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Political Control, Corporate Governance and Firm Value: The Case of China

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  • Xie, Sujuan
  • Lin, Bingxuan
  • Li, Jingjing

Abstract

We examine whether requiring a Party committee to lead corporate governance at listed state-owned enterprises (SOEs) affects firm value in China. We find that the market reacts positively to the inclusion of Party leadership in SOEs' governance structure and that the prospect of a crackdown on SOE corruption is likely to be the reason. The China governance model is strikingly different from other known models, and our findings suggest that a convergence of the corporate governance system of different countries due to globalization might not be the only outcome.

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  • Xie, Sujuan & Lin, Bingxuan & Li, Jingjing, 2022. "Political Control, Corporate Governance and Firm Value: The Case of China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:corfin:v:72:y:2022:i:c:s0929119922000049
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2022.102161
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    Cited by:

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    2. Chen, Christopher Chao-hung & Guo, Re-Jin & Lin, Lauren Yu-Hsin, 2023. "The effect of political influence on corporate valuation: Evidence from party-building reform in China," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    3. Xiaoxue Liu & Jingyun Zhou & You Wu & Na Hao, 2022. "The Influence of Party Organization Involvements in Corporate Governance on Innovation: Evidence from China’s Private-Owned Enterprises," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-30, December.
    4. Gu, Yun & Yang, Zhaohui, 2023. "The more red the greener? How the Communist Party of China's party organizations influences corporate green innovation," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 55(PA).
    5. Cheng, Sirui & Hua, Xiuping & Wang, Qingfeng, 2023. "Corporate culture and firm resilience in China: Evidence from the Sino-US trade war," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    6. Liang, Quanxi & Wang, Zhimin & Guan, Xin & Qin, Wei, 2023. "Party direct control and corporate fraud: Evidence from China," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 274-290.
    7. Wang, Shengbin & Zheng, Jiafeng & Tu, Yongqian, 2023. "The Communist Party of China embedded in corporate governance and enterprise value: Evidence from state-owned enterprises," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    8. Ren, Xiaohang & Zeng, Gudian & Sun, Xianming, 2023. "The peer effect of digital transformation and corporate environmental performance: Empirical evidence from listed companies in China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    9. Cheng, Teng Yuan & Susan, Enyang Besong & Lin, Hongxi & Luo, Dan, 2024. "The relationship between share pledge and corporate performance: Does corporate governance matter?," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    10. Li, Bin & Liu, Xiaomei, 2023. "Communist party organization and abnormal compensation of enterprise executives," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 57(C).
    11. Lin, Ouwen & Guan, Jianbo, 2024. "The impact of media attention, board independence on CEO power, and ESG in state-owned enterprises," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 62(PA).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Politicization of corporate governance; Party committee; Firm value; Chinese SOEs; Anti-corruption;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • G38 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • P26 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - Property Rights
    • P27 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - Performance and Prospects

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