Research shows that foreign asset expropriation narrows long-term bond spreads, resulting in lower borrowing costs. However, no empirical studies have investigated the effects of expropriation on sovereign bond ratings. Bondholders and sovereign bond issuers track ratings by credit rating...

Is it justified for states to appropriate private property rights? If so, should governments regulate or expropriate? Competing models predict that government power of appropriation causes underinvestment, overinvestment, and growth. We use random assignment of U.S. federal court judges setting...

This paper uses the enactment of China’s 2007 Property Law (the Law), which reduces the risk of expropriation by local governments, as the setting to investigate the importance of property rights protection for private firm investment. Using propensity score matching and a...

Rights offers are a relatively common capital-raising method. In a rights offer, the company’s existing shareholders are given the opportunity to purchase newly-issued shares in proportion to the amount of shares they already own for a specific subscription price per-share. Because all...

We investigate a 2012 pay-or-explain regulation implemented by China's Shanghai Stock Exchange. The regulation mandates that eligible firms must either pay 30% of their current-year profits as cash dividends or explain the reasons for their nonpayment through a public conference call. Using...

The presence of institutional investors in a firm's ownership structure is often associated with improved corporate governance practices and increased focus on long-term sustainable value creation. This study investigates whether the presence of institutional investors and a strong CSR...