A comparative analysis of perception of dividends by financial managers

This paper is a report about the perception of dividends by Chief financial officers (CFOs). The research encompasses five countries, on three continents, and covers three types of economies. Our cross-sectional study is concerned with both inter- and intra-societal differences that may or may not exist regarding the perception of dividends by those who are in charge of making such decisions in the firm. Using a survey instrument, we find that both similarities and dissimilarities exist inter- and intra-culturally. Perhaps the most important conclusion we reach is that dividend research must take a different track than it has been following so far.     

英国注册会计师行业管理体制的改革历程与启示

英国注册会计师行业管理体制改革的五个发展阶段英国作为注册会计师制度的故乡,其注册会计师行业的管理从最初的各协会分而治之,到当前的法律授权、公众参与的独立监管下的行业自律,经历了一系列的改革。本文将英国注册会计师行业管理体制的发展过程按其管理主体的变化分成以下五个阶段。(一)20世纪70年代以前:各协会各自为政,分散管理19世纪中期,英国工业革命推动了英国经济的发展,带动了公共会计业的迅速成长。1853年,爱丁堡会计师公会的成立宣告了英国注册会计师行业开始了行业自律管理,之后,各行业和地区的会计师也纷纷成立行业团体,并…     

Enterprise Risk Management and the Cost of Capital

Enterprise risk management (ERM) is a process that manages all risks in an integrated, holistic fashion by controlling and coordinating any offsetting risks across the enterprise. This research investigates whether the adoption of the ERM approach affects firms' cost of equity capital. We restrict our analysis to the U.S. insurance industry to control for unobservable differences in business models and risk exposures across industries. We simultaneously model firms' adoption of ERM and the effect of ERM on the cost of capital. We find that ERM adoption significantly reduces firm's cost of capital. Our results suggest that cost of capital benefits are one answer to the question how ERM can create value.     

Competitive pricing strategies in social networks

We study pricing strategies of competing firms selling heterogeneous products to consumers. Goods are substitutes and there are network externalities between neighboring consumers. In equilibrium, firms price discriminate based on the network positions and charge lower prices to more central consumers. We also show that, under some conditions, firms' equilibrium profits decrease when either the network becomes denser or network effects increase. In contrast, consumers always benefit from being more connected to each other. We determine the optimal network structure and compare uniform pricing and discriminatory pricing from the perspectives of firms and consumers.     

基于PCA-熵权法的经济发展方式转变进程的综合测评——来自湖南2001-2014年的经验证据

基于主成分分析(PCA)与熵权相结合的方法,采用经济发展、社会发展动力、人与自然协调发展以及人的全面发展指标的源数据,测评湖南经济发展方式转变进程.结果表明:从2001-2014年湖南经济发展方式转变进程综合指数评级依次为"较差—中等—较好—很好",呈现良好转变趋势,在2014年取得报告期历年最高值,综合指数评级达到 I 级.PCA 与熵权结合的方法能较好地保证评价结果的准确性,适用于经济发展方式转变进程的科学评价.     

政府补贴能否促进高新技术企业的自主创新？——来自中关村的证据

中国政府对高新技术企业投入了大量补贴以激励它们创新,但是对补贴效果的研究并未达成一致结论。基于中关村3万多个高新技术企业2001-2012年的观察值,本文同时采用PSM与DID法对政府补贴的效果进行了研究,结果发现:第一,整体而言,政府补贴显著提高了创新经费支出、新产品销售收入和专利申请数量;第二,进一步将创新细分为自主创新和购买引进新技术之后发现,政府补贴存在“挤出效应”:被补贴企业的自主创新明显下降,而购买引进新技术显著增加;第三,政府补贴对企业的短期创新激励有显著的促进作用,但是对长期创新激励的促进作用不显著。本文对高新技术企业的补贴效果提供了实证绩效评估,所得出的结论有助于政府优化和调整激励创新政策。     

Marriage between credit cards and the Internet: Buying is just a click away!

This paper examines whether Internet access positively affects credit card balances. To that end, we compare the 2010 and 2013 Surveys of Consumer Finances, analyze the consistency of the results over time, and provide the rationale for any resulting differences. Using the censored techniques, our results indicate that Internet access has a positive effect on credit card balances, which suggests that consumers with Internet access are prone to higher balances compared to those without. The probability of carrying positive balances was larger in 2010 compared to 2013. Overall, the results suggest that, while the financial crisis might have contributed to higher balances in 2010, the economic recovery afterward seems to have eased the burden of credit card debt.     

Board of Directors and CSR in Banking: The Moderating Role of Bank Regulation and Investor Protection Strength

This paper brings together research on boards of directors as the backbone of corporate governance and corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices in the banking industry. The underlying idea is that some characteristics of bank boards, in particular independence and gender diversity, may impact the CSR commitments of banks. By making use of a sample of 159 banks in nine countries during the period 2004–2010, our empirical evidence suggests that banks with more independent directors and more female members on their boards incline toward socially responsible behaviour. Our results also suggest that institutional factors play a significant role in these effects. They show that in greater regulatory and stronger investor protection environments, board independence and gender diversity have more influence on the social behaviour of banks.     

IFRS Adoption in Emerging Markets: The Case of Jordan

The aim of this study is to research the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in Jordan, which was one of the first Middle Eastern emerging economies to adopt IFRS. The paper investigates the related factors that pressure and prevent such adoption over time, and illustrates the developmental aspects of such adoption. An interpretive methodology is employed, and perceptions of the study's participants are analysed regarding the adoption of IFRS in Jordan, which is an area that is under researched. Semi‐structured interviews were undertaken to collect Jordanian experts’ perceptions. Based on the empirical data analysis and prior theoretical and empirical literature, an adoption model was developed, which can serve future studies as well. The model illustrates the paradox of accounting changes in emerging economies, in which the actual conditions that pressure IFRS adoption are also the conditions that prevent full adoption. The model also provides an explanation of the implementation process of IFRS in emerging economies at both country and corporation levels. It combines practical features and related theories in an integrative model seeking to explain the phenomenon of IFRS as a new accounting regulation change.