The Demise of Investment Banking Partnerships: Theory and Evidence

In 1970 the New York Stock Exchange relaxed rules that prohibited the public incorporation of member firms. Investment banking concerns went public in waves, with Goldman Sachs the last of the bulge bracket banks to float. We explain the pattern of investment bank flotations. We argue that partnerships foster the formation of human capital and we use technological advances that undermine the role of human capital to explain the partnership's going‐public decision. We support our theory using a new data set of investment bank partnership statistics.     

The Rise and Rise of Evidence in Health Care

Health care practitioners (especially doctors) have always given assurances that what they do is efficacious. But in the past 50 years justification of the effectiveness of health care interventions has attained a new prominence. Evidence, at least notionally, now lies at the heart of health care policy and practice. This article provides an overview of the generation and use of evidence on effectiveness in health care. It explains why rigorous methodologies have taken hold and describes the major preoccupation with trying to ensure that research evidence has an impact on clinical practice. The strengths and weaknesses of evidence-based health care are explored to identify the opportunities for profitable transfer of experience across the public sector.     

The Rise and Rise of Public Private Partnerships: Challenges for Public Accountability

The increasing popularity of public private partnerships (PPPs) thrusts on to centre stage the inherent tension between accountability and transparency on the one hand, and efficiency and commerciality on the other. This paper explores a number of accountability issues that are exacerbated by a public private partnership structure. The organisational structure of a PPP, where much of the activity associated with the delivery of a public service is embedded in a private-sector entity, increases the likelihood that public scrutiny of decisions and actions is significantly inhibited     

The Rise of China Energy

As of 3Q 2006, there are 6 energy deals happened in China, 3 of them occurred in the third quarter. In addition, there are lots of other outstanding performance occurred in China venture capital market.     

CFO崛起指日可待

杜胜利：现任在清华大学,曾在中央企业任职,曾在国家部委从政,致力管理控制研究：1、管理控制与业绩评价;2、资本管理与公司金融;3、CFO制度与CFO管理。     

The Fall and Rise of Evidence in Criminal Justice

Practitioners within the criminal justice system have been cautious about claiming that their work with offenders directly impacts on the level of subsequent re-offending. This article provides an overview of the generation and use of evidence on effectiveness within the criminal justice system, particularly focusing on the supervision of offenders by the probation service. The article outlines the continuing debates about appropriate methodologies for evaluating effectiveness. It also describes some of the problems encountered in trying to get research evidence to have an impact on offender supervision practice. Finally, the strengths and weaknesses of the present move towards evidence-based criminal justice services are explored in order to provide learning opportunities for other public services.     

南南外资银行的兴起及其发展特征——兼论中国银行业的跨国经营

南南外资银行的兴起既得益于相对竞争优势和金融监管的放松,又得益于发展中国家相互间国际贸易的发展。对南南外资银行的最新发展进行深入探讨的结果表明,南南外资银行多选择附属行形式和新设方式进入发展中国家,在进入区域上存在着明显的洼地现象且偏重于机构进入;与北南外资银行相比,南南外资银行的贷款占比较小,固定资产占比较大,融资能力较弱,融资方式较单一,经营成本较高,经营收益较低。因此,中国银行业应结合自身实际,借鉴南南外资银行发展的经验和教训,在充分利用相对竞争优势的基础上提高跨国经营的水平和绩效。     

The Rise of Accelerated Seasoned Equity Underwritings

Seasoned equity offerings (SEOs) executed through accelerated underwritings have recently seen significant increases in global market share, and now account for a majority of the proceeds from both U.S. and European SEOs. Based on their study of over 30,000 global SEOs during the period 1991‐2004, the authors conclude that accelerated offerings occur more rapidly (as their name suggests), raise more capital, and require fewer underwriters than conventional fully marketed SEOs. Accelerated transactions also typically involve larger, better‐known companies that tend to be selling substantial amounts of secondary as well as primary secondary shares (whereas traditional SEOs consist almost entirely of primary shares). Besides speed of execution, the growing popularity of accelerated deals is also attributed to lower spreads, the reduced price risk for issuers resulting from the brief underwriting period, and “market‐impact” costs that are no larger than those that accompany traditional SEOs. Indeed, according to the authors' estimates, accelerated deals reduce the total issuance costs of U.S. issuers—in the form of lower spreads, market‐impact costs, and underpricing—by 250 basis points, on average, while the cost reduction for European sellers is said to be close to 400 basis points. The authors also present an analysis of SEO investment banking syndicates that illustrates that accelerated deals yield much smaller, more capital‐intensive, and presumably riskier underwriting syndicates that generate comparable revenues over much shorter transactions periods. In so doing, they enable larger, more reputable banks to “buy” market share and league table rankings. The authors' findings underscore three major trends that are shaping global investment banking. First, the fact that accelerated deals are marketed almost exclusively to institutional investors, and that these underwriting methods are gaining market share, suggests the declining importance of retail investors in equity markets everywhere. Second, the rise of accelerated deals both promotes and reflects increasing concentration in the investment banking industry, since only the largest banks have the capital base and risk tolerance required to buy large share blocks outright and assume all or most of the price risk of later resale. Finally, the increasing use of accelerated underwritings for SEOs provides another case of the “commoditization” of financial transactions characterized by relatively low asymmetric information. Since ATs can be employed for shares of only large and well‐known companies, these offerings are executed very quickly and cheaply—in much the same way plain vanilla corporate bonds are sold—and with minimal need for the placement and marketing services that investment banks use for IPOs and other non‐transparent security offerings.     

