管理防御视角下的CFO背景特征与会计政策选择——来自资产减值计提的经验证据

本文选取2008-2012年沪深两市A股上市公司为研究样本,以资产减值准备的计提为例,从管理防御视角探究CFO背景特征对公司会计政策选择的影响。研究发现,在控制经济因素和盈余管理因素后,CFO背景特征会显著影响公司资产减值准备的计提行为:与男性CFO和高学历CFO相比,女性CFO和低学历CFO的管理防御程度更高,计提资产减值准备的比例更低;CFO的年龄越大、任期越长,管理防御程度越高,计提资产减值准备的比例越低。进一步区分资产类型和产权性质后发现,CFO背景特征对流动资产减值计提和长期资产减值计提的影响存在一定差异,不同产权性质下CFO背景特征对资产减值计提的影响存在显著差异。     

内部控制对股权结构与盈余质量的传导效应

以2007～2009年我国深沪A股上市公司为研究样本,引入中介变量的研究方法,检验并揭示内部控制对股权结构影响盈余质量的中介传导作用。结果发现:第一大股东持股比例越高,内部控制水平越低,盈余质量水平越低;股权制衡能力越高,内部控制水平越高,更利于提高企业的盈余质量;机构投资者持股比例越高,企业的内部控制水平越高,但盈余质量越低。总体看,内部控制对股权结构与盈余质量具有传导效应,但是显著性存在差异,对股权结构中的第一大股东持股比例、机构投资者持股比例与盈余质量的中介传导效应要显著高于对股权制衡能力与盈余质量的中介传导效应。     

监督还是合谋:多个大股东与公司内部控制质量

中国上市公司大股东持股比例相对较高,大股东之间可能存在合谋掏空或监督制衡的关系,为此,以2008~2016年A股上市公司为样本,探究多个大股东的股权结构对公司内部控制质量的影响。研究发现：相对于只有单一大股东的公司而言,具有多个大股东的公司内部控制质量更高;大股东数量越多、非控股大股东持股比例越高、大股东之间股权偏离度越低,公司内部控制质量越高;外国投资者和国有法人大股东能够显著提升公司内部控制质量;多个大股东的治理效应主要体现在非国有企业中,公司所处地区的法律及市场环境越好,多个大股东监督效应对公司内部控制质量的提升作用越明显。     

分析师关注、内部控制与企业债务融资约束

本文以我国A股上市公司2013～2017年数据为基础,实证检验内部控制质量和分析师关注对债务融资约束的影响。研究结果表明,内部控制质量越高、分析师关注度越高的企业,债务融资期限水平越长,融资成本越低,新增贷款规模越大,即债务融资约束越宽松;并且,分析师关注与内部控制质量在缓解债务融资约束方面存在替代效应;此外,进一步分析这种替代效应在不同产权性质和不同市场地位的企业中的差异,相比于国有企业,在民营企业中分析师关注与内部控制质量对缓解债务融资约束的替代效应更加显著;相比于市场地位高的企业,在市场地位低的企业中分析师关注与内部控制质量对缓解债务融资约束的替代效应更加显著。     

诉讼风险、内部控制质量与审计收费

审计收费的高低受审计风险和审计成本的影响,内部控制质量高低则直接影响审计风险和审计成本.本文以2010-2013年主板A股上市公司为样本,从注册会计师审计角度讨论内部控制质量与审计收费的关系.研究发现:(1)内部控制质量越高,审计收费越低,内部控制与外部审计存在相互替代作用;(2)在引入诉讼风险后发现,当公司发生诉讼时,内部控制质量与审计收费的负相关关系被削弱.     

CFO内部董事与财务报告质量

本文基于中国特色的制度背景和社会文化,实证检验了CFO内部董事对财务报告质量的影响.研究结果表明,CFO内部董事能显著提高财务报告质量.作用机理检验发现,CFO内部董事主要通过降低信息不对称、缓解代理问题和提高CFO社会地位来提高财务报告质量.本文探明了CFO内部董事对财务报告质量的积极作用及其作用发挥的内在机理,为进一步完善我国CFO制度进而提高财务报告质量提供了本土化的经验证据,据以为企业管理者、准则制定机构、国家监管部门进行相关决策提供借鉴和参考.     

内部控制对现金流风险影响的实证研究——来自沪深A股上市公司的经验证据

本文基于2010-2014年沪深A股上市公司数据,结合我国企业产权性质与制度背景,从微观层面探讨内部控制对现金流风险的影响与作用机制。研究发现,企业的内部控制质量与现金流风险显著负相关,内部控制质量越高,企业面临的现金流风险越小;其原因在于高质量的内部控制不仅能够提高企业经营效率、增强风险防范能力,还能减少管理层侵占和大股东掏空等机会主义行为的发生。此外,产权性质会显著影响到内部控制与现金流风险的关系,在同等条件下,与国有企业相比,在非国有企业中内部控制对现金流风险的影响更大。最后,本文就内部控制与现金流风险问题,提出了相关的建议。     

