Finance and Financial Management Commons^™

Green Project Finance For Infrastructure And Building Construction: Instruments And Benchmarks, Yunping Liang

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

It is counterintuitive that both the practice and research on green project finance for infrastructure and building construction are ascendant and still have limited precedents, considering that individually, the two parts (i.e., project finance and sustainability in the built environment) are both familiar to the communities. To narrow the gap and facilitate the financing of the built environment’s sustainable transformation, this study systematically reviews the common instruments for financing green infrastructure and building projects. Benchmarking questions distinguishing the profile of green project finance from common construction project finance are developed based on the literature review and then are used for …

The Budget, Fiscal Year 2025-2026, Tennessee. Department Of Finance And Administration

Budget Volume 1

This document is the final budget for the coming fiscal year.

The Integration Of Big Data In Fintech: Review Of Enhancing Financial Services Through Advanced Technologies, Soudeh Pazouki, Mohammad B. Jamshidi, Mirarmia Jalali, Arya Tafreshi

Management Faculty Publications

Big data analytics is revolutionizing the FinTech industry, offering new opportunities for real-time decision-making, personalized financial services, and improved risk management. By leveraging advanced technologies like machine learning and artificial intelligence, financial institutions can efficiently detect fraud, predict market trends, and create innovative solutions tailored to customer needs. Big data also plays a critical role in promoting financial inclusion through alternative credit scoring models, providing access to credit for underserved populations and fostering broader participation in the financial system.

However, the integration of big data into FinTech is not without its challenges. Issues such as data privacy concerns, regulatory complexities, …

Effect Of Trade Openness On Food Security In Economic Community Of West African States Region, Yahaya Umar Isah, Ikubor, Ofili Jude, Bernard, O. A., Zakari Saheed S., Ayodeji, S.

DLSU Business & Economics Review

This study investigates the impact of trade openness on food security in the ECOWAS trade zone. The study relied on the system GMM approach to analyze the impact of trade openness on overall and disaggregated components of food security in the ECOWAS trade zone during the period 2014 and 2021. Annual time series data were sourced from the Food and Agriculture Organization, World Bank Metadata base, and World Integrated Trade Solution. Major findings from the study reveal that trade openness has a significant positive impact on overall food security indicators. However, trade openness has not significantly impacted food availability and …

The Global Value Chain Effects Of Rcep: Estimating The Impact On The Philippines, Caesar B. Cororaton

DLSU Business & Economics Review

This paper extends the global CGE model results of Cororaton (2022) by disaggregating further the RCEP trade creation effects on the Philippines into global value chain (GVC) impacts. The GVC analysis indicates that the trade agreement in RCEP results in higher Philippine exports of US$ 2.8 billion in 2031, of which the increase in Philippine domestic value added is US$ 2.4 billion, significantly higher than the foreign value added of US$ 403 million. Electronic products contribute 67% of the value added generated within the Philippines. The increase in the import contents of Philippine exports is only US$ 413 million. Furthermore, …

The Impact Of Short-Term Rental Activity On House Prices: Evidence From Coastal Virginia, Navid Safari, Lei Zhang, Timothy M. Komarek

Finance Faculty Publications

Short-term rentals such as Airbnb have grown substantially in recent years. In this study, we investigated the effect of Airbnb rentals on neighboring house prices in Hampton Roads, Virginia. We focus on three different measures of Airbnb activity to obtain more robust results. Our measures include active Airbnb listings, active listings with at least one reservation, and the sum of reservations over three different periods. Consistent with previous literature, our main results show that prior Airbnb rental activity has a positive impact on the surrounding housing sales prices. Furthermore, the localized impact diminishes over geographic space (i.e., distances greater than …

Labor Heterogeneity, Labor Adjustment Costs, And Externally Financed Firm Growth, Enxi An, Kenneth Yung

Finance Faculty Publications

Highlights

• Because skilled workers entail higher hiring and firing expenses, firms tend to retain skilled workers in the face of the high labor adjustment costs (LACs).

• The retention of skilled workers imposes inflexibility on business operations and exposes firms to cash flow shocks.

• Firms with high LACs hoard precautionary cash in the face of higher cash flow risk.

• We find a positive relationship between LACs and externally financed firm growth.

• Equity is the major source of external funds for firm growth in the face of high LACs.

