Finance and Financial Management Commons^™

Stringency Of Family Firms And Owner-Managers In The Transition To Low-Carbon Emissions, Morten Bennedsen, John Doukas, Halit Gonenc

Finance Faculty Publications

This study examines the relationship between carbon emissions and stock returns, with a focus on the role of family ownership and management. Using a sample of 435 publicly listed firms from 14 Western European countries over the period 2010–2020, we explore whether financial markets perceive family-controlled firms, particularly those led by family-member CEOs, differently in terms of their commitment to sustainable practices. Consistent with prior research, our results indicate that firms with higher emissions earn higher stock returns while simultaneously experiencing lower market valuations, consistent with the presence of a carbon risk premium driven by elevated carbon transition risk. Crucially, …

International Evidence On The Relationship Between Financial Literacy And Corporate Cash Holdings, Kenneth Yung, Reza Kahibavil, Su Li, Arian Amidi

Finance Faculty Publications

This study is the first investigation of the relationship between corporate cash holdings and financial literacy (FL). We find that a one‐standard‐deviation increase in FL is associated with an 8%–27% reduction in corporate cash holdings, depending on the measure of FL used. Moreover, higher FL reduces the market value of excess cash, indicating that financially literate environments discourage value‐destroying cash accumulation. The results remain robust across alternative definitions of FL and cash holdings, estimation methods, and country subsamples. We further rule out the influence of endogeneity, refinancing risk, and variation in cash needs. Additional analyses identify agency costs as the …

Large Owner Expropriation Threat And Stock Option Pay's Effect On Firm Risk-­Taking Behaviors In Weak Institutions, Cuili Qian, Lipeng (Gary) Ge, Xuesong Geng, Jiatao Li, Maria Hasenhuttl

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Research Question/Issue: This study investigates the impact of managerial stock option pay on firm risk-­ taking behaviors in aweak institutional context, a critical question that has been overlooked by the literature. Specifically, we build on the comparative corporate governance perspective that emphasizes the implications of large shareholders' expropriation threat in weak institutions to develop predictions about their impact on the stock option's incentive alignment effect. We further explore the boundary conditions of such a relationship.Research Findings/Insights: Based on a sample of Chinese listed firms between 2006 and 2016, we find that a high level of large shareholders' expropriation threat weakens …

Does Digital Finance Foster Corporate Innovation? Evidence From China, Ning Gu, Ye Wang, Yu Liu, Chengbo Fu

Finance Faculty Publications

This study examines how digital finance foster corporate innovation. Unlike prior research focused on statistical associations, we investigate the underlying economic mechanisms driving that relationship. Using panel data of Chinese listed firms from 2013–2023, we show that digital finance stimulates corporate innovation through two primary channels. On the supply side, digital finance supports innovation by optimizing resource allocation, improving risk management, and providing high-quality information. On the demand side, digital finance stimulates the innovation needs of enterprises by improving their dynamic capabilities. Moreover, a favorable governance environment further amplifies these effects. Heterogeneity analysis reveals stronger impacts for large firms, firms …

Hard Lessons, Stronger Banks, Gloria Yang Yu

Asian Management Insights

The enduring wisdom of the Savings and Loan crisis veterans.

Are Environmentally Sensitive Firms More Likely To Release Corporate Environmental Disclosures? Evidence From Environmental Risk Management, Chune Young Chung, Incheol Kim, Rong Yang

Finance Faculty Publications

This study examines the environmental risk management practices of US firms operating in environmentally sensitive industries. Using two proxy variables for ex ante environmental policy risk—firm-level toxic chemical emissions and climate-related keywords in annual financial statements—we demonstrate that firms facing high ex ante environmental policy risk tend to increase the frequency and length of their voluntary sustainability reports. Additionally, we find that proactive sustainability disclosures significantly mitigate firm-level systematic risk (beta) and associated litigation risk. This risk reduction is more pronounced among firms with substantial green innovations and stronger corporate governance practices. Overall, this study highlights the causes and consequences …

The Hidden Cost Of Venture Capital, Emilie Aguirre

Faculty Scholarship

Founders, employees, consumers, and even funders increasingly expect businesses to pursue social goals alongside financial performance. Yet even the most committed firms have found it difficult to maintain social performance over time. Scholars in economics, management, and law have put forth several explanations for this “mission drift,” including inappropriate governance, poor management, lack of genuine commitment, and threat of takeovers. Puzzlingly, research to date primarily focuses on later-stage firms, even though the events and decisions that take place in a firm’s early stages can critically impact retention of its social performance.

