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- Faculty Publications (522)
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- All HBS Web (855)
- Faculty Publications (522)
- Article
Reaching for Yield in the Bond Market
By: Bo Becker and Victoria Ivashina
Reaching for yield—the propensity to buy riskier assets in order to achieve higher yields—is believed to be an important factor contributing to the credit cycle. This paper analyzes this phenomenon in the corporate bond market. Specifically, we show evidence for... View Details
Keywords: Fixed Income; Reaching For Yield; Financial Intermediation; Insurance Companies; Insurance; Assets; Bonds; Investment Return; Investment Portfolio; Risk Management; Insurance Industry
Becker, Bo, and Victoria Ivashina. "Reaching for Yield in the Bond Market." Journal of Finance 70, no. 5 (October 2015): 1863–1902.
- November 2013
- Case
Choosing Health Insurance Coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
By: Robert C. Pozen, Katherine Brooks and Iwan Djanali
- March 2011 (Revised November 2011)
- Case
Harmonic Hearing Co.
By: Howard H. Stevenson and Craig H. Stephenson
Harmonic is a small, privately held manufacturer of hearing aids. Harriet Burns and Marc Davis, two employees at Harmonic, have an opportunity to purchase the company from the founder. As well-informed insiders who understand the industry, Burns and Davis believe the... View Details
Keywords: Debts; Quantitative Analysis; Financing; Entrepreneurial Finance; Development Stage Enterprises; Small ＆ Medium-sized Enterprises; Small Business; Business Growth and Maturation; Cash Flow; Mathematical Methods; Entrepreneurship; Financing and Loans; Borrowing and Debt; Equity; Manufacturing Industry
Stevenson, Howard H., and Craig H. Stephenson. "Harmonic Hearing Co." Harvard Business School Brief Case 114-271, March 2011. (Revised November 2011.)
- Article
Informal Family Insurance and the Design of the Welfare State
By: Rafael Di Tella and Robert MacCulloch
We study unemployment benefit provision when the family also provides social insurance. In the benchmark case, more generous State transfers crowd out family risk-sharing one-for-one. An extension gives the State an advantage in enforcing transfers through taxes... View Details
Di Tella, Rafael, and Robert MacCulloch. "Informal Family Insurance and the Design of the Welfare State." Economic Journal 112, no. 477 (February 2002): 481–503.
- October 2014
- Case
Progressive, 2007-2013
By: John R. Wells and Galen Danskin
In 2013, Progressive was the fourth largest player in the auto insurance market, having lost the third position to GEICO in 2008. As the industry shifted from agency to online sales, GEICO's direct selling model positioned it strongly for growth. Progressive's direct... View Details
Keywords: Strategic Change; Insurance Companies; Insurance; Strategy; Insurance Industry; North America
Wells, John R., and Galen Danskin. "Progressive, 2007-2013." Harvard Business School Case 715-427, October 2014.
- Article
Narrow Networks on the Health Insurance Marketplaces: Prevalence, Pricing, and the Cost of Network Breadth
By: Leemore S. Dafny, Igal Hendel, Victoria Marone and Christopher Ody
Anecdotal reports and systematic research highlight the prevalence of narrow-network plans on the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance Marketplaces. At the same time, Marketplace premiums in the period 2014–2016 were much lower than projected by the Congressional... View Details
Dafny, Leemore S., Igal Hendel, Victoria Marone, and Christopher Ody. "Narrow Networks on the Health Insurance Marketplaces: Prevalence, Pricing, and the Cost of Network Breadth." Health Affairs 36, no. 9 (September 2017).
- 20 Dec 2022
- News
How Many More Disasters Can the Property Insurance Industry Survive?
- August 14, 2020
- Comment
How Has COVID-19 Affected Health Insurance Offered by Small Businesses in the U.S.? Early Evidence from a Survey
By: Leemore S. Dafny, Yin Wei Soon, Zoë Cullen and Christopher T. Stanton
As the COVID-19 pandemic stretches toward its third quarter, loss of health insurance coverage has not figured prominently in the public debate. Data in this report demonstrate why that is, but also suggest that the apparent stability is fragile, with potentially... View Details
Keywords: Health Pandemics; Health Care and Treatment; Insurance; Small Business; Surveys; United States
Dafny, Leemore S., Yin Wei Soon, Zoë Cullen, and Christopher T. Stanton. "How Has COVID-19 Affected Health Insurance Offered by Small Businesses in the U.S.? Early Evidence from a Survey." NEJM Catalyst (August 14, 2020). (Commentary.)
- 31 Mar 2023
- Research & Ideas
Can a ‘Basic Bundle’ of Health Insurance Cure Coverage Gaps and Spur Innovation?
By the early 1980s, several high-income countries—including Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand—had universal health insurance covering 100 percent of the population. Meanwhile, 40 years later, the United... View Details
- July 1978
- Article
On the Cost of Deposit Insurance When There Are Surveillance Costs
By: Robert C. Merton
Merton, Robert C. "On the Cost of Deposit Insurance When There Are Surveillance Costs." Journal of Business 51, no. 3 (July 1978): 439–452. (Chapter 20 in Continuous-Time Finance.)
