Based on a large international sample, we examine the effects of CSR on the cost of equity under different levels of investor protection. In countries where investor protection is strong (poor), our results show that the cost of equity falls (rises) when a firm invests in CSR. Our findings are...

The paper examines the relationship between CSR and cost of equity in an in-ternational context assessing the moderating effect of culture on the relation between CSR and the cost of equity. We use an international sample of 42 countries, and company-level data from 2002-2013, to address...

We extend prior literature by showing that societal trust is a significant determinant of corporate investment policy. Firms in countries with a higher level of societal trust are less prone to underinvestment. We posit that the association between trust and underinvestment relates to a...

In a series of cross-country comparisons, we show that national culture is statistically significant in differentiating countries with different corporate governance systems. Using the Schwartz cultural value model and data on corporate governance systems, we analyze the impact of national...