IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/worbus/v59y2024i4s1090951624000312.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Context matters: The signaling role of foreign bidders’ reputation in cross-border acquisition contests

Author

Listed:
  • Zheng, Weiting
  • Zheng, Yaqin
  • Yi, Jingtao
  • Shaheer, Noman
  • Li, Sali

Abstract

Existing research offers limited understanding of how foreign acquirers enhance their chance of success in cross-border acquisition (CBA) deals. Engaging and extending signaling theory, this paper argues that during the bidding stage of an acquisition deal wherein information asymmetry is heightened between the bidder and seller, reputation of foreign bidders can serve as a signal of quality, increasing their likelihood of winning a deal over domestic bidders. Importantly, this signal is only effective when there is strong nationalist sentiment in the seller's country. Analyses of 580 bidders in 275 cross-border multi-bidder acquisition contests between 1994 and 2016 support our predictions.

Suggested Citation

  • Zheng, Weiting & Zheng, Yaqin & Yi, Jingtao & Shaheer, Noman & Li, Sali, 2024. "Context matters: The signaling role of foreign bidders’ reputation in cross-border acquisition contests," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 59(4).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:worbus:v:59:y:2024:i:4:s1090951624000312
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jwb.2024.101551
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090951624000312
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jwb.2024.101551?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. Cheng‐Wei Wu & Jeffrey J. Reuer, 2021. "Acquirers’ Reception of Signals in M&A Markets: Effects of Acquirer Experiences on Target Selection," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(5), pages 1237-1266, July.
    2. Douglas Dow & Ilya R P Cuypers & Gokhan Ertug, 2016. "The effects of within-country linguistic and religious diversity on foreign acquisitions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 47(3), pages 319-346, April.
    3. Leonie Huddy & Nadia Khatib, 2007. "American Patriotism, National Identity, and Political Involvement," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 51(1), pages 63-77, January.
    4. Laurence Capron & Jung‐Chin Shen, 2007. "Acquisitions of private vs. public firms: Private information, target selection, and acquirer returns," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(9), pages 891-911, September.
    5. Mallon, Mark R. & Fainshmidt, Stav, 2017. "Assets of Foreignness: A Theoretical Integration and Agenda for Future Research," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 43-55.
    6. George Balabanis & Adamantios Diamantopoulos & Rene Dentiste Mueller & T C Melewar, 2001. "The Impact of Nationalism, Patriotism and Internationalism on Consumer Ethnocentric Tendencies," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 32(1), pages 157-175, March.
    7. I. Serdar Dinc & Isil Erel, 2013. "Economic Nationalism in Mergers and Acquisitions," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 68(6), pages 2471-2514, December.
    8. Christina Lubinski & R. Daniel Wadhwani, 2020. "Geopolitical jockeying: Economic nationalism and multinational strategy in historical perspective," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(3), pages 400-421, March.
    9. Olivier Bertrand & Marie-Ann Betschinger & Alexander Settles, 2016. "The relevance of political affinity for the initial acquisition premium in cross-border acquisitions," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(10), pages 2071-2091, October.
    10. Yuping Zeng & Thomas J. Douglas & Changqi Wu, 2013. "The Seller's Perspective on Determinants of Acquisition Likelihood: Insights from China's Beer Industry," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(4), pages 673-698, June.
    11. Ilya R P Cuypers & Gokhan Ertug & Jean-François Hennart, 2015. "The effects of linguistic distance and lingua franca proficiency on the stake taken by acquirers in cross-border acquisitions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 46(4), pages 429-442, May.
    12. Nan Zhou & Mauro F. Guillén, 2015. "From home country to home base: A dynamic approach to the liability of foreignness," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(6), pages 907-917, June.
    13. Amel-Zadeh, Amir & Meeks, Geoff, 2019. "Bidder earnings forecasts in mergers and acquisitions," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 373-392.
    14. Dikova, Desislava & Rao Sahib, Padma, 2013. "Is cultural distance a bane or a boon for cross-border acquisition performance?," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 77-86.
