Business Commons^™

Fintech Projects And Initial Coin Offerings: A Research Note, Andrea Moro, Dao Wang

The Journal of Entrepreneurial Finance

We explore the determinants of success of Initial Coin Offerings (ICO) defined as whether the ICO was successful in raising the funds. We look at financial and technical information disclosed by the ICO as well as the information disclosed by third parties about the ICO and the level of legal protection granted. We discover that even if both hard information (financial and technical) and soft information (social media and legal protection) matter, nevertheless a more relevant role is played by the technical information. Based on our analysis, we identify areas that need further investigation in the context of ICOs.

Etf Momentum, Frank Weikai Li, Song Wee Melvyn Teo, Chloe Chunliu Yang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We document economically large momentum profits when sorting ETFs on returns over the past two to four years. A value-weighted, long-short strategy based on ETF momentum delivers Carhart (1997) four-factor alphas of up to 1.20% per month. Neither cross-sectional stock momentum nor co-variation with macroeconomic and liquidity risks can explain ETF momentum. Instead, the post-holding period returns are most consonant with the behavioral story of delayed overreaction. While ETF momentum survives multiple adjustments for transaction costs, it may be difficult to arbitrage as the profits are volatile and concentrated in ETFs with high idiosyncratic volatility or that hold low-analyst-coverage stocks.

Plastic Bags And Bamboo Stools, Grace R. Bithell

Marriott Student Review

This paper conducts a critical analyses of microfinance institutions. It gives an overview of the complexities of credit in developing countries and shows how microfinance fits into the equations. It discussed the successes and failures of microenterprises in trying to alleviate poverty. It also delves into best practices pertaining to lending to the poor and how microfinance is impacted by culture in developing nations.

Research Summary: Does Front-Loading Taxation Increase Savings? Evidence From Roth 401(K) Introductions, Parker Gardner

Marriott Student Review

Can taxing retirement savings upfront increase buying power in retirement? BYU Marriott School of Management Dean Brigitte Madrian and fellow researches examine the impact of Roth 401(k)s on retirement savings and find that the introduction of Roth 401(k)s does not impact the dollar amount invested into 401(k)s.

Crowdfunding Challenges For New Charity Organizations, Katherine M. Lowe

Marriott Student Review

A look into the complicated and competitive world of nonprofit fundraising in the modern world. With a special emphasis on the struggles new nonprofits face in differentiating their services and attracting donors through online crowdfunding.

Research Project In Finance: Target Corporation, Saba Ajmal

Student Scholarship

Target Corporation was founded in Minnesota and is currently the eight-largest retailer in the US. Target Corp. stock is a part of the S&P500 index. Target’s primary business focus is on selling customers everyday essentials that are on the trendier side at a reasonable price (Form 10- k). Target Corp. has designed a system to provide customers with a unique shopping experience that is well integrated in stores and online via Target.com. According to the firm’s 10-k report, “Our ability to deliver a preferred shopping experience to our guests is supported by our supply chain and technology, our devotion to …

Research Project In Finance: Six Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, Keagan Parsons

Student Scholarship

Six Flags Entertainment Corporation is a theme park company that offers guests thrill rides, water attractions, and other themed events. Six Flags currently operates 25 parks, with 22 parks in the United States, 2 parks Mexico and one in Montreal, Canada. These 25 parks span over 5,900 acres of land and the company has an additional 800 acres of available land yet to be used. In 2018, Six Flags had an aggregate of 920 rides being offered, with the largest segment being their 150 roller coasters.

Six Flags holds exclusive licensing, through Warner Bros and DC Comics, of the theme …

The Role Of Social Trust In Times Of Crisis, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

Research shows social trust improves the resilience of firms to banking crises

The Ursinus College Investment Management Company Newsletter, Fall 2019, Scott Deacle

Investment Management Company Newsletter

Inside this issue:

What's New?

Women-in-Finance Program

What are "They" Saying?

New York Field Trip

2019 Fund Performance

Supporters

The Relationship Between Investment And Internal Cash Flows In Vc-Backed Smes: Does Firm Size Matter?, Zélia Silva Serrasqueiro, Filipe Sardo, Elisabete Félix

The Journal of Entrepreneurial Finance

Using panel data models and two research sub-samples composed of smaller and larger VC-backed, this study seeks to analyze the relationship between investment and internal cash flows. The results indicate that the investment sensitivity to internal cash flows is greater in larger than in the smaller VC-backed SMEs.

Debt is more important for smaller than for larger VC-backed SME investment. The moderation effect of VC ownership reduces the magnitudes of the positive impact of cash flows and debt as well as the negative effect of growth opportunities on investment in both smaller and larger VC-backed SMEs.

