We examine the impact of two defining social characteristics (individualism and risk aversion) and their interaction with governance and firm agency problems on capital structure in the G20 countries. With a sample of roughly 13,000 firms from 1995 to 2009, we show that higher levels of...

We examine the impact of corporate board reforms on firm value in 41 countries. Using a difference-in-differences design, we find that board reforms increase firm value. Reforms involving board and audit committee independence, but not reforms involving separation of chairman and CEO positions,...

We examine how boardroom gender diversity reforms impact the monitoring role of institutional investors. Using reforms from 25 countries that aim to improve gender diversity on boards, we find that the reforms increase the association between institutional ownership and subsequent female...

We examine the joint effects of bank regulation and internal governance on bank stand-alone and systemic risk. Using a broad international sample, we find that banks with better governance in countries with better regulatory quality have lower risk. These results are stronger in more developed...