• The retention of skilled workers elevates conflicts …

The Role Of Intangible Assets In Shaping Firm Value, Feng Dong, John Doukas

Finance Faculty Publications

This study introduces a new metric to evaluate a firm's intangible asset intensity, focusing on its ability to generate revenue from nonphysical assets. It finds a strong positive correlation between firm performance and both internally generated and externally acquired intangible assets. Firms with high intangible intensity outperform peers by 3% annually. The oversight of intangible assets is identified as a factor in value stocks' underperformance. Rigorous tests, including endogeneity checks, confirm these firms exhibit superior accounting quality, labour investment efficiency and acquisition returns. A framework highlights how managerial attributes enhance firm value through decision-making.

Addressing The Challenges Of A Catholic Parish Elementary School With Systemic Design Problem Solving, Alfred E. Bradley

Full-Text Theses & Dissertations

For more than a decade the repeated use of conventional analytic thinking and linear strategic planning approaches produced little effective progress or solutions for the many ongoing and emerging problems of St. Laurentius Catholic School, a parish elementary school within the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Indeed, many in the community believed that their distressing pathway characterized by continued differing perceptions among stakeholders, resource limitations and lack of autonomy were leading the school to closure. When a new clerical leader who was also a Doctor of Management in Strategic Leadership student was assigned, however, he suggested a novel approach. By reframing the …

“The Entire Art Movement Has Become An Enormous Business Venture” Financing The American Art Museum, Lucy Owen

MA Theses

This thesis examines the intricate relationship between financial operations and the public function of American art museums. The distinctive American nonprofit model relies heavily on private funds for its survival and success. The thesis traces the historical development of this model, and then analyzes the contemporary state of American art museums, with a specific focus on two prominent institutions: MoMA PS1 and the Yale University Art Gallery. The analysis highlights the significant influence of board members' financial contributions and their business expertise on museum operations. Moreover, the thesis argues that the museum world has undergone rapid financialization in the twenty-first …

Introduction To The Issue, Craig S. Maher, Bruce D. Mcdonald Iii

School of Public Service Faculty Publications

This edition of Public Finance Journal brings together research exploring critical issues in public finance, from voter perceptions of fiscal health to the evolving landscape of municipal finance and intergovernmental grants. As governments at all levels navigate financial sustainability, transparency, and accountability, these studies provide fresh insights into how financial policies and practices influence governance and public trust. The articles examine the political consequences of municipal credit ratings, the practical challenges of public records laws, the complexities of managing federal grants at the local level, and the rise of green bonds as a financial instrument for sustainable development. This research …

Deconstructing The Greenium: Exploring Mispricing In The Green Bond Market, Koto Yamada

Honors Theses

This paper investigates the sources and conditions under which the greenium – a yield discount observed for green bonds relative to comparable conventional bonds – appears in global fixed income markets. Using a dataset of over 26,000 bonds issued between 2012 and 2024 across 37 countries and 5,400 firms, I find that the existence of the greenium is highly context-dependent, shaped by factors such as issuer reputation, institutional trust, and green capital allocation across sectors. Repeat green issuers receive yield discounts of up to 57 basis points, particularly in the EU and Nordic countries, where strong climate policies and disclosure …

Adaptation For Whom? Understanding The Impacts Of Dyke Policies On Small-Scale Farmers In Ca Mau Province Of Vietnam, Nguyen Minh Quang, Nguyen Van Minh, Nguyen Vo Chau Ngan, Martha B. Lerski

Publications and Research

Low-lying deltas worldwide are extremely vulnerable to sea-level rise. As the risks of climate-induced flooding become increasingly clear, the thirst for infrastructure-driven adaptation increases. This highlights a patent need to understand the impacts of engineering adaptation solutions, especially those targeting built structures such as dykes and sluices, on farmers from a bottom-up, farmer-centred perspective. The study addresses this call by examining cases where dyke policies, while successful in some dimensions, have undermined small-scale farmer livelihoods in Ca Mau ― Vietnam’s southernmost rural province. It identifies areas in need of attention and adds empirical data related to this group of farmers. …

Proof Of Reserves: A Double-Helix Framework, Maksym Lazirko, Deniz Appelbaum, Miklos Vasarhelyi

