---
title: "Merton model (distance to default): formula and papers"
description: "Merton model (distance to default) was mentioned in 4 papers in the last 30 days (2026-09-27 to 2026-10-26), ranking #82 of the 104 equations and models mentioned."
url: https://scholar4ai.com/equations/merton-model-distance-to-default
markdown_url: https://scholar4ai.com/equations/merton-model-distance-to-default.md
license: CC BY-NC 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)
share_text: "Merton model (distance to default) was mentioned in 4 papers in the last 30 days (2026-09-27 to 2026-10-26), ranking #82 of the 104 equations and models mentioned."
data_url: https://scholar4ai.com/data/rankings.json
updated: 2026-10-26T14:52:47+09:00
window: 2026-09-27 to 2026-10-26
source: OpenAlex (CC0)
---

# Merton model (distance to default)

$$
DD = \frac{\ln(V/D) + (\mu - \sigma_V^2/2)\,T}{\sigma_V\sqrt{T}}
$$

Treats equity as a call option on firm assets V; distance to default measures how far assets are from the default point D.

- area: Asset pricing and risk
- 0 papers in the last 7 days
- Names searched for: distance to default, Merton model, Merton's model, KMV

Back to the ranking: https://scholar4ai.com/rankings/equations.md

## Key findings

- Merton model (distance to default) was mentioned in 4 papers in the last 30 days (2026-09-27 to 2026-10-26), ranking #82 of the 104 equations and models mentioned.
- By journal category: Economics (2) and Finance (2).
- Most of them appeared in Eurasian economic review : (1), Energy Economics (1) and Finance research letters (1).
- Often mentioned together with Ordinary least squares (OLS) (3), Instrumental variables (two-stage least squares) (1) and Black-Scholes formula (1).
- Datasets named in the same papers: VIX (1), Refinitiv Datastream (1) and EU ETS transaction log (1).
- From Oct 2023 to Sep 2026, 34 archived papers mentioned Merton model (distance to default) in their title, abstract or keywords, most of them in Mar 2025 (4).

## Mentions over 36 months

*Papers mentioning it by publication month, Oct 2023 to Sep 2026 (titles, abstracts and keywords)*

| Trend | Oct 23–Sep 24 | Oct 24–Sep 25 | Oct 25–Sep 26 | 36 months |
|---|---:|---:|---:|---:|
|  | 15 | 17 | 2 | 34 |

*Papers mentioning Merton model (distance to default), newest first.*

| Date | Title | Journal | Authors | Affiliations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-13 | [Climate disclosure and risk premium in the European bond market](https://doi.org/10.1007/s40822-026-00401-x) | [Eurasian economic review :](https://scholar4ai.com/journals/eurasian-economic-review.md) | Matteo Mazzarano, Gianni Guastella, Stefano Pareglio et al. | Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore; Athens University of Economics and Business; University of Bologna; … |
| 2026-10-11 | [Capacity imbalance and default risk in new energy firms](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2026.109646) | [Energy Economics](https://scholar4ai.com/journals/energy-economics.md) | Boqiang Lin, Jiangnan Li | Xiamen University; City University of Macau |
| 2026-10-04 | [Macroprudential policy and financial risk: The moderating role of financial innovation](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2026.110880) | [Finance research letters](https://scholar4ai.com/journals/finance-research-letters.md) | Jinghao Yang, Jun Wen, Xinxin Zhao et al. | Xi'an Jiaotong University; China University of Geosciences; China University of Geosciences (Beijing); … |
| 2026-09-29 | [Skilled labor mobility and bank default](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfs.2026.101599) | [Journal of Financial Stability](https://scholar4ai.com/journals/journal-of-financial-stability.md) | Yuna Heo, Akif Midilli, Steven R. G. Ongena | University of Basel; Swiss Finance Institute; University of Zurich; … |

## Cite this page

Scholar4AI. (2026). Merton model (distance to default). Journal Research Rankings. Retrieved October 26, 2026, from https://scholar4ai.com/equations/merton-model-distance-to-default

```bibtex
@misc{scholar4ai-equations-merton-model-distance-to-default,
  author = {{Scholar4AI}},
  title = {Merton model (distance to default)},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {\url{https://scholar4ai.com/equations/merton-model-distance-to-default}},
  urldate = {2026-10-26},
  note = {Journal Research Rankings; data from OpenAlex (CC0); licensed CC BY-NC 4.0}
}
```

License: CC BY-NC 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).