    15. S. Trevis Certo & John R. Busenbark & Hyun‐soo Woo & Matthew Semadeni, 2016. "Sample selection bias and Heckman models in strategic management research," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(13), pages 2639-2657, December.
    16. Chira, Inga & Volkov, Nikanor, 2017. "The choice of sale method and its consequences in mergers and acquisitions," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 170-184.
    17. Joseph A. Clougherty & Nan Zhang, 2021. "Foreign investor reactions to risk and uncertainty in antitrust: U.S. merger policy investigations and the deterrence of foreign acquirer presence," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(3), pages 454-478, April.
    18. Shavin Malhotra & Ajai S Gaur, 2014. "Spatial geography and control in foreign acquisitions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 45(2), pages 191-210, February.
    19. Meyer, Klaus E. & Thein, Htwe Htwe, 2014. "Business under adverse home country institutions: The case of international sanctions against Myanmar," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 49(1), pages 156-171.
    20. D Sethi & S E Guisinger & S E Phelan & D M Berg, 2003. "Trends in foreign direct investment flows: a theoretical and empirical analysis," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 34(4), pages 315-326, July.
    21. Jerayr J. Haleblian & Michael D. Pfarrer & Jason T. Kiley, 2017. "High-Reputation Firms and Their Differential Acquisition Behaviors," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(11), pages 2237-2254, November.
    22. Denk, Nikola & Kaufmann, Lutz & Roesch, Jan-Frederik, 2012. "Liabilities of Foreignness Revisited: A Review of Contemporary Studies and Recommendations for Future Research," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 322-334.
    23. Simon J Evenett, 2019. "Protectionism, state discrimination, and international business since the onset of the Global Financial Crisis," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 2(1), pages 9-36, March.
    24. Douglas Dow & Ilya R. P. Cuypers, 2024. "The influence of societal nationalist sentiment on trade flows," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 7(1), pages 64-98, March.
    25. Shimizu, Katsuhiko & Hitt, Michael A. & Vaidyanath, Deepa & Pisano, Vincenzo, 2004. "Theoretical foundations of cross-border mergers and acquisitions: A review of current research and recommendations for the future," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 10(3), pages 307-353.
    26. Lois M. Shelton, 1988. "Strategic business fits and corporate acquisition: Empirical evidence," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(3), pages 279-287, May.
    27. Sethi, Deepak & Judge, William, 2009. "Reappraising liabilities of foreignness within an integrated perspective of the costs and benefits of doing business abroad," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 404-416, August.
    28. Inga Chira & Jeff Madura, 2013. "Impact Of The Galleon Case On Informed Trading Before Merger Announcements," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 36(3), pages 325-346, September.
    29. Masulis, Ronald W. & Reza, Syed Walid & Guo, Rong, 2023. "The sources of value creation in acquisitions of intangible assets," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    30. Sris Chatterjee & Kose John & An Yan, 2012. "Takeovers and Divergence of Investor Opinion," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 25(1), pages 227-277.
    31. Audra L. Boone & J. Harold Mulherin, 2007. "How Are Firms Sold?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 62(2), pages 847-875, April.
    32. Sathyajit R Gubbi & Preet S Aulakh & Sougata Ray & M B Sarkar & Raveendra Chittoor, 2010. "Do international acquisitions by emerging-economy firms create shareholder value? The case of Indian firms," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 41(3), pages 397-418, April.
    33. Bessler, Wolfgang & Schneck, Colin & Zimmermann, Jan, 2015. "Bidder contests in international mergers and acquisitions: The impact of toeholds, preemptive bidding, and termination fees," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 4-23.
    34. Patrick Regnér & Jesper Edman, 2014. "MNE institutional advantage: How subunits shape, transpose and evade host country institutions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 45(3), pages 275-302, April.
    35. Olivier Bertrand & Habib Zitouna, 2008. "Domestic versus cross-border acquisitions: which impact on the target firms' performance?," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(17), pages 2221-2238.
