We study the impact of a significant customer's merger on the capital structure of suppliers using a sample of U.S. firms that merged with rivals in the same industry. The bargaining power theory of capital structure predicts that suppliers will increase debt to decrease the surplus available for negotiation when facing customers that gain buying power by increasing their size through mergers. We find that suppliers increase their financial leverage after the effective date of their customer's merger. This increase is economically significant, permanent, and unrelated to supplier merger activity. We also find that greater concentration in the supplier's industry and higher supplier market power are associated with lower increases in supplier's leverage. Overall, the empirical evidence is consistent with suppliers increasing their financial leverage to fortify their bargaining power.

中文翻译：

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客户横向并购对供应商资本结构决策的影响

我们使用与同行业竞争对手合并的美国公司样本研究了一个重要客户的合并对供应商资本结构的影响。资本结构的议价能力理论预测，当面对通过合并扩大规模获得购买力的客户时，供应商将增加债务以减少可用于谈判的盈余。我们发现，供应商在客户合并生效之日后会增加财务杠杆。这种增长在经济上是显着的、永久性的，并且与供应商合并活动无关。我们还发现，供应商行业的更大集中度和更高的供应商市场力量与供应商杠杆率的较低增长有关。全面的，