- March 2003
- Case
Insurer of Last Resort? The Federal Financial Response to September 11
By: David A. Moss and Sarah A. Brennan
Examines the federal financial response to September 11, 2001: the airline bailout, the victim compensation fund, emergency aid to New York and Washington, and terrorism reinsurance. Less than two weeks after the attacks, the government had committed almost $40 billion... View Details
Moss, David A., and Sarah A. Brennan. "Insurer of Last Resort? The Federal Financial Response to September 11." Harvard Business School Case 703-041, March 2003.
- June 2006
- Article
Governance-linked D&O: Market-based Governance: Leveraging D&O Insurance to Drive Corporate Governance
By: Srikant M. Datar and J. H. Friedland
Datar, Srikant M., and J. H. Friedland. "Governance-linked D&O: Market-based Governance: Leveraging D&O Insurance to Drive Corporate Governance." International Journal of Disclosure and Governance 3, no. 2 (June 2006): 84–117.
- July 2000 (Revised August 2000)
- Teaching Note
The U.S. Banking Panic of 1933 and Federal Deposit Insurance (TN)
By: Julio J. Rotemberg
Teaching Note for (9-799-077). View Details
- September 2000
- Article
Regulatory Free Cash Flow and the High Cost of Insurance Company Failures
By: Brian Hall
Hall, Brian. "Regulatory Free Cash Flow and the High Cost of Insurance Company Failures." Journal of Risk and Insurance 67, no. 3 (September 2000): 415–438.
- January 2008
- Article
On the Pricing of Intermediated Risks: Theory and Application to Catastrophe Reinsurance
By: K. A. Froot and P. O'Connell
Keywords: Catastrophe Risk; Corporate Finance; Banking And Insurance; Hedging; Banking; Financial Markets; Insurance; Policy; Risk Management; Natural Disasters; Cost of Capital; Asset Pricing; Insurance Industry
Froot, K. A., and P. O'Connell. "On the Pricing of Intermediated Risks: Theory and Application to Catastrophe Reinsurance." Special Issue on Dynamics of Insurance Markets: Structure, Conduct, and Performance in the 21st Century Journal of Banking & Finance 32, no. 1 (January 2008): 69–85. (Revised from NBER Working Paper No. 6011, April 1997, Harvard Business School Working Paper No. 98-024, 1997.)
- March 2021
- Case
Humana (A)
By: Regina E. Herzlinger and Ashley Ifeadike
To implement a bold new strategy, Humana needed to decide how to prioritize the pillars; where to own and where to partner; how much risk is acceptable; and how to continue to deliver strong operational performance while implementing a new strategy. Had the firm made... View Details
Keywords: Health ＆ Wellness; Health Care Industry; Health Care Costs; Health Insurance; Health Insurance Marketplaces; Health Care and Treatment; Cost; Insurance; Strategy; Health Industry; United States
Herzlinger, Regina E., and Ashley Ifeadike. "Humana (A)." Harvard Business School Case 321-097, March 2021.
- June 1988 (Revised July 1989)
- Case
John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co.: The Inflation Strategy Task Force (A)
1980 was a critical time for John Hancock with high inflation, high interest rates, increased competition, and the desertion of policy holders seeking new investment opportunities. A new lower level (of vice presidents) task force was set up by the executive committee... View Details
Barnes, Louis B. "John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co.: The Inflation Strategy Task Force (A)." Harvard Business School Case 488-049, June 1988. (Revised July 1989.)
- 2010
- Working Paper
Does Diversification Create Value in the Presence of External Financing Constraints? Evidence from the 2007-2009 Financial Crisis
We show that the value of corporate diversification increased during the 2007-2009 financial crisis. Diversification gave firms both financing and investment advantages. First, conglomerates became significantly more leveraged relative to comparable focused firms.... View Details
Keywords: Diversification; Financial Crisis; Resource Allocation; Investment; Financing and Loans; Business Conglomerates; Capital Markets
Kuppuswamy, Venkat, and Belen Villalonga. "Does Diversification Create Value in the Presence of External Financing Constraints? Evidence from the 2007-2009 Financial Crisis." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 10-101, May 2010. (Revised November 2010.)
- June 2007
- Article
Risk Management, Capital Budgeting and Capital Structure Policy for Insurers and Reinsurers
By: K. A. Froot
Keywords: Risk Management; Capital Budgeting; Cost of Capital; Policy; Insurance; Asset Pricing; Insurance Industry
Froot, K. A. "Risk Management, Capital Budgeting and Capital Structure Policy for Insurers and Reinsurers." Journal of Risk and Insurance 74, no. 2 (June 2007): 273–299. (Winner of Robert C. Witt Award Given annually for the best feature article in the Journal of Risk and Insurance presented by American Risk and Insurance Association. Revised from NBER Working Paper no. 10184, Harvard Business School Working Paper no. 04-035, December 2003.)