Patrick Bolton

European economist of contract theory, corporate finance, and financial institutions

contract theorycorporate financefinancial institutions

Official Source Note

Imperial College Business School identifies Bolton as Professor of Finance and Economics and Research Director of its Centre for Climate Finance and Investment. Its profile records his work in contract theory, corporate finance, financial intermediation, institutions, and public policy.

Bolton is included because incomplete contracts and creditor coordination are central to the legal allocation of control in firms, debt structures, restructurings, and long-term financing relationships.

Source: Imperial College Business School

Relevance to the Archive

Bolton connects incomplete-contract theory to debt structure, creditor coordination, corporate control, and the design of institutions that govern long-term financial commitments.

Representative Contributions

Optimal Debt Structure and the Number of Creditors (with David S. Scharfstein, 1996)
Contract Theory (with Mathias Dewatripont, 2005)
The Green Swan: Central Banking and Financial Stability in the Age of Climate Change (with coauthors, 2020)