Investor Structure and Stock Price Crash Risk : A Comparative Analysis of Independent and Non-Independent Institutional Investors’ Shareholdings

We explore the influence of investor structure on stock market stability from the perspective of stock price crash risk. First, overall, institutional investors’ shareholdings are positively related to firms' stock price crash risk. Second, after dividing institutional investors into independent (represented by financial institutions) and non-independent institutional investors (represented by general legal persons), we find independent (non-independent) institutional investors’ shareholdings is positively (negatively) related to firms' stock price crash risk. Third, independent and non-independent institutional investors exert opposite influences on corporate information transparency, corporate internal governance and stock liquidity, which may explain their contrasting effects on stock price crash risk