Journal of Financial Economics Vol. 149 No. 3 2023
Deputizing financial institutions to fight elder abuse
open access
Abstract
Permissive laws deputize financial professionals to screen for misbehavior without providing explicit incentives. These are very common in financial markets. To evaluate their effectiveness, we exploit the staggered adoption of the 2016 Model Act provisions intended to curb elder abuse. We find a drop in reports of abuse by financial professionals to the Department of Treasury and, separately, in financial crimes against the elderly as monitored by the FBI . The effect is stronger where the elderly are more isolated. Our results highlight the role financial professionals play in combating social problems and the impact of permissive policies.
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.jfineco.2023.06.004
- Volume
- 149
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 557-577
- Language
- en
- Sources
- bibtex:phds-export.bib openalex crossref