Drawing from over five years of qualitative field research …

Cash Holding And Corporate Governance On Company Financial Performance: Case Study Of Construction Infrastructure Project Supporting Industries On The Indonesian Stock Exchange, Mariana Ing Malelak, Zeplin Jiwa Husada Tarigan, Sautma Ronni Basana, Ferry Jie

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The Indonesian government currently focuses on high infrastructure development to prepare for connectivity between one city and another. The massive construction of the new government capital is also called the archipelago's capital. This condition impacts companies supporting construction projects, which are growing rapidly. This growth is supported by corporate governance and the cash-holding industry, which supports infrastructure projects for the company's financial performance. This research aims to determine the role of cash holding and corporate governance (board skill, independent director, managerial ownership) on the financial performance of infrastructure-supporting manufacturing companies in Indonesia. The sample used in this research was 83 …

Local Institutional Investors And Corporate Monitoring: Evidence From Cross-Listed Korean Stocks In The Us Market, Changhwan Choi, Chune Young Chung, Jun Myung Song

Sim Kee Boon Institute for Financial Economics

Using Korean firms that are cross-listed in the US market, this paper investigates whether there are standalone effects of geographic and market proximity of institutional investors on monitoring performance. We find that Korean institutional ownership is negatively associated with earnings management while the US institutional ownership has no impact on earnings management. This suggests that there is the geographic proximity advantage over the market proximity advantage in the emerging markets. Furthermore, we also show that the impact of geographic proximity is stronger for firms with high informational opacity

Three Essays On Corporate Debt Contracting And Innovation, Olaleye Morohunfolu

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This dissertation comprises three essays investigating topics in Corporate Debt Contracting and Innovation. The first essay examines the relation between Passive Institutional Ownership (IO) and debt covenants. Using Russell 1000/2000 annual index reconstitution as a source of exogenous variation in passive IO, I find that passive IO leads to reduced covenants in the bond market. Specifically, I find that passive IO leads to reduced (a) Investment, (b) Dividend restriction, and (c) Subsequent financing restriction. However, I observe weaker results for loan covenants, implying that loans, usually collateralized, are less sensitive to changes in passive ownership. The overall effect of passive …

Three Essays On Risks In The Option And Cds Markets, Seyed-Erfan Sadeghi

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This dissertation comprises three essays investigating topics in insurance on debt and equity. The first essay utilizes patent groups as an indicator of technological proximity and demonstrates that climate risk associated with technology-related firms can predict the next quarter’s Credit Default Swap (CDS) for the focal firm. The findings indicate that a 24 basis point (bps) change in the next quarter’s CDS can be attributed to the spillover effect from technology-related companies. Sentiment analysis reveals that this outcome is primarily driven by concerns related to regulatory factors. Importantly, these results remain robust even after accounting for firm-specific characteristics and industry-fixed …

Explicating The Influence Of Religion In Forming Corporate Governance: Insights From The Philippines, Leveric Tan Ng, John Paolo Rivera

DLSU Business & Economics Review

Religion plays a role in shaping personal values and directing an organization’s moral filter. It is an avenue to impose social morality that may impact corporate governance. We examined the influence of religion in the formation and development of good corporate governance through ethical leadership in the Philippines – a country that has strong religious culture. In validating scholarly literature on religion and enterprise, we looked into the conception and interpretation of religion and corporate governance through a key informant interview of 30 executive directors from private corporations in the country. We found that corporate governance may arise from religious …

Investors’ Response To Political Connections: A Systematic Review, Arina Rus Zahira Rusli, Rohami Shafie, Mazrah Malek

DLSU Business & Economics Review

This study aimed to deliver a concise overview of the market reaction towards a political connection (PCON) through the identification and analyses of the event announcements and outcomes of the events related to PCON firms and stock market reactions. The Scopus and Jstor databases via the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), which are used to analyse previous studies, were utilised. The initial systematic search resulted in 8,518 records, which was narrowed to 16 articles through a process of elimination. It was found that PCON firms reacted positively, negatively, or a combination of the two to the …

Related Party Transactions And Corporate Environmental Responsibility, Wonseok Choi, Chune Young Chung, Monika K. Rabarison, Kainan Wang

Finance Faculty Publications

We examine the effect of related party transactions on corporate environmental responsibility and find that firms with more related party transactions tend to have more controversial environmental reports, less emissions reduction, and less environmental expenditures. This relationship is more significant for firms with a high investment-cash flow sensitivity and those with a low ESG score. Overall, the results corroborate the hypothesis that the marginal costs of corporate environmental responsibility outweigh the benefits for financially constrained firms, thus deterring these firms from engaging in corporate environmental responsibility activities.