Department of Accounting and Finance Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Cryptocurrency exchanges face increasing pressure to demonstrate reserve adequacy following platform failures, yet current Proof of Reserves (PoR) systems suffer from incomplete verification approaches that examine either on-chain or off-chain assets separately. This study introduces the Double-Helix Framework, a verification methodology that integrates on-chain blockchain analysis with off-chain consensus algorithms to provide complete assessment of exchange financial positions. The framework employs parallel verification strands that simultaneously validate blockchain-recorded transactions and off-chain financial information, creating a unified assessment mechanism that addresses the verification gaps in existing PoR systems. The framework's integration of traditional auditing principles with distributed ledger verification creates new …

Debiasing Recency: Evidence From Individual Investor Stock Sales, Vladimir Kotomin, Abhishek Varma

Faculty Publications – Finance, Insurance, and Law

In the first large-sample study of recency bias mitigation, we show that individual investors dispose of relatively longer-held stocks in December tax-loss sales compared to other months. We argue that before engaging in December tax-loss sales, investors review all or most of their losing positions instead of focusing on the most recently acquired stocks. Thus, reviewing relevant information mitigates recency bias in a large, diverse sample of investors. This behavior is consistent across investor, stock, and portfolio characteristics; it is found even in accounts with only long-term capital losses.

Performance Auditing Trends At A Supreme Audit Institution: Uk National Audit Office, 1999 To 2021, Amir Michael, Laurence Ferry, Bruce Mcdonald, Henry Midgley

School of Public Service Faculty Publications

Performance audits have become increasingly important across the world. Scholars know that a variety of practices are incorporated within performance audits and have mapped this diversity. However, few quantitative studies examine performance auditing as a practice. This study fills that gap. By analyzing the published performance audit documentation of the UK National Audit Office (NAO), the study explores the influences of governmental change and crises behind changes in a supreme audit institution's performance audit. It also examines whether performance audits are diverse by examining the language used by the auditors. The study provides evidence that neither crises nor changes of …

Budgeting For Social Equity: Exploring The (Nearly) Unknown, Bruce D. Mcdonald Iii, Sean M. Mccandless

School of Public Service Faculty Publications

Public administration has become increasingly concerned with social equity, particularly in budgetary processes. Local governments have adopted so-called equity budgeting practices, yet little is understood about how and why they are adopted; what budgeting practices are deemed social equity budgeting versus traditional budgeting; what is required to adopt and implement social equity budgeting successfully; and how success is measured. We analyzed government and nonprofit documents on social equity budgeting, followed by interviews with local government budget directors serving “early adopter cities” of social equity budgeting practices. We developed a framework of social equity budgeting practices to link the findings regarding …

What Role Do Finance Ministers Play In Political Business Cycles? Evidence-Based On A New African Dataset, Christine Olivia Strong

Economics Faculty Publications

This study investigates how the personal characteristics of finance ministers influence political budget cycles in Africa. Using a new dataset covering 300 finance ministers across 23 countries from 1980 to 2020, we find that political budget cycles primarily take the form of increased government consumption during election years. Ministers with prior central banking experience are less likely to amplify spending in election years, effectively curbing political budget cycles. These results remain consistent after accounting for institutional quality, ministerial tenure, and other confounding factors. The findings contribute to the literature by showing that the appointment of finance ministers in African countries …

Ethnic Politics And Fiscal Dominance: Implications For Currency Union Formation In Sub-Saharan Africa, Benjamin D. Keen, Christine O. Strong

Economics Faculty Publications

Numerous currency unions have been proposed in Africa over the past 50 years, but none have succeeded. This paper asserts ethnic favouritism is a crucial yet often overlooked feature that strongly influences an African government’s willingness to join a currency union. We use a Barro and Gordon (1983) style model that incorporates fiscal dominance, political business cycles and ethnic favouritism to assess the benefits and costs to African households and governments of joining a currency union. Our results show that ethnic alignment between the head of state and central bank governor amplifies fiscal dominance, which reduces an African government’s desire …

Breaking The Language Barriers? Machine Translation Technology And Analysts’ Forecasts For Firms With Foreign Operations, Bingxu Fang, Pengkai Lin

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

We study the impact of machine translation technology on analysts’ forecasts for firms with foreign operations. Exploiting the staggered rollout of Google Translate’s support for translating foreign languages into English, we find that U.S. analysts improve their forecast accuracy for firms with substantial business exposure to the corresponding foreign countries. We obtain similar evidence using an international sample of analysts covering firms outside their home countries. The improvement in forecast accuracy is greater for analysts with limited language skills or brokerage resources to process foreign information. Further analysis suggests that analysts raise more questions about firms’ foreign exposure during conference …