Do bank managers use securitization gains to smooth earnings in the post- FAS 166/167 period?

Abstract Previous literature has documented that securitization gains were used for income smoothing in the era before FAS 166 and FAS 167, 1 which tightened the requirements for sale accounting for securitizations. Using securitizing bank holding companies, we examine whether FAS 166/167 has reduced this income smoothing behavior. Our findings include two facets. First, at the aggregate level, time series statistics show that both the frequency of non-zero securitization gains reported and the magnitude of reported securitization gains are significantly reduced in the post- FAS 166/167 period. Second, at the firm level, our regression results indicate that even though the extent of this income smoothing behavior decreased after the issuance of FAS 166/167, securitization gains continue to be used to smooth earnings by securitizing banks in the post-FAS 166/167 period. Overall, our findings convey that FAS 166/167 has reduced the securitization gains recorded by banks but that after the regulation, banks still use securitization gains to smooth earnings.