How Do Firms Respond To Reduced Private Equity Buyout Activity?, Yi-Hsin Lo

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This paper presents new evidence on the economic role of private equity buyouts by exploiting the staggered adoption of the constructive fraud provision by U.S. state courts. The law unintentionally shifts the credit default risk borne by existing unsecured creditors of the buyout target to the selling shareholders and lenders in the form of ex-post litigation risk, thereby discouraging buyout activity. Using a difference-in-differences framework, I find that firms raise less capital, reduce payouts and investments, and form alliances with employees. Firms also avoid positive NPV projects that carry too much risk. These findings are consistent with managers enjoying a …

Impact Measurement And Standards, Angeline Chua, Hao Liang, Wanyi Yang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Despite rapid economic growth and increasing interest in impact investment worldwide, less attention has been paid to the question of whether this growth is sustainable for people and the planet. In an ideal scenario, growth would happen within planetary and social boundaries. However, current financial value is often prioritised and achieved at cost to society and the environment. For example, small farmers in Indonesia have long practised slash-and-burn agriculture, and in recent decades large companies have industrialised the practice. The peatland blazes in Indonesia release smoke and large amounts of greenhouse gases, which impact both Indonesia itself, and neighbouring countries …

Institutional Investors And Bank Governance: An International Analysis Of Bank Earnings Management, Steve M. Miller, Rabih Moussawi, Bin Wang, Tina Yang

Finance Faculty Research and Publications

Despite the growing importance of institutional investors in global capital markets and the link between bank earnings management and financial crash risk, little is known about the role of institutional investors in mitigating bank earnings management. We conduct the first international analysis of this issue using a broad sample of banks and institutional investors. We find a negative relation between institutional ownership and bank earnings management, after controlling for the stringency of a country's bank regulations and other relevant bank and country characteristics. Additionally, institutional ownership is more negatively related to earnings management in countries with more-stringent bank disclosure requirements …

Board Composition, Board Diversity And Stock Performance, Chiyachantana N. Chiraphol, Siripen Pattanawihok, Pattarawan Prrasarnphanich

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The study investigates the relationship between six board compositions and stock returns. The results indicate a significant association between various board compositions and stock returns. Specifically, board size and executive directors have a negative impact, whereas independent directors enhance stock returns. Busy directors positively impact the abnormal stock returns for the companies in the non-financial industry, which implies that busy directors who serve on more boards tend to be well connected. More importantly, the results indicate a significant positive relationship between board tenure and stock returns. Board service time is perceived as the board quality of knowledge and experience from …

Corporate Board Leadership And Earnings Informativeness, Chiyachantana N. Chiraphol, Siripen Pattanawihok, Pattarawan Prasarnphanich

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This study examines the relationship between six board compositions and the informativeness of earnings. The results show that smaller board sizes are more informativeness of earnings. Longer board service time is viewed as the experience and expertise to manage the firms and increases informativeness of earnings. The average board tenure is positively significant with the informativeness of earnings. The accounting earnings generated from the firms with more independent directors and female directors are highly valued by the investors. Consequently, the accounting earnings generated from these firms are highly valuable to the investors.

The Effect Of Risk Management Committee On Audit Fees: Malaysian Evidence, Masturah Malik, Rohami Shafie

DLSU Business & Economics Review

The global financial crises that have occurred in the past have caused a growing number of firms to establish a risk management committee (RMC) at their board level. By adopting 208 nonfinancial listed firms in Bursa Malaysia for the year end 2014, our study explores whether the establishment of an RMC and its attributes (having independent members, experts and female members) affect the audit fees charged towards the firms. Apart from the demand perspective of an audit, the study reports that independent members of the RMC are associated with higher audit fees. The result is derived from the basis that …

The Mediating Role Of Dividend Policy On The Impact Of Capital Structure And Corporate Governance Mechanisms On Firm Value Among Publicly Listed Companies In The Philippines, Rodiel C. Ferrer, Franklin S. Ramirez

DLSU Business & Economics Review

The mediating role of dividend policy on the impact of capital structure and corporate governance mechanisms on firm value was studied in this research. This study was conducted using the panel data of nonfinancial firms that were drawn from the firm’s financial statements and annual corporate governance report. The data were deracinated from the OSIRIS database, company website, and PSE Edge that were listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange for the years 2013 to 2016. To analyze the full model, the partial least squares–structural equation modeling approach was used with the statistical significance level of 0.05. With this, findings denuded …

Corporate Governance And Disclosure: Purpose, Scope, And Limitations, Wm Dennis Huber, James A. Digabriele

Department of Accounting and Finance Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Corporate governance has been the subject of dozens, if not hundreds, of books and articles in legal, accounting, finance, and economic literature since at least 1932. Disclosure has also been the subject of dozens, if not hundreds, of books and articles in legal, accounting, finance, and economic literature, but interest in the subject is a more recent phenomenon. It is important therefore to understand the purpose, scope, limitations, and meaning of corporate governance. It is equally important to understand the purpose, scope, and limitations of the effective transparency of information, i.e., disclosure, for publicly listed companies, including what information is …

Independent Directors’ Dissensions And Firm Value, Wonseok Choi, Monika K. Rabarison, Bin Wang

Finance Faculty Publications

Highlights

• Independent directors’ dissension in board meetings plays an effective role in enhancing firm value.
• The effect varies across different levels of dissension.