    36. Desislava Dikova & Padma Rao Sahib & Arjen van Witteloostuijn, 2010. "Cross-border acquisition abandonment and completion: The effect of institutional differences and organizational learning in the international business service industry, 1981–2001," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 41(2), pages 223-245, February.
    37. S. Fernando Rodriguez & Theodore R. Curry & Gang Lee, 2006. "Gender Differences in Criminal Sentencing: Do Effects Vary Across Violent, Property, and Drug Offenses?," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 87(2), pages 318-339, June.
    38. Li, Megan Yuan & Makino, Shige & Jiang, Chunyan, 2019. "Does national sentiment affect foreign direct investment, and if so, how? Additional evidence," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(5), pages 1-1.
    39. Ahammad, Mohammad Faisal & Tarba, Shlomo Yedidia & Liu, Yipeng & Glaister, Keith W., 2016. "Knowledge transfer and cross-border acquisition performance: The impact of cultural distance and employee retention," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 66-75.
    40. Radina R. Blagoeva & Korcan Kavusan & Justin J. P. Jansen, 2020. "Who violates expectations when? How firms' growth and dividend reputations affect investors' reactions to acquisitions," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(9), pages 1712-1742, September.
    41. Paul R. Brewer & Sean Aday & Kimberly Gross, 2005. "Do Americans Trust Other Nations? A Panel Study," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 86(1), pages 36-51, March.
    42. G. William Schwert, 2000. "Hostility in Takeovers: In the Eyes of the Beholder?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(6), pages 2599-2640, December.
    43. Michael A. Witt, 2019. "De-globalization: Theories, predictions, and opportunities for international business research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 50(7), pages 1053-1077, September.
    44. Joseph E. Stiglitz, 2000. "The Contributions of the Economics of Information to Twentieth Century Economics," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 115(4), pages 1441-1478.
    45. Heather Berry & Mauro F Guillén & Nan Zhou, 2010. "An institutional approach to cross-national distance," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 41(9), pages 1460-1480, December.
    46. Wu, Sihong & Fan, Di, 2023. "Taking two to tango: A comparative nationalism view of cross-border acquisitions," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(3).
    47. Tingjun Liu, 2012. "Takeover Bidding with Signaling Incentives," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 25(2), pages 522-556.
    48. Qian Gu & Jane W Lu, 2011. "Effects of inward investment on outward investment: The venture capital industry worldwide 1985–2007," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 42(2), pages 263-284, February.
    49. Ole-Kristian Hope & Wayne Thomas & Dushyantkumar Vyas, 2011. "The cost of pride: Why do firms from developing countries bid higher?," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 42(1), pages 128-151, January.
    50. Kathleen Fuller & Jeffry Netter & Mike Stegemoller, 2002. "What Do Returns to Acquiring Firms Tell Us? Evidence from Firms That Make Many Acquisitions," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(4), pages 1763-1793, August.
    51. Chengguang Li & Oded Shenkar & William E. Newburry & Yinuo Tang, 2021. "How Country Reputation Differentials Influence Market Reaction to International Acquisitions," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(6), pages 1609-1639, September.
    52. Lewis, Yimai & Bozos, Konstantinos, 2019. "Mitigating post-acquisition risk: the interplay of cross-border uncertainties," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 54(5), pages 1-1.
    53. William Newburry & Naomi A Gardberg & Liuba Y Belkin, 2006. "Organizational attractiveness is in the eye of the beholder: the interaction of demographic characteristics with foreignness," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 37(5), pages 666-686, September.
    54. Michael Spence, 1973. "Job Market Signaling," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 87(3), pages 355-374.
    55. Jane W. Lu & Hao Ma & Xuanli Xie, 2022. "Foreignness research in international business: Major streams and future directions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 53(3), pages 449-480, April.
    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. Xie, En & Reddy, K.S. & Liang, Jie, 2017. "Country-specific determinants of cross-border mergers and acquisitions: A comprehensive review and future research directions," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 52(2), pages 127-183.
