01733cas a2200241 a 4500 AALejournalIMF017380 230101c9999 xx r poo 0 0eng d 5.00 USD 9781475572315 1018-5941 BD-DhAAL BD-DhAAL Kirti, Divya. What Are Reference Rates For? / Divya Kirti. Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, 2017. 1 online resource (45 pages) IMF Working Papers <strong>Off-Campus Access:</strong> No User ID or Password Required <strong>On-Campus Access:</strong> No User ID or Password Required Electronic access restricted to authorized BRAC University faculty, staff and students What is the precise role of reference rates? Why does it matter if LIBOR was manipulated? To address these questions, I analyze the use of reference rates in floating-rate loans and interestrate derivatives in the context of lending relationships. I develop a simple framework combining maturity transformation with three key frictions which generate meaningful funding risk and a rationale for risk management. Reference rates like LIBOR mitigate contractual incompleteness, facilitating management of funding risk. As bank funding costs move with bank credit risk, it makes sense for the reference rate to have a bank credit risk component. Manipulation can add noise, reducing the usefulness of reference rates for this purpose. Mode of access: Internet IMF Working Papers; Working Paper ; No. 2017/013 Full text available on IMF http://elibrary.imf.org/view/journals/001/2017/013/001.2017.issue-013-en.xml IMF e-Library