipatory Real Effects of Accounting Standard Change: The Case of the Current Expected Credit Loss AdoptionÂ
Publication Date
5-14-2026
Abstract
The Current Expected Credit Loss (CECL) model forced banks to build more forward-looking credit-risk systems well before formal adoption. Exploiting the 2016-2020 preparation window, we examine whether these mandated informational upgrades altered lending decisions even while the incurred loss model remained in force. Such real effects represent an unintended externality of the standard-setting process and speak directly to a core evaluation criterion in the FASB's post-implementation review (PIR) framework. Using an affectedness-based design, we compare banks with relatively low reserve coverage at the onset of the transition to otherwise similar banks, after entropy balancing on observable lending and risk characteristics. We find that low-reserve banks, especially those with riskier portfolios, reduce lending growth but increase portfolio risk and loan profitability relative to comparable banks. These patterns suggest that CECL-induced improvements in information systems enhanced screening and credit-risk assessment, leading to more efficient lending decisions before the standard took effect. More broadly, our evidence highlights an important anticipatory real effect of accounting standard changes that operates through information production rather than through the mechanical effects of financial reporting.
Document Type
Article
Keywords
Bank Lending, Prudential Regulation, Loan-loss Provisioning, Externalities
Source
SMU Cox: IT & Operations Management (Topic)
Language
English