The Macro Drawbacks Of Microfinance, Meghan E. Guy

Student Publications

For decades, microfinance has been utilized as a tool to reduce global poverty rates. Many communities become entangled with microfinance institutions (MFIs) with the hope of achieving the financial independence, security, and empowerment that these institutions promise their clients. This paper highlights the negative consequences of relying on microfinance institutions to improve the development status of nations. Specifically, high interest rates attached to microloans, strict loan repayment schedules, and corrupt microloan officers threaten the safety and increase stress on majority-female microloan borrowers. MFIs fail in their mission to transform economic and social structures in developing nations.

Air Force Space Programs: Comparing Estimates To Final Development Budgets, Christopher Elworth, Edward D. White, Jonathan D. Ritschel, Gregory E. Brown

Faculty Publications

This article analyzes how development budget estimates, as reported in the Selected Acquisition Reports, change over time for primarily Air Force space programs. Government acquisition policy emphasizes the importance of developing an accurate point estimate for programs to ensure program budget efficiency; however, statistics imply space programs tend to underspend at the beginning of the program and to overspend at the end of Initial Operational Capability. This suggests new phasing methods that reflect the unique needs of space and perhaps other developmental-type programs by allocating more of the budget in later years rather than at the beginning of the program, …

Introduction To Financial Statement Analysis, Alexander Núñez-Torres

Open Educational Resources

This lecture discusses why the disclosure of financial information through financial statements is critical to investors. The function of the balance sheet, income statement, cash flows and statement of stockholder’s equity will be discussed. It discusses financial statement analyses through ratios and financial reporting in finance.

Valuing Cash Flows Streams, Alexander Núñez-Torres

Open Educational Resources

This lecture discusses how to value a series of cash flows such as perpetuities, annuities, growing perpetuities and growing annuities. Additionally, it discusses how to solve for variables other than present value or future value of cash flows.

Fundamentals Of Stock Valuation, Alexander Núñez-Torres

Open Educational Resources

This lecture describes the basics of common stock, preferred stock, and stock quotes; describes a tradeoff between dividends and growth in stock valuation. Finally, discusses how to value a stock as the present value of the company’s total payout.

Regulating Retirement: Understanding The Impact Of New Best Interest And Fiduciary Standards On Retail Investors, Michael Lichtmacher

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

El Socio No Tradicional: Un Análisis De Las Inversiones Chinas En La Argentina Y La Articulación Bilateral Argentino-China / The Nontraditional Partner: An Analysis Of Chinese Investment In Argentina And The Argentine-Chinese Bilateral Articulation, Lucy Hale

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Esta investigación se enfoca en la relación comercial bilateral que tienen Argentina y China. Se analizan las inversiones extranjeras directas (IED) chinas en Argentina en el período 2003 hasta 2019 y trata de entender las dos siguientes preguntas: ¿Qué revelan las inversiones chinas en la Argentina sobre la relación de estos dos países en términos de oportunidades políticas y económicas para cada uno de ellos? Y ¿de qué tipo de articulación bilateral son indicativas estas inversiones? Esta investigación cuenta con una base de datos agregados de varias fuentes académicas, gubernamentales y periodísticas. Además, cuatro entrevistas fueron llevadas a cabo con …

Corporate Finance And Financial Management, Alexander Núñez-Torres

Open Educational Resources

This lecture discusses the importance of financial information in both individuals personal and business lives. It includes description of the important features of the four main types of firms. Then, discusses the three main types of decisions a financial manager makes. Finally, it discusses the tax implications for the different corporate entities.

Time Value Of Money: An Introduction, Alexander Núñez-Torres

Open Educational Resources

This lecture introduces the time value of money concept. It discusses the present value of a cash flow and how to discount it, the future value of a cash flow and how to compound it. Finally, it discusses three rules for valuing cash flows.

Bonds, Alexander Núñez-Torres

Open Educational Resources

This lecture is about bonds. A bond is a debt investment in which an investor loans money to an entity (typically corporate or governmental) which borrows the funds for a defined period of time at a variable or fixed interest rate. It discusses the bond terminology, how to compute the price and yield of the different types of bonds. Additionally, it describes why bond prices change over time and how credit risk affects a corporate bond.

How To Make Investment Decisions, Alexander Núñez-Torres

Open Educational Resources

This lecture is about making investment decisions. It discusses the net present value (NPV) rules, IRR and other alternative decision rules. Additionally, it discusses how to choose between projects, either mutually exclusive projects, projects with different lives or limited resources.

