Plausibly Exogenous [1862] - Antitrust (03/09/2025)

LHS Variable
Deposit rates

RHS Variable
Bank competition

Source of Exogenous Variation
The discontinuous application of bank antitrust rules based on the HHI threshold (1800 with a 200-point increase). Mergers that push HHI above 1800 trigger mandatory branch divestitures, creating quasi-experimental variation in bank competition

- Liebersohn (2024), “How does competition affect retail banking? Quasi-experimental evidence from bank mergers”