高管海外经历与企业全要素生产率

依据2007-2016年沪深A股上市公司数据,考察高管海外经历对企业全要素生产率的影响。结果发现：高管海外经历正向影响企业全要素生产率。从内部制度环境角度来看,企业内部控制质量越高、薪酬制度越完善,高管海外经历对企业全要素生产率的影响越显著;从外部制度环境角度来看,高管海外经历对企业全要素生产率的影响在政府监管较好、存在机构投资者持股以及市场化程度较高地区的企业中更显著。     

高管背景特征对内部控制质量的影响研究——来自中国A股上市公司的经验证据

与已有研究多关注影响内部控制的显性硬因素不同,本文着眼于影响内部控制的隐性软因素,从高管背景特征入手,以2009-2011年我国A股上市公司为研究样本,实证检验了高管背景特征对内部控制质量的影响。研究结论表明,高管的背景特征对企业内部控制质量具有一定影响,且不同高管的背景特征对内部控制质量的影响程度存在较大差异。本文的研究结论表明在内部控制实施过程中应当重视发挥软因素的作用,从高管本身入手,为内部控制实施创造良好的环境,这对于提升企业内部控制质量具有重要的启示意义。同时,本研究有助于从更高的层次加深对内部控制的理解,为相关研究提供了新的视角。     

产品市场竞争、产权性质与内部控制质量

本文选取2007-2012年中国沪深两市A股上市公司为研究样本,以Chen et al.(2016)构建的"中国上市公司内部控制指数"来衡量企业内部控制质量,研究了不同产权性质下产品市场竞争对内部控制质量的影响差异。研究发现,产品市场竞争对内部控制质量具有显著影响,产品市场竞争越激烈,企业内部控制质量越高,而这种效应在非国有控股公司比在国有控股公司更显著。进一步分析发现高质量的内部控制能够提升企业的产品市场竞争优势,为本文主要研究结论提供了支持。本文丰富了产品市场竞争与内部控制的研究文献,为内部控制能否促进企业战略目标的实现提供了经验证据,并对相关部门和企业加强内部控制建设提供了启示。     

Increased Disclosure Requirements and Corporate Governance Decisions: Evidence from Chief Financial Officers in the Pre‐ and Post–Sarbanes‐Oxley Periods

I study how increased internal control disclosure requirements mandated by the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act (SOX) affect annual corporate governance decisions regarding CFOs. Using non‐CEO, non‐COO executive officers as a control group, I find that CFOs of firms with weak internal controls receive lower compensation and experience higher forced turnover rates after the passage of SOX. In contrast, CFOs of firms with strong internal controls receive higher compensation and do not experience significant changes in forced turnover rates. These results are consistent with the “disclosure of type” hypothesis, which suggests that the mandatory internal control disclosures under SOX are a credible mechanism that effectively distinguishes good CFOs from bad ones by revealing the firm's internal control quality. The empirical evidence thus supports the notion that mandated increases in disclosure reduce information asymmetry in the executive labor market.     

CFO gender and earnings management: evidence from China

We study the effect of chief financial officer (CFO) gender on earnings management (EM) in China’s listed firms from 1999 to 2011. In the cross-sectional analysis, we find that female CFO firm-years exhibit significantly lower discretionary accruals, lower total accruals, lower abnormal production costs, and higher abnormal discretionary expenditures, than the male CFO firm-years. We further examine the relation between CFO gender and EM surrounding CFO transitions. We find that the departing male CFOs are more aggressive than the departing female CFOs in managing up earnings during their last year with the firm and the newly appointed male CFOs are more aggressive than the new female CFOs in managing down earnings during their first year on the job. The evidence surrounding CFO transitions suggests that male CFOs are more aggressive than female CFOs in manipulating earnings, either in the last attempt to save their jobs or to take bigger credit for any future performance gains. Overall, our empirical evidence suggests that female CFOs engage in less EM and are more conservative in financial reporting than their male counterparts.     

Determinants of the floating-to-fixed rate debt structure of firms

We analyze the effects of managerial incentive, firm characteristics and market timing on floating-to-fixed rate debt structure of firms. We find that chief financial officer's (CFO's), not chief executive officer's (CEO's), incentive has a strong influence on firm's debt structure. When CFOs have incentives to increase (decrease) firm risk, firms obtain volatility-increasing (-decreasing) debt structure. These effects are present only for CFOs who are not subject to high monitoring by board members, CEOs, or corporate control market. Our findings suggest that agency problems at the level of non-CEO executives could be an important driver of various corporate decisions.     

Chief financial officer demographic characteristics and fraudulent financial reporting in China

We investigate whether management's cognitions, values and perceptions are associated with fraud for 18 863 firm‐years for Chinese listed firms from 2000 to 2014. Demographic characteristics of the chief financial officer (CFO) are used as proxies for management's cognitions, values and perceptions. We find that fraudulent financial reporting is higher when CFOs are younger, male, and have lower education backgrounds. An analysis of inflated earnings, fictitious assets, material omissions and other material misstatements provide similar results, with the exception that CFOs with higher education levels are associated with more inflated earnings.     

