This paper examines the pricing of global syndicated loans during the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that loan spreads rise by over 11 basis points in response to a one standard deviation increase the lender's exposure to COVID-19 and over 5 basis points for an equivalent increase in the borrower's exposure. This renders firms subject to a burden of about USD 5.16 million and USD 2.37 million respectively in additional interest expense for a loan of average size and duration. The aggravating effect of the pandemic is exacerbated with the level of government restrictions to tackle the virus's spread, with firms’ financial constraints and reliance on debt financing, whereas it is mitigated for relationship borrowers, borrowers listed in multiple exchanges or headquartered in countries that can attract institutional investors.

本文研究了 COVID-19 大流行期间全球银团贷款的定价。我们发现，贷款利差上升超过 11 个基点，以响应一个标准差增加贷方对 COVID-19 的风险敞口，而贷款利差上升超过 5 个基点，对应于借款人风险敞口的同等增加。这使企业分别承受约 516 万美元和 237 万美元的平均规模和期限贷款的额外利息支出。政府为应对病毒传播而采取的限制措施、公司的财务限制和对债务融资的依赖加剧了大流行病的恶化影响，而对于关系借款人、在多个交易所上市的借款人或总部设在可吸引机构投资者。