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Can economic rationality explain the feminization of shareholding? Evidence from female shareholders in Spain (1918-1948)

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  • Lopez-Gomez, Laura
  • Martinez-Rodrigue, Susana

Abstract

Our results reinforce the thesis that the presence of women investors was not only pioneering by developed economies but was rather a reflection of a deeper phenomenon associated with institutions and modernization. We examine the feminization of shareholding employing data from Spanish commercial banks (1918-1948). We build a unique dataset of more than 30.000 women shareholders who took the opportunity to invest in stocks in well-established banks, drawn by the potential economic profitability. Family ties played a crucial role in explaining the presence of women and – specially – men shareholders. The profile of women differs from that of men in terms of their portfolio size, and volatility. Evidence indicates that the feminization of shareholding was a sing of modernization, not a cycle derived from a sternal shock. This paper aims to contribute to the current debate on gender financial gap, tracing women investors in assets and their rational behavior.

Suggested Citation

  • Lopez-Gomez, Laura & Martinez-Rodrigue, Susana, 2023. "Can economic rationality explain the feminization of shareholding? Evidence from female shareholders in Spain (1918-1948)," MPRA Paper 119740, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:119740
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. David A. Matsa & Amalia R. Miller, 2013. "A Female Style in Corporate Leadership? Evidence from Quotas," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 5(3), pages 136-169, July.
    2. Stefano Battilossi & Stefan O Houpt & Gertjan Verdickt, 2022. "Scuttle for shelter: flight-to-safety and political uncertainty during the Spanish Second Republic [The mother of all sudden stops: capital flows and reversals in Europe, 1919–32]," European Review of Economic History, European Historical Economics Society, vol. 26(3), pages 423-447.
    3. Kari Zimmerman, 2020. "Gendered Innovation: Female Patent Activity and Market Development in Brazil, 1876–1906," Palgrave Studies in Economic History, in: Jennifer Aston & Catherine Bishop (ed.), Female Entrepreneurs in the Long Nineteenth Century, edition 1, chapter 0, pages 361-381, Palgrave Macmillan.
    4. Heemskerk, Eelke Michiel & Fennema, Meindert, 2014. "Women on Board: Female Board Membership as a Form of Elite Democratization," Enterprise & Society, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(2), pages 252-284, June.
    5. Carmen Diana Deere & Cheryl Doss, 2006. "The Gender Asset Gap: What Do We Know And Why Does It Matter?," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(1-2), pages 1-50.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    women shareholders; feminization of shareholding; commercial banks;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • N24 - Economic History - - Financial Markets and Institutions - - - Europe: 1913-

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