The Value Relevance of Multiple Occurrences of Nonrecurring Items

Discontinued operations, special items, or extraordinary items typically are nonrecurring items in firms' income statements. As such, prior research has theorized that these items are of minimal relevance to market valuation of the firm, since they are transitory in nature. Moreover, anecdotal evidence in the financial press is supportive of this notion. We examine firms that report either single or multiple occurrences of such items over a rolling six-year period between 1977 and 1996 and find in both cases that such items are value-relevant. When multiple occurrences are not partitioned by type (discontinued operations, special items, or extraordinary items), the more recent such event in the series has a negative effect upon market value of equity, whether it has had a positive or negative effect upon net income.This is consistent with at least two possible explanations, multiple occurrences of such items indicate firms in financial difficulty, or multiple occurrences indicate firms whose managers have engaged in repeated attempts at earnings management, and that the most recent attempt is being devalued by the market. We find patterns of discretionary accruals consistent with managers engaging in upward earnings management prior to multiple write-downs using special items. We also find that firms with multiple write-downs are more likely to go into liquidation or bankruptcy within the next five years. We find that single occurrences also are value-relevant and are positively correlated with market values. Tests on the sample when partitioned by type lead to similar results, though signs of the effects upon net income change in some instances.     

公共部门理财学科的兴起与建设

随着我国政府职能转变和非营利组织的不断发展,公共资金的管理问题倍受社会公众关注,也成为学术研究的热点。但是,从教育层面来说,高等学校关于公共部门理财学科的建设比较滞后,存在理论交叉、课程互相取代和不完整的状况。本文从公共部门理财学科的兴起历程研究公共部门不同理财课程的内涵和外延,提出高校相关专业应当在背景学科、基础学科和核心学科三个层面设置公共部门理财类课程,以完善公共部门理财学科的课程体系,为培养复合型人才服务。     

我国非经常性损益信息披露管制效果研究

本文通过中国证券监督管理委员会的三次非经常性损益的管制规范对比分析得出研究假说:应用1999年、2001年和2004年的非经常性损益管制所披露的非经常性损益逐次增多。同时,采用每股非经常性损益与每股收益的绝对值比率这一指标和378家上市公司1999年至2005年连续7年的样本数据进行研究。通过进行图表分析、配对t检验和稳定性检验,我们找到经验证据支持我们的研究假说,进而支持了中国证券监督管理委员会的三次非经常性损益的管制规范取得了期望的效果。     

上市公司财务敏感区间与项目的审计意见

本文基于我国A股上市公司数据检验了财务敏感区间、项目与审计意见的关系,发现微利区间、重亏区间同非标准审计意见显著正相关,而配股达线区间、应计项目、线下项目同非标准审计意见的关系不显著。此外发现应收账款占总资产比重、资产负债率、以前年度审计意见和事务所变更等因素对非标准审计意见具有重大影响,主营业务收入比重和上市公司规模则对非标准审计意见没有显著影响,现金比率、上市年限、事务所排名等变量影响不具有时间上的一致性和连续性。     

DotCom Mania: The Rise and Fall of Internet Stock Prices

This paper explores a model based on agents with heterogenous beliefs facing short sales restrictions, and its explanation for the rise, persistence, and eventual fall of Internet stock prices. First, we document substantial short sale restrictions for Internet stocks. Second, using data on Internet holdings and block trades, we show a link between heterogeneity and price effects for Internet stocks. Third, arguing that lockup expirations are a loosening of the short sale constraint, we document average, long‐run excess returns as low as ?33 percent for Internet stocks postlockup. We link the Internet bubble burst to the unprecedented level of lockup expirations and insider selling.     

制约中国股市上扬的软肋

2001年6月,中国股市上证综指到达历史高点2245．43点后开始下滑,到2005年6月下探至998．23点,股市经历了4年的漫漫熊市。当年导致股市走入熊市的导火索是国有股市价减持,因为两倍于流通股的国有股和法人股市价流通的预期给投     

信用评级对股价涨跌的影响

本文实证检验主体信用评级对股价涨跌的影响。结果发现：低的主体评级会提高个股的股价大幅下跌风险;信息不对称程度越高、代理成本越高,低评级影响股价大幅下跌风险的效应越强。从传导机制来看,较低的主体评级水平具有预测企业未来较差绩效的能力,并且伴随着股价信息含量增加,企业未来融资减少,这表明低评级会通过一般性信息渠道、差别信息渠道和融资渠道提高股价大幅下跌风险。评级上调不会影响股价大幅下跌风险,但降低评级则会提高股价大幅下跌风险。     

物价上涨、增长衰退与我国货币政策的有效性分析

近段时期以来,物价上涨、人民币升值以及经济增长趋缓的压力开始成为货币政策调控的焦点所在.宏观领域流动性过剩的现实实际上是我国货币供求非均衡现象的反映,本文从理论分析和实证检验的角度,通过对流动性过剩背景下货币供给与物价和产出相互关系的理论分析和检验,指出了目前经济条件下我国货币政策调控面临的困境,并针对这些问题就提高我国货币政策调控的有效性提出了几点建议.