Risk And Return, Alexander Núñez-Torres

Open Educational Resources

What is risk? What is return? How are these two related? This lecture discusses the variables that determine the risk and return of stocks. Additionally, it describes the historical tradeoff between risk and return. Finally, it discusses diversification in stock portfolios.

Two Essays On The Effects Of Organization Capital On Firm Behavior, Andrew Root

Theses and Dissertations in Business Administration

A growing stream of finance literature involves measuring the effects of organization capital (“OC”) on investment decisions, financial policy, and firm value. Li, Qui & Shen (2018) use the exogenous event of a merger or acquisition to determine whether high OC acquirers perform better. We extend the OC literature by considering economic policy uncertainty (“PU”)(Baker, Bloom & Davis, 2016), which is also exogenous to the firm, to determine the effect of OC on firms in the face of PU. Univariate tests show that high OC firms take more investment risk, have lower leverage, higher cash, lower total shareholder payouts, and …

Institutional Investors And Corporate Environmental, Social, And Governance Policies: Evidence From Toxics Release Data, Incheol Kim, Hong Wan, Bin Wang, Tina Yang

Finance Faculty Research and Publications

This paper studies the role of institutional investors in influencing corporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) policies by analyzing the relation between institutional ownership and toxic release from facilities to which institutions are geographically proximate. We develop a local preference hypothesis based on the delegated philanthropy and transaction-costs theories. Consistent with the hypothesis, local institutional ownership is negatively related to facility toxic release. The negative relation is stronger for local socially responsible investing (SRI) funds, local public pension funds, and local dedicated institutions. We also find that the relation is more negative in communities that prefer more stringent environmental policies …

Understanding The Fundamentals Of Freight Markets Volatility, Kian Guan Lim, Nikos K. Nomikos, Nelson Yap

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We analyse empirically the drivers of freight market volatility. We use several macroeconomic and shipping-related factors that are known to affect the supply and demand for shipping and examine their impact on the term structure of freight options implied volatilities (IV). We find that the level of IVs is affected by the level of the spot rate, the slope of the forward curve, as well as by both demand and supply factors, especially the former. We demonstrate that the relation between the volatility of futures prices and the slope of the forward curve is non-monotonic and convex, that is, it …

Trust And Local Bias, Chi Shen Wei, Lei Zhang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This paper examines the effect of social trust on local bias. Our evidence suggests that institutional investors located in high-trust regions of the United States exhibit lower local bias. Moreover, we find that high-trust investors are better diversified, suggesting that trust helps accomplish greater diversification. The results are not due to firm, demographic, or local economic characteristics. Additional analysis reveals that the documented informational advantage in local holdings exists only in low-trust regions. We show that this finding is consistent with a trust explanation.

The Flash Crash: A Cautionary Tale About Highly Fragmented Markets, Albert J. Menkveld, Bart Zhou Yueshen

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

A breakdown of cross-market arbitrage activity could make markets more fragile and result in price crashes. We provide suggestive evidence for this novel channel based on a high-frequency analysis of the most salient crash in recent history: The Flash Crash. We further show that such an event can be extremely costly for a large seller trading in a particular venue as the seller effectively relies on local liquidity supply only. These findings highlight the vulnerability of today's highly fragmented markets.

Economic Provenance: The Financial Analysis Of Art Historical Records, Amy C. Whitaker

Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies

The Leo Castelli Gallery launched pivotal mid-twentieth-century artistic careers, including those of Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg. Although well-studied for its artistic impact, the Castelli archives—as well as those of other gallery artists such as Frank Stella and early collectors such as Burton and Emily Hall Tremaine—include a curious trove of artists’ financial records and related correspondence. This paper argues that these records form an “economic provenance” that is important both to both art market analysis and art history. This economic context is sometimes overlooked because of the contested relationship between art and markets. In this context, the archive can …

Nonprofit Reputation And Bitcoin Use, Crystal A. Evans, Abigail B. Schneider

Journal of Ideology

In recent years, cryptocurrencies, digital assets used as mediums of exchange that use cryptography to secure the creation and exchange of the currency, have gained in popularity. One cryptocurrency in particular, Bitcoin, has received a considerable amount of attention in the media. As the general public’s awareness of Bitcoin increases, one must consider the impact that aligning a nonprofit with such a currency could have. The present research uses three studies to examine the impact that advertising the nonprofits’ alignment with Bitcoin has on perceived effectiveness as well as potential donors’ attitudes toward investing nonprofits’ assets in the currency. Results …

Show Me The (Value Of) Money!, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

Plenty of adults are not financially literate. Teaching children early can make a big difference