IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jfinec/v100y2011i1p154-181.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Does governance travel around the world? Evidence from institutional investors

Author

Listed:
  • Aggarwal, Reena
  • Erel, Isil
  • Ferreira, Miguel
  • Matos, Pedro

Abstract

We examine whether institutional investors affect corporate governance by analyzing portfolio holdings of institutions in companies from 23 countries during the period 2003-2008. We find that firm-level governance is positively associated with international institutional investment. Changes in institutional ownership over time positively affect subsequent changes in firm-level governance, but the opposite is not true. Foreign institutions and institutions from countries with strong shareholder protection play a role in promoting governance improvements outside of the U.S. Institutional investors affect not only which corporate governance mechanisms are in place, but also outcomes. Firms with higher institutional ownership are more likely to terminate poorly performing Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and exhibit improvements in valuation over time. Our results suggest that international portfolio investment by institutional investors promotes good corporate governance practices around the world.

Suggested Citation

  • Aggarwal, Reena & Erel, Isil & Ferreira, Miguel & Matos, Pedro, 2011. "Does governance travel around the world? Evidence from institutional investors," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(1), pages 154-181, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jfinec:v:100:y:2011:i:1:p:154-181
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304-405X(10)00254-0
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Doidge, Craig & Karolyi, G. Andrew & Stulz, Rene M., 2004. "Why are foreign firms listed in the U.S. worth more?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(2), pages 205-238, February.
    2. Geert Bekaert & Campbell R. Harvey, 2000. "Foreign Speculators and Emerging Equity Markets," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(2), pages 565-613, April.
    3. Kang, Jun-Koo & Stulz, Rene M., 1997. "Why is there a home bias? An analysis of foreign portfolio equity ownership in Japan," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 3-28, October.
    4. Paul A. Gompers & Andrew Metrick, 2001. "Institutional Investors and Equity Prices," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 116(1), pages 229-259.
    5. Bebchuk, Lucian A. & Cohen, Alma, 2005. "The costs of entrenched boards," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(2), pages 409-433, November.
    6. Lucian Bebchuk & Alma Cohen & Allen Ferrell, 2009. "What Matters in Corporate Governance?," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(2), pages 783-827, February.
    7. René M. Stulz, 2007. "The Limits of Financial Globalization," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 19(1), pages 8-15, January.
    8. Doidge, Craig & Andrew Karolyi, G. & Stulz, Rene M., 2007. "Why do countries matter so much for corporate governance?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(1), pages 1-39, October.
    9. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 1998. "Law and Finance," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(6), pages 1113-1155, December.
    10. Rossi, Stefano & Volpin, Paolo F., 2004. "Cross-country determinants of mergers and acquisitions," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(2), pages 277-304, November.
    11. Gaspar, Jose-Miguel & Massa, Massimo & Matos, Pedro, 2005. "Shareholder investment horizons and the market for corporate control," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(1), pages 135-165, April.
    12. April Klein & Emanuel Zur, 2009. "Entrepreneurial Shareholder Activism: Hedge Funds and Other Private Investors," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 64(1), pages 187-229, February.
    13. Miguel A. Ferreira & Massimo Massa & Pedro Matos, 2010. "Shareholders at the Gate? Institutional Investors and Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(2), pages 601-644, February.
    14. Mariassunta Giannetti & Luc Laeven, 2009. "Pension Reform, Ownership Structure, and Corporate Governance: Evidence from a Natural Experiment," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(10), pages 4091-4127, October.
    15. Paul Gompers & Joy Ishii & Andrew Metrick, 2003. "Corporate Governance and Equity Prices," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 118(1), pages 107-156.
    16. Becht, Marco & Bolton, Patrick & Roell, Ailsa, 2003. "Corporate governance and control," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, in: G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Finance, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 1, pages 1-109, Elsevier.
    17. Christian Leuz & Karl V. Lins & Francis E. Warnock, 2010. "Do Foreigners Invest Less in Poorly Governed Firms?," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(3), pages 3245-3285, March.
