The Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about development issues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry the names of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expresse...

This paper surveys the issues and devises an analytical framework for policy makers and policy advisors concerned with corporate governance. The framework takes a functional approach, identifying six functions provided by a governance system. The paper highlights the possibilities and limits to governance reform through the adoption of legal protections and the use of ownership structure. I cau...

We investigate the impact of founding family ownership structure on the agency cost of debt. We find that founding family ownership is common in large, publicly traded firms and is related, both statistically and economically, to a lower cost of debt financing. Our results are consistent with the idea that founding family firms have incentive structures that result in fewer agency conflicts bet...

Corporate Governance deals with the issue of how the suppliers of finance to various corporations assure themselves of getting a return on their investment. Several Studies have examined the relationship between ownership structure and firm performance. Using different data samples from different countries, most of the studies provide evidence that ownership influence firm performance. This stu...

Ownership structures widely differ across the EU. While large blockholdings dominate in the banking sector in Continental Europe, ownership is widely dispersed in the United Kingdom. These differences have consequences for corporate governance in the EU banking sector. This paper analyzes the efficiency of shareholder control and hostile takeovers as corporate governance mechanisms in the EU ba...

INTRODUCTION Worldwide B2B e-commerce revenues are expected to reach $2.7 trillion by the end of 2004. At the center of this dramatic growth are interorganizational information systems (IOS), which are information systems (IS) that facilitate the exchange of products, services and information between firms. Examples of IOS include EDI systems in a supply chain, B2B electronic marketplaces, and ...

This paper attempts to investigate the theoretical underpinnings for the reasons why firms frequently adopt the dual class equity structure, i.e. a capital (or ownership) structure based on the issuance of shares with differential voting rights (DeAngelo et al. 1985). Such an ownership structure is justified by some researchers as a defensive structure adopted by the directors and managers of a...

As a common space, urban entrance is the first place that introduces a city to its visitors and it is imprinted in the memory of people. This study aims to provide a detailed analysis of physical development and activity patterns along the main entrance of Rasht, Iran. Utilized data in this research comes from a questionnaire survey through which 707 land lots along the main entrances were stu...

The authors explore the relation between ownership form and distribution system and test the determinants of each element of organizational structure. Controlling for ownership form as an exogenous variable, the authors find that independent agency insurers are likely to be associated with stock ownership, are characterized by higher liabilities relative to surplus, and are more likely to speci...