This paper aims to investigate the determinants of collateral requirements for loans that are extended to small and medium-sized enterprises in less-developed countries. Our primary data source consists of the results from firms in Eastern Europe and Central Asia from the Business Environment and Enterprise Performance Survey, which is compiled by the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The results show that borrower-specific variables are more important than country-specific variables in determining collateral requirements on loan contracts. The strongest evidence in our paper emphasises the importance of borrower risk and loan cost in collateral determinants.

We study the relative effectiveness of exit (divestment and boycott) and voice (engagement) strategies in a world where companies generate externalities and some agents care about the social impact of their decisions. We show that if the majority of investors are even slightly socially responsible, voice achieves the socially optimal outcome. In contrast, exit does not unless everybody is significantly socially responsible. If the majority of investors are purely selfish, exit is a more effective strategy, but neither strategy generally achieves the first best. We also show that exit can sometimes reduce social welfare.