    18. Ugur Lel & Darius P. Miller, 2008. "International Cross‐Listing, Firm Performance, and Top Management Turnover: A Test of the Bonding Hypothesis," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 63(4), pages 1897-1937, August.
    19. Ai, Chunrong & Norton, Edward C., 2003. "Interaction terms in logit and probit models," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 80(1), pages 123-129, July.
    20. Reena Aggarwal & Isil Erel & René Stulz & Rohan Williamson, 2010. "Differences in Governance Practices between U.S. and Foreign Firms: Measurement, Causes, and Consequences," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(3), pages 3131-3169, March.
    21. Ferreira, Miguel A. & Matos, Pedro, 2008. "The colors of investors' money: The role of institutional investors around the world," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(3), pages 499-533, June.
    22. Arturo Bris & Christos Cabolis, 2008. "The Value of Investor Protection: Firm Evidence from Cross-Border Mergers," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 21(2), pages 605-648, April.
    23. Mariassunta Giannetti & Andrei Simonov, 2006. "Which Investors Fear Expropriation? Evidence from Investors' Portfolio Choices," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 61(3), pages 1507-1547, June.
    24. Djankov, Simeon & La Porta, Rafael & Lopez-de-Silanes, Florencio & Shleifer, Andrei, 2008. "The law and economics of self-dealing," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(3), pages 430-465, June.
    25. Chen, Xia & Harford, Jarrad & Li, Kai, 2007. "Monitoring: Which institutions matter?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(2), pages 279-305, November.
    26. Aggarwal, Reena & Klapper, Leora & Wysocki, Peter D., 2005. "Portfolio preferences of foreign institutional investors," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(12), pages 2919-2946, December.
    27. Woochan Kim & Taeyoon Sung & Shang-Jin Wei, 2008. "How Does Corporate Governance Risk at Home Affect Investment Choices Abroad?," NBER Working Papers 13721, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    28. Kalok Chan & Vicentiu Covrig & Lilian Ng, 2005. "What Determines the Domestic Bias and Foreign Bias? Evidence from Mutual Fund Equity Allocations Worldwide," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 60(3), pages 1495-1534, June.
    29. Davis, Gerald F. & Kim, E. Han, 2007. "Business ties and proxy voting by mutual funds," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(2), pages 552-570, August.
    30. Benjamin E. Hermalin & Michael S. Weisbach, 2003. "Boards of directors as an endogenously determined institution: a survey of the economic literature," Economic Policy Review, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, vol. 9(Apr), pages 7-26.
    31. Denis, Diane K. & McConnell, John J., 2003. "International Corporate Governance," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 38(1), pages 1-36, March.
    32. Mark L. Defond & Mingyi Hung, 2004. "Investor Protection and Corporate Governance: Evidence from Worldwide CEO Turnover," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(2), pages 269-312, May.
    33. Stuart L. Gillan & Laura T. Starks, 2007. "The Evolution of Shareholder Activism in the United States," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 19(1), pages 55-73, January.
    34. Art Durnev & E. Han Kim, 2005. "To Steal or Not to Steal: Firm Attributes, Legal Environment, and Valuation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 60(3), pages 1461-1493, June.
    35. Alon Brav & Wei Jiang & Frank Partnoy & Randall Thomas, 2008. "Hedge Fund Activism, Corporate Governance, and Firm Performance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 63(4), pages 1729-1775, August.
    36. Brickley, James A. & Lease, Ronald C. & Smith, Clifford Jr., 1988. "Ownership structure and voting on antitakeover amendments," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1-2), pages 267-291, January.
    37. Dahlquist, Magnus & Robertsson, Goran, 2001. "Direct foreign ownership, institutional investors, and firm characteristics," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(3), pages 413-440, March.
    38. Jay C. Hartzell & Laura T. Starks, 2003. "Institutional Investors and Executive Compensation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 58(6), pages 2351-2374, December.
    39. Dahya, Jay & Dimitrov, Orlin & McConnell, John J., 2008. "Dominant shareholders, corporate boards, and corporate value: A cross-country analysis," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 73-100, January.
    40. Parrino, Robert & Sias, Richard W. & Starks, Laura T., 2003. "Voting with their feet: institutional ownership changes around forced CEO turnover," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(1), pages 3-46, April.
    41. Donghui Li & Fariborz Moshirian & Peter Kien Pham & Jason Zein, 2006. "When Financial Institutions Are Large Shareholders: The Role of Macro Corporate Governance Environments," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 61(6), pages 2975-3007, December.