    2. Jane W. Lu & Hao Ma & Xuanli Xie, 2022. "Foreignness research in international business: Major streams and future directions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 53(3), pages 449-480, April.
    3. Gnekpe, Christian & Jimenez, Alfredo, 2023. "Smoke signal: When firms' patent strategy and local patent protection system affect equity stakes in cross-border acquisitions," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 29(6).
    4. Xu, Kai & Hitt, Michael A. & Brock, David & Pisano, Vincenzo & Huang, Lulu S.R., 2021. "Country institutional environments and international strategy: A review and analysis of the research," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(1).
    5. Renneboog, Luc & Vansteenkiste, Cara, 2019. "Failure and success in mergers and acquisitions," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 650-699.
    6. Lim, Mi-Hee & Lee, Ji-Hwan, 2017. "National economic disparity and cross-border acquisition resolution," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(2), pages 354-364.
    7. Shixiang Wang & Jiang Wei & Minyuan Zhao, 2022. "Shopping as locals: A study of conduit acquisition by multinational enterprises," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 53(8), pages 1670-1694, October.
    8. Wu, Sihong & Fan, Di, 2023. "Taking two to tango: A comparative nationalism view of cross-border acquisitions," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(3).
    9. Kedia, Ben L. & Reddy, Rama Krishna, 2016. "Language and cross-border acquisitions: An exploratory study," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 1321-1332.
    10. Lawrence, Edward R. & Raithatha, Mehul & Rodriguez, Ivan, 2021. "The effect of cultural and institutional factors on initiation, completion, and duration of cross-border acquisitions," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    11. Zeng, Rong (Ratchel) & Oh, Won-Yong & Zhu, Pengcheng, 2023. "Will investors’ excitement last? Determinants of investors’ responses to cross-border acquisitions by Chinese firms," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    12. Chengguang Li & Ilgaz Arikan & Oded Shenkar & Asli Arikan, 2020. "The impact of country-dyadic military conflicts on market reaction to cross-border acquisitions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 51(3), pages 299-325, April.
    13. Juan Bu & Yinuo Tang & Yadong Luo & Chengguang Li, 2023. "Learning from inbound foreign acquisitions for outbound expansion by emerging market MNEs," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 54(5), pages 852-886, July.
    14. Chenxi Zhou & Jinhong Xie & Qi Wang, 2016. "Failure to Complete Cross-Border M&As: “To” vs. “From” Emerging Markets," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 47(9), pages 1077-1105, December.
    15. Lamotte, Olivier & Chalençon, Ludivine & Mayrhofer, Ulrike & Colovic, Ana, 2021. "Intangible resources and cross-border acquisition decisions: The impact of reputation and the moderating effect of experiential knowledge," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 297-310.
    16. Prasadh, R. Shyaam & Thenmozhi, M., 2019. "Does religion affect cross-border acquisitions? Tales from developed and emerging economies," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 31(C).
    17. Shyaam Prasadh & M. Thenmozhi & May Hu, 2020. "Does economic freedom distance affect long-run post-acquisition performance and ownership level in cross-border acquisitions?," DECISION: Official Journal of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Springer;Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, vol. 47(2), pages 191-213, June.
    18. Tian, Xiaocong, 2022. "The art of rhetoric: Host country political hostility and the rhetorical strategies of foreign subsidiaries in developing economies," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 57(5).
    19. Gaur, Ajai & Malhotra, Shavin & Zhu, PengCheng, 2022. "Institutional distance and ownership in foreign acquisitions," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 28(2).
    20. Lim, Mi-Hee & Lee, Ji-Hwan, 2016. "The effects of industry relatedness and takeover motives on cross-border acquisition completion," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(11), pages 4787-4792.

    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:worbus:v:59:y:2024:i:4:s1090951624000312. 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/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/620401/description#description .

    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.