CAP Forum on Enron: Former Audit Firm Personnel as CFOs: Effect on Earnings Management*

Corporate hiring of former audit personnel to fill key financial positions is a practice that has attracted attention from the media, the accounting profession, and regulators. The concern is that the former external auditor who now holds a key position with the client may be able to circumvent the audit or exert pressure on the audit team and adversely influence audit quality. We compare a sample of 172 test companies that appointed to the position of chief financial officer (CFO) personnel who are former employees of the companies' auditors, with a control sample of companies that appointed new CFOs who were not affiliated with their auditors. We investigate whether the level of discretionary accruals is greater for the test sample compared with the control sample during the two years following appointment of the CFO. Both univariate and multivariate results for signed discretionary accruals suggest some support for the hypothesis that firms with affiliated CFOs are associated with greater earnings management than firms with unaffiliated CFOs. Furthermore, the results for signed discretionary accruals suggest that the association is stronger for nonpartners who moved from the audit firm to the client with little or no time gap. On average, the results for absolute discretionary accruals do not suggest differences in earnings management between affiliated and unaffiliated CFOs. However, they do indicate some earnings management relative to unaffiliated CFOs by CFOs who had little or no time gap between leaving the audit firm and joining the client firm, although at a weaker level of significance.     

CFO narcissism and audit fees: Evidence from listed companies in China

This paper examines the effects of CFO narcissism on audit fees in China. Using the size of CFO signatures in annual audit reports to measure individual narcissism, we find that CFO narcissism is associated with higher audit fees. We find empirical evidence that CFO narcissism significantly increases the audit fees of listed companies, and this effect is stronger in state-owned enterprises. This paper also explores the mediating effects of financial information and the engagement of prestigious Big-4 and Big-10 firms. The results show that companies with narcissistic CFOs have lower quality financial information and prefer more prestigious firms, which leads to higher audit fees. This research highlights the importance of CFO narcissism in corporate performance and provides new evidence that will be useful for listed companies that plan to hire senior executives.     

Does it pay to remediate? An analysis of the internal and external benefits of remediation

We examine the internal and external benefits associated with the remediation, or correction, of material weaknesses in internal controls over financial reporting. We document that firms that remediate material weaknesses exhibit higher performance and reporting quality than firms that never reported any weaknesses. These results suggest that the remediation of material weaknesses, an indication of an improved internal control system, is associated with internal benefits. Moreover, we find that remediating firms experience significantly lower audit fees and betas (i.e. external costs) than non-material weakness firms. However, these lower external costs are contingent on a firm's level of performance and information quality. These results suggest that remediation offers firms a chance to re-examine and correct their internal controls and this leads to better performance and information quality. Furthermore, external stakeholders are not necessarily swayed by remediation alone but need to observe tangible evidence of the corrected internal control system before reassessing a firm's risk downward.     

The effectiveness of chief financial officer board membership in improving corporate investment efficiency

The key roles of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in firm operating performance, corporate strategic choices, and corporate governance have been increasingly emphasized in recent decades. In this study, we empirically investigate the relation between CFO board membership and corporate investment efficiency to determine whether CFO presence on the board reduces firms’ propensity to over- or underinvest. We find that CFO board membership is significantly associated with a decreased level of corporate over- and underinvestment. Further, the positive effects of CFO board membership on corporate investment efficiency are greater for firms with greater information asymmetries. Last but not least, we find that the improved investment efficiency experienced by firms with CFOs on their boards has a positive effect on the firms’ future performance. Overall, we find that CFO board membership is associated with improved investment efficiency and firms’ future profitability. By documenting the real business impact of CFO board membership on investment efficiency and firms’ future performance, we add bricks to the literature on board composition and how it influences firms’ strategic choices and performance. Our findings suggest that having CFOs on boards could benefit firms’ investment practices, which directly relate to corporate strategic performance.

     

会计信息可比性与企业商业信用融资——基于企业市场地位和行业竞争环境的双重考量

不同于传统的基于资本市场情境进行的会计信息可比性经济后果研究,将研究场景拓展至商品市场中企业供应链层面,考察企业会计信息可比性能否影响供应链伙伴的商业信用政策制定,进而反映到企业的商业信用融资水平.研究发现:会计信息可比性越高的企业,其商业信用融资水平也越高;会计信息可比性对商业信用融资的促进作用只在市场地位较低、所处行业竞争程度较高的企业中存在.进一步的拓展研究证实,提高会计信息可比性可以有效缓解我国中小微企业普遍存在的融资难问题.     

融资融券能抑制企业费用粘性吗——基于中国上市公司的经验证据

以2010—2015年我国沪深两市A股上市公司为研究样本,实证检验融资融券对企业费用粘性的影响。研究发现：融资融券对上市公司费用粘性具有显著的抑制作用,且分样本组回归结果表明,在所在地区投资者保护环境较差的企业、代理问题更为严重的国有企业及外部审计质量较低的企业中上述抑制效果更为明显。进一步分析发现:融资融券抑制费用粘性的效用主要出现在不包含企业研发支出的费用中。