Did Fair Value Accounting Contribute to the Financial Crisis?

Christian Laux and Christian Leuz

Fair-value accounting (FVA), also known as “mark-to-market” accounting, has been blamed for contributing significantly to the financial crisis. But Christian Leuz, of Chicago Booth, and his coauthor, Christian Laux, have analyzed the role of FVA for U.S. banks and conclude that there is no evidence that fair-value accounting added to the severity of the financial crisis in a major way.

Read short summary>
Read working paper>