IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/glofin/v62y2024ics1044028324000772.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Does social capital matter in underwriter's fees?

Author

Listed:
  • Abakah, Alex Annan

Abstract

This study examines the influence of bond issuer's social capital on underwriting fees. Investors rely on accurate information to evaluate bond quality, while underwriters assume inventory risk stemming from uncertain investor demand. We posit that social capital enhances the quality of information disclosed by the issuer, consequently impacting the fees underwriters charge for bearing this risk. Utilizing data on new tax-exempt municipal bonds issued from U.S. counties over the period 1990–2017, we find that underwriters charge significantly lower fees for bonds issued from counties with higher social capital. This result remains robust after controlling for issuer and bond characteristics, as well as addressing potential endogeneity concerns. Further investigations show that the observed effect persists only in situations where underwriters bear greater risk, suggesting that social capital functions as a valuable form of certification within the underwriting process.

Suggested Citation

  • Abakah, Alex Annan, 2024. "Does social capital matter in underwriter's fees?," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:glofin:v:62:y:2024:i:c:s1044028324000772
    DOI: 10.1016/j.gfj.2024.101005
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1044028324000772
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.gfj.2024.101005?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

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

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alberto Alesina & Eliana La Ferrara, 2000. "Participation in Heterogeneous Communities," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 115(3), pages 847-904.
    2. Stephen Knack & Philip Keefer, 1997. "Does Social Capital Have an Economic Payoff? A Cross-Country Investigation," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 112(4), pages 1251-1288.
    3. Gupta, Atul & Raman, Kartik & Shang, Chenguang, 2018. "Social capital and the cost of equity," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 102-117.
    4. Gupta, Atul & Raman, Kartik & Shang, Chenguang, 2020. "Do Informal Contracts Matter for Corporate Innovation? Evidence from Social Capital," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 55(5), pages 1657-1684, August.
    5. La Porta, Rafael & Lopez-de-Silanes, Florencio & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert, 1999. "The Quality of Government," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 15(1), pages 222-279, April.
    6. Roland Robinson, 1960. "Postwar Market for State and Local Government Securities," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number robi60-1, February.
    7. La Porta, Rafael, et al, 1997. "Trust in Large Organizations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 87(2), pages 333-338, May.
    8. Paul F. Whiteley, 2000. "Economic Growth and Social Capital," Political Studies, Political Studies Association, vol. 48(3), pages 443-466, June.
    9. Hilary, Gilles & Hui, Kai Wai, 2009. "Does religion matter in corporate decision making in America?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(3), pages 455-473, September.
    10. Hoi, Chun Keung(Stan) & Wu, Qiang & Zhang, Hao, 2019. "Does social capital mitigate agency problems? Evidence from Chief Executive Officer (CEO) compensation," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 133(2), pages 498-519.
    11. Spagnolo, Giancarlo, 1999. "Social relations and cooperation in organizations," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 38(1), pages 1-25, January.
    12. Kedia, Simi & Rajgopal, Shivaram & Zhou, Xing (Alex), 2017. "Large shareholders and credit ratings," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(3), pages 632-653.
    13. Luigi Guiso & Paola Sapienza & Luigi Zingales, 2004. "The Role of Social Capital in Financial Development," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(3), pages 526-556, June.
    14. Hasan, Iftekhar & Hoi, Chun Keung & Wu, Qiang & Zhang, Hao, 2017. "Social Capital and Debt Contracting: Evidence from Bank Loans and Public Bonds," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 52(3), pages 1017-1047, June.
    15. Alexander W. Butler, 2008. "Distance Still Matters: Evidence from Municipal Bond Underwriting," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 21(2), pages 763-784, April.
    16. Kumar, Alok & Page, Jeremy K. & Spalt, Oliver G., 2011. "Religious beliefs, gambling attitudes, and financial market outcomes," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(3), pages 671-708.
    17. Kessel, Reuben, 1971. "A Study of the Effects of Competition in the Tax-exempt Bond Market," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 79(4), pages 706-738, July-Aug..
