Rising Intangible Capital, Shrinking Debt Capacity, and the US Corporate Savings Glut

摘要: This paper explores the hypothesis that rise in intangible capital is a fundamental driver of secular trend US corporate cash holdings over last decades. Using new measure, we show most important firm-level determinant holdings. Our measure accounts for almost as much increase since 1980s all other determinants together. We then develop dynamic model with two types productive assets, tangible and capital. Since only can be pledged collateral, shift toward greater reliance on shrinks debt capacity firms leads them to optimally hold more order preserve financial flexibility. In model, growth options tend anticipation (S,s)-type adjustments physical because they want avoid raising costly external finance. this mechanism quantitatively important, our generates are up an magnitude higher than standard benchmark line their empirical averages Overall, results suggest technological change has contributed significantly recent changes liquidity management.