Do universal banks finance riskier but more productive firms?

Using variation in bank scope generated by the stepwise repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act in the US, we show that the deregulation of universal banks allowed them to finance firms with 14% higher volatility. This increase in risk is compensated by lasting improvements in firms' total factor productivity of 3%. Using bank scope-expanding mergers to identify shocks to universal banks' private information about borrower firms, we provide evidence that informational economies of scope across loans and non-loan products account for the firm-level real effects of universal banking. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.