    18. Alexander W. Butler & Larry Fauver & Sandra Mortal, 2009. "Corruption, Political Connections, and Municipal Finance," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(7), pages 2673-2705, July.
    19. Greif, Avner, 1994. "Cultural Beliefs and the Organization of Society: A Historical and Theoretical Reflection on Collectivist and Individualist Societies," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 102(5), pages 912-950, October.
    20. Alex Annan Abakah, 2020. "Local religious beliefs and municipal bond market outcomes," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 49(2), pages 447-471, June.
    21. Amanda W. Beck, 2018. "Opportunistic financial reporting around municipal bond issues," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 785-826, September.
    22. West, Richard R., 1967. "Determinants of Underwriters' Spreads on Tax Exempt Bond Issues*," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 2(3), pages 241-263, September.
    23. Baron, D. P. & Holmström, B. R., 1980. "Abstract: The Investment Banking Contract for New Issues Under Asymmetric Information: Delegation and the Incentive Problem," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(4), pages 851-851, November.
    24. Tao Shu & Johan Sulaeman & P. Eric Yeung, 2012. "Local Religious Beliefs and Mutual Fund Risk-Taking Behaviors," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 58(10), pages 1779-1796, October.
    25. Anand Jha, 2019. "Financial Reports and Social Capital," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(2), pages 567-596, March.
    26. Sorensen, Eric H, 1979. "The Impact of Underwriting Method and Bidder Competition upon Corporate Bond Interest Cost," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 34(4), pages 863-870, September.
    27. Pei Li & Leo Tang & Bikki Jaggi, 2018. "Social Capital and the Municipal Bond Market," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(2), pages 479-501, December.
    28. Rupasingha, Anil & Goetz, Stephan J. & Freshwater, David, 2006. "The production of social capital in US counties," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 35(1), pages 83-101, February.
    29. Logue, Dennis E & Lindvall, John R, 1974. "The Behavior of Investment Bankers: An Econometric Investigation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 29(1), pages 203-215, March.
    30. Hopewell, Michael H & Kaufman, George G, 1977. "Commercial Bank Bidding on Municipal Revenue Bonds: New Evidence," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 32(5), pages 1647-1656, December.
    31. Rupasingha, Anil & Goetz, Stephan J., 2007. "Social and political forces as determinants of poverty: A spatial analysis," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 650-671, August.
    32. Miles Livingston & Robert E. Miller, 2000. "Investment Bank Reputation and the Underwriting of Nonconvertible Debt," Financial Management, Financial Management Association, vol. 29(2), Summer.
    33. Ederington, Louis H, 1976. "Negotiated Versus Competitive Underwritings of Corporate Bonds," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 31(1), pages 17-28, March.
    34. Miles Livingston & Lei Zhou, 2002. "The Impact of Rule 144A Debt Offerings Upon Bond Yields and Underwriter Fees," Financial Management, Financial Management Association, vol. 31(4), Winter.
    35. M. Wayne Marr & G. Rodney Thompson, 1984. "The Influence Of Offering Yield On Underwriting Spread," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 7(4), pages 323-328, December.
    36. Baron, David P & Holmstrom, Bengt, 1980. "The Investment Banking Contract for New Issues under Asymmetric Information: Delegation and the Incentive Problem," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 35(5), pages 1115-1138, December.
    37. Cuny, Christine, 2016. "Voluntary disclosure incentives: Evidence from the municipal bond market," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(1), pages 87-102.
    38. Irena Hutton & Danling Jiang & Alok Kumar, 2015. "Political Values, Culture, and Corporate Litigation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 61(12), pages 2905-2925, December.
    39. Megginson, William L & Weiss, Kathleen A, 1991. "Venture Capitalist Certification in Initial Public Offerings," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 46(3), pages 879-903, July.
    40. Marquette, R. Penny & Wilson, Earl R., 1992. "The case for mandatory municipal disclosure: Do seasoned municipal bond yields impound publicly available information?," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 181-206.
    41. Higgins, W. W. & Moore, B. J., 1980. "Market Structure versus Information Costs as Determinants of Underwriters' Spreads on Municipal Bonds," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(1), pages 85-97, March.
    42. Sorensen, Eric H., 1980. "An Analysis of the Relationship between Underwriter Spread and the Pricing of Municipal Bonds," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(2), pages 435-447, June.
