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Ownership Structure and the Life-Cycle of the Firm: A Theory of the Decision to Go Public

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  • Ernst Maug

Abstract

This paper presents a theory of initial public offerings based on the idea that the optimal ownership structure of a company changes over the life cycle of the firm. Insiders take the company public when they have lost the comparative advantage over outsiders in gathering information to evaluate the firm's growth prospects. The size of the share sold to the public depends on the relative abilities of the market and insiders to gather this information and on the frictions in the going-public process. Intermediaries help to reduce these frictions and lead to a more efficient allocation if IPOs are conducted more frequently. Discrimination between different classes of investors may be beneficial. Learning by the market about projects in a new industry can lead to a clustering of new issues (hot issue markets). JEL Classification: G24, G32.

Suggested Citation

  • Ernst Maug, 2001. "Ownership Structure and the Life-Cycle of the Firm: A Theory of the Decision to Go Public," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 5(3), pages 167-200.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:revfin:v:5:y:2001:i:3:p:167-200.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1023/A:1013804026442
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    Cited by:

    1. Carbone, Emmadonata & Cirillo, Alessandro & Saggese, Sara & Sarto, Fabrizia, 2022. "IPO in family business: A systematic review and directions for future research," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 13(1).
    2. George A Shinkle & Jo-Ann Suchard, 2019. "Innovation in newly public firms: The influence of government grants, venture capital, and private equity," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 44(2), pages 248-281, May.
    3. Jiang, Li & Kim, Jeong-Bon & Pang, Lei, 2011. "Control-ownership wedge and investment sensitivity to stock price," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(11), pages 2856-2867, November.
    4. Ljungqvist, Alexander & Boehmer, Ekkehart, 2004. "On the decision to go public: Evidence from privately-held firms," Discussion Paper Series 1: Economic Studies 2004,16, Deutsche Bundesbank.
    5. Chen, Hung-Ling & Chow, Edward H., 2011. "The impact of investor base on the costs of capital for IPOs," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 177-190, July.
    6. Pan, Xiaofei & Tian, Gary Gang, 2016. "Family control and loan collateral: Evidence from China," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 53-68.
    7. Jean Helwege & Christo Pirinsky & René M. Stulz, 2007. "Why Do Firms Become Widely Held? An Analysis of the Dynamics of Corporate Ownership," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 62(3), pages 995-1028, June.
    8. Bruno Cals de Oliveira & Roy Martelanc, 2014. "IPO Determinants of Brazilian Companies," Brazilian Review of Finance, Brazilian Society of Finance, vol. 12(2), pages 135-161.
    9. Rihab Kriaa & Taher Hamza, 2021. "Control dilution of an initial owner post-IPO: the impact of characteristics of ownership structure," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 1(3), pages 1-35, March.
    10. Benninga, Simon & Helmantel, Mark & Sarig, Oded, 2005. "The timing of initial public offerings," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(1), pages 115-132, January.
    11. Mauro Romano & Alessandro Cirillo & Donata Mussolino & Luca Pennacchio, 2019. "CEO career horizons and when to go public: the relationship between risk-taking, speed and CEO power," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 23(1), pages 139-163, March.
    12. Park, Chan-Kyoo & Lee, Cheolwoo & Jeon, Jin Q., 2020. "Centrality and corporate governance decisions of Korean chaebols: A social network approach," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    13. Aldatmaz, Serdar & Celikyurt, Ugur, 2023. "The effect of venture capital backing on innovation in newly public firms," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • G24 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Investment Banking; Venture Capital; Brokerage
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill

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