Abstract

Using a novel dataset of independent directors’ voting activities on items proposed by managers of Korean firms, we investigate whether independent directors’ dissension in board meetings plays an effective role in enhancing firm value through improved corporate governance. Our results indicate that dissension improves firm value. This finding is robust to different measures of firm value and alternative model specifications including subsample, propensity score matching, and instrumental variable analyses. Overall, we contribute to the understanding of …

Independent Directors' Dissensions And Firm Value, Wonseok Choi, Monika K. Rabarison, Bin Wang

Finance Faculty Research and Publications

Using a novel dataset of independent directors’ voting activities on items proposed by managers of Korean firms, we investigate whether independent directors’ dissension in board meetings plays an effective role in enhancing firm value through improved corporate governance. Our results indicate that dissension improves firm value. This finding is robust to different measures of firm value and alternative model specifications including subsample, propensity score matching, and instrumental variable analyses. Overall, we contribute to the understanding of the relation between corporate governance and firm value. Specifically, we provide new evidence that the monitoring by independent directors enhances firm value.

Lessons Learned: Chester B. Feldberg, Maryann Haggerty

Journal of Financial Crises

Chester B. Feldberg worked for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY) for 36 years in a variety of roles. In the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, he served as a trustee for the AIG Credit Trust Facility (2009-2011). The trust was established in early 2009 to hold the equity stock of American International Group Inc. (AIG) that the U.S. government had received as a result of the 2008 AIG bailout. The three trustees were responsible for voting the stock, ensuring satisfactory corporate governance at AIG, and eventually disposing of the stock.

When he was named as a …

Hedge Fund Activists: Value Creators Or Good Stock Pickers?, Martijn Cremers, Erasmo Giambona, Simone M. Sepe, Ye Wang

The Lender Center for Social Justice

Explores whether hedge fund activists generate value through governance improvements or simply by identifying undervalued firms.

Cleaning Corporate Governance, Jens Frankenreiter, Cathy Hwang, Yaron Nili, Eric L. Talley

Faculty Scholarship

Although empirical scholarship dominates the field of law and finance, much of it shares a common vulnerability: an abiding faith in the accuracy and integrity of a small, specialized collection of corporate governance data. In this paper, we unveil a novel collection of three decades’ worth of corporate charters for thousands of public companies, which shows that this faith is misplaced.

We make three principal contributions to the literature. First, we label our corpus for a variety of firm- and state-level governance features. Doing so reveals significant infirmities within the most well-known corporate governance datasets, including an error rate exceeding …

Cleaning Corporate Governance, Jens Frankenreiter, Cathy Hwang, Yaron Nili, Eric L. Talley

Faculty Scholarship

Although empirical scholarship dominates the field of law and finance, much of it shares a common vulnerability: an abiding faith in the accuracy and integrity of a small, specialized collection of corporate governance data. In this paper, we unveil a novel collection of three decades’ worth of corporate charters for thousands of public companies, which shows that this faith is misplaced.

We make three principal contributions to the literature. First, we label our corpus for a variety of firm- and state-level governance features. Doing so reveals significant infirmities within the most well-known corporate governance datasets, including an error rate exceeding …

Uncovering Real Earnings Management: Pay Attention To Risk-Taking Behavior, Samar Alharbi, Md Al Mamun, Nader Atawnah

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

We examine the impact of corporate risk-taking on firm-level real earnings management. We find that firms with higher risk-taking engage in higher real earnings management. Our results are robust to a series of robustness tests, including simultaneous least squares approach, firm fixed effect, change analysis, and pseudo difference-in-difference analysis. Additional analyses reveal that the impact of risk-taking on real earnings management is more pronounced among firms that experience prior-year loss and are run by top-echelons who are risk lovers. Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) regulation does not attenuate the positive effect of risk-taking on real earnings management. However, external monitoring by institutional …

The Effect Of Board Links, Audit Partner Tenure, And Related Party Transactions On Misstatements: Evidence From Chile, Sakthi Mahenthiran, Berta Silva Palavecinos, Hanns De La Fuente-Mella

Scholarship and Professional Work - Business

Companies restate when material misstatements are identified in previously issued financial statements. Misstatement research in Latin America is sparse, even though they are an important context to study this phenomenon. Chile’s corporate governance regulations are considered exemplars for Latin American countries but its auditing profession is not well developed. Thus, Chile provides an interesting context to study the complementary roles of audit and board governance affecting misstatements. Using a sample of 104 Chilean listed firms over seven years, our study finds that the board links and audit partner tenure negatively affect misstatements. Specifically, given the prevalence of related party transactions …