    43. David Pastoriza & Miguel Ariño & Joan Ricart, 2008. "Ethical Managerial Behaviour as an Antecedent of Organizational Social Capital," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 78(3), pages 329-341, March.
    44. Jefferson Duarte & Stephan Siegel & Lance Young, 2012. "Trust and Credit: The Role of Appearance in Peer-to-peer Lending," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 25(8), pages 2455-2484.
    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. John (Jianqiu) Bai & Chenguang Shang & Chi Wan & Yijia Eddie Zhao, 2022. "Social Capital and Individual Ethics: Evidence from Financial Adviser Misconduct," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 181(2), pages 495-518, November.
    2. Panta, Humnath, 2020. "Does social capital influence corporate risk-taking?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 26(C).
    3. James, Hui L., 2023. "Social capital and the riskiness of trade credit," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 39(C).
    4. Hasan, Iftekhar & (Stan) Hoi, Chun-Keung & Wu, Qiang & Zhang, Hao, 2020. "Is social capital associated with corporate innovation? Evidence from publicly listed firms in the U.S," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    5. Zheng, Chen & Cheung, Adrian Wai Kong & Cronje, Tom, 2022. "Social capital and bank liquidity hoarding," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    6. Pei Li & Leo Tang & Bikki Jaggi, 2018. "Social Capital and the Municipal Bond Market," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(2), pages 479-501, December.
    7. Ahsan Habib & Mabel D' Costa & Ahmed Khamis Al‐Hadi, 2023. "Consequences of local social norms: A review of the literature in accounting, finance, and corporate governance," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 63(1), pages 3-45, March.
    8. Tongxia Li & Chun Lu, 2023. "Local social environment and the speed of leverage adjustment," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 63(2), pages 1919-1952, June.
    9. Chen, Yangyang & Duong, Huu Nhan & Goyal, Abhinav & Veeraraghavan, Madhu, 2023. "Social capital and the pricing of initial public offerings," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    10. Zadeh, Mohammad Hendijani, 2023. "Stock liquidity and societal trust," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    11. Abakah, Alex Annan & Li, Jiayan, 2023. "Local religious beliefs and bank risk-taking," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 40(C).
    12. Lingxiao Li & Erdem Ucar & Abdullah Yavas, 2022. "Social Capital and Mortgage Delinquency," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 64(3), pages 379-403, April.
    13. Xia, Changyuan & Chan, Kam C. & Cao, Chunfang & Tan, Youchao, 2021. "Generalized trust, personalized trust, and dynamics of capital structure: Evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    14. Atul Gupta & Kristina Minnick, 2022. "Social capital and managerial opportunism: Evidence from option backdating," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 45(3), pages 579-605, September.
    15. Hossain, Ashrafee & Hossain, Takdir & Jha, Anand & Mougoué, Mbodja, 2023. "Credit ratings and social capital," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    16. John (Jianqiu) Bai & Shuili Du & Wang Jin & Chi Wan, 2023. "Is social capital associated with individual social responsibility? The case of social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 64(4), pages 1861-1896, April.
    17. Kershen Huang & Chenguang Shang, 2024. "Does informal governance matter to institutional investors? Evidence from social capital," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 59(2), pages 433-457, May.
    18. Gupta, Atul & Raman, Kartik & Shang, Chenguang, 2018. "Social capital and the cost of equity," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 102-117.
    19. Tian, Yonggang & Ang, James S. & Fu, Panpan & Ma, Chaoqun & Wang, Xiuhua, 2024. "Does social trust mitigate insiders' opportunistic behaviors? Evidence from insider trading," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    20. Martin-Flores, Jose M., 2024. "Is bank misconduct related to social capital? Evidence from U.S. banks," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Social capital; Trust; Information sharing; Information asymmetry; underwriter's risk-bearing; Underwriting spread;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G24 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Investment Banking; Venture Capital; Brokerage
    • H74 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Borrowing
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

    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:glofin:v:62:y:2024:i:c:s1044028324000772. 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/620162 .

    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.