    42. Weisbach, Michael S., 1988. "Outside directors and CEO turnover," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1-2), pages 431-460, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ferreira, Miguel A. & Matos, Pedro, 2008. "The colors of investors' money: The role of institutional investors around the world," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(3), pages 499-533, June.
    2. Claessens, Stijn & Yurtoglu, B. Burcin, 2013. "Corporate governance in emerging markets: A survey," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 15(C), pages 1-33.
    3. Lucian A. Bebchuk & Michael S. Weisbach, 2012. "The State of Corporate Governance Research," Springer Books, in: Sabri Boubaker & Bang Dang Nguyen & Duc Khuong Nguyen (ed.), Corporate Governance, edition 127, pages 325-346, Springer.
    4. Bruno, Valentina & Claessens, Stijn, 2010. "Corporate governance and regulation: Can there be too much of a good thing?," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 461-482, October.
    5. Kim, Woochan & Sung, Taeyoon & Wei, Shang-Jin, 2011. "Does corporate governance risk at home affect investment choices abroad?," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(1), pages 25-41, September.
    6. Abdioglu, Nida & Khurshed, Arif & Stathopoulos, Konstantinos, 2013. "Foreign institutional investment: Is governance quality at home important?," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 916-940.
    7. Reena Aggarwal & Isil Erel & René Stulz & Rohan Williamson, 2010. "Differences in Governance Practices between U.S. and Foreign Firms: Measurement, Causes, and Consequences," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(3), pages 3131-3169, March.
    8. Kim, Hugh & Liao, Rose C. & Wang, Yan, 2015. "Active block investors and corporate governance around the world," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 181-194.
    9. Simon Döring & Wolfgang Drobetz & Sadok El Ghoul & Omrane Guedhami & Henning Schröder, 2021. "Institutional investment horizons and firm valuation around the world," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(2), pages 212-244, March.
    10. Ghosh, Chinmoy & He, Fan & Zhou, Haoyong, 2021. "On the role of foreign directors: Evidence from cross-listed firms," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 177-202.
    11. Miletkov, Mihail K. & Poulsen, Annette B. & Babajide Wintoki, M., 2014. "The role of corporate board structure in attracting foreign investors," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 143-157.
    12. Mishra, Anil V. & Ratti, Ronald A., 2011. "Governance, monitoring and foreign investment in Chinese companies," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 12(2), pages 171-188, June.
    13. Andriosopoulos, Dimitris & Yang, Shuai, 2015. "The impact of institutional investors on mergers and acquisitions in the United Kingdom," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 547-561.
    14. Garner, Jacqueline L. & Kim, Won Yong, 2013. "Are foreign investors really beneficial? Evidence from South Korea," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 25(C), pages 62-84.
    15. Rui Albuquerque & Luis Brandão-Marques & Miguel A Ferreira & Pedro Matos, 2019. "International Corporate Governance Spillovers: Evidence from Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 32(2), pages 738-770.
    16. An, Zhe & Chen, Chen & Li, Donghui & Yin, Chao, 2021. "Foreign institutional ownership and the speed of leverage adjustment: International evidence," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    17. Roberto Álvarez & Mauricio Jara-Bertín & Carlos Pombo, 2016. "Do institutional investors unbind firm financial constraints? Evidence from emerging markets," Documentos CEDE 15114, Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Economía, CEDE.
    18. Iliev, Peter & Roth, Lukas, 2018. "Learning from directors' foreign board experiences," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 1-19.
    19. Kang, Sanggyu & Chung, Chune Young & Kim, Dong-Soon, 2019. "The effect of institutional blockholders' short-termism on firm innovation: Evidence from the Korean market," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 57(C).
    20. Maria Camila De-La-Hoz & Carlos Pombo & Rodrigo Taborda, 2018. "Does board diversity affect institutional investor preferences? Evidence from Latin America," Documentos CEDE 15991, Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Economía, CEDE.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Institutional investors Corporate governance Shareholder activism;

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance
    • G38 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Government Policy and Regulation

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jfinec:v:100:y:2011:i:1:p:154-181. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/505576 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.