IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/acctfi/v63y2023i5p4961-4988.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do venture capitalists with foreign experience drive corporate social responsibility better? Evidence from China

Author

Listed:
  • Jiami Zheng
  • Lin Zhang

Abstract

Using a manually collected dataset, we examine the effects of venture capitalists with foreign experience on firms' corporate social responsibility (CSR) engagement. By analysing firm‐, deal‐ and venture capitalist‐level samples, we find that venture capitalists with foreign experience significantly improve their portfolio firms' CSR; this finding holds across extensive robustness tests. Venture capitalists with foreign experience promote CSR more significantly if they join the board of directors or invest in the firm's early stages. Our results suggest that venture capitalists with foreign experience transplant the client demands, management practices and social norms they have experienced abroad to their firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Jiami Zheng & Lin Zhang, 2023. "Do venture capitalists with foreign experience drive corporate social responsibility better? Evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 63(5), pages 4961-4988, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:63:y:2023:i:5:p:4961-4988
    DOI: 10.1111/acfi.13137
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/acfi.13137
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/acfi.13137?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
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tian, Xuan, 2011. "The causes and consequences of venture capital stage financing," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(1), pages 132-159, July.
    2. Juan C. Botero & Simeon Djankov & Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes & Andrei Shleifer, 2004. "The Regulation of Labor," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 119(4), pages 1339-1382.
    3. El Ghoul, Sadok & Guedhami, Omrane & Kwok, Chuck C.Y. & Mishra, Dev R., 2011. "Does corporate social responsibility affect the cost of capital?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(9), pages 2388-2406, September.
    4. Chen, Tao & Dong, Hui & Lin, Chen, 2020. "Institutional shareholders and corporate social responsibility," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(2), pages 483-504.
    5. Caballero, Ricardo J. & Cowan, Kevin N. & Engel, Eduardo M.R.A. & Micco, Alejandro, 2013. "Effective labor regulation and microeconomic flexibility," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 92-104.
    6. Conyon, Martin J. & Haß, Lars Helge & Vergauwe, Skrålan & Zhang, Zhifang, 2019. "Foreign experience and CEO compensation," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 102-121.
    7. Yuan, Rongli & Wen, Wen, 2018. "Managerial foreign experience and corporate innovation," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 752-770.
    8. Bryan W. Husted & Dima Jamali & Walid Saffar, 2016. "Near and dear? The role of location in CSR engagement," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(10), pages 2050-2070, October.
    9. Bala Ramasamy & Matthew Yeung & Alan Au, 2010. "Consumer Support for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): The Role of Religion and Values," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 91(1), pages 61-72, February.
    10. Hermalin, Benjamin E & Weisbach, Michael S, 1998. "Endogenously Chosen Boards of Directors and Their Monitoring of the CEO," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(1), pages 96-118, March.
    11. Nicholas Bloom & John Van Reenen, 2007. "Measuring and Explaining Management Practices Across Firms and Countries," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 122(4), pages 1351-1408.
    12. Kim, Hyun-Dong & Kim, Taeyeon & Kim, Yura & Park, Kwangwoo, 2019. "Do long-term institutional investors promote corporate social responsibility activities?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 256-269.
    13. Stephanie A. Fernhaber & Patricia P. McDougall-Covin, 2009. "Venture Capitalists as Catalysts to New Venture Internationalization: The Impact of Their Knowledge and Reputation Resources," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 33(1), pages 277-295, January.
    14. Gul, Ferdinand A. & Kim, Jeong-Bon & Qiu, Annie A., 2010. "Ownership concentration, foreign shareholding, audit quality, and stock price synchronicity: Evidence from China," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(3), pages 425-442, March.
    15. Wen, Wen & Cui, Huijie & Ke, Yun, 2020. "Directors with foreign experience and corporate tax avoidance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    16. Henri Servaes & Ane Tamayo, 2013. "The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Firm Value: The Role of Customer Awareness," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 59(5), pages 1045-1061, May.
    17. Allen, Franklin & Qian, Jun & Qian, Meijun, 2005. "Law, finance, and economic growth in China," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(1), pages 57-116, July.
    18. Ferrell, A. & Liang, Hao & Renneboog, Luc, 2016. "Socially responsible firms," Other publications TiSEM 07e115ac-fdcb-4c4b-a0b8-a, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    19. Dyck, Alexander & Lins, Karl V. & Roth, Lukas & Wagner, Hannes F., 2019. "Do institutional investors drive corporate social responsibility? International evidence," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(3), pages 693-714.
    20. Deng, Xin & Kang, Jun-koo & Low, Buen Sin, 2013. "Corporate social responsibility and stakeholder value maximization: Evidence from mergers," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 110(1), pages 87-109.
    21. Stefan Bauernschuster & Oliver Falck & Stephan Heblich, 2009. "Training and Innovation," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 3(4), pages 323-353.
    22. Ronald W. Masulis & Syed Walid Reza, 2015. "Agency Problems of Corporate Philanthropy," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 28(2), pages 592-636.
    23. Ma Zhong & Rong Xu & Xinyi Liao & Shuangli Zhang, 2019. "Do CSR Ratings Converge in China? A Comparison Between RKS and Hexun Scores," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-20, July.
    24. Iliev, Peter & Roth, Lukas, 2018. "Learning from directors' foreign board experiences," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 1-19.
    25. Patzelt, Holger & zu Knyphausen-Aufseß, Dodo & Fischer, Heiko T., 2009. "Upper echelons and portfolio strategies of venture capital firms," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 24(6), pages 558-572, November.
    26. Cheng, Cheng & Chu, Yongqiang & Deng, Zijie & Huang, Bo, 2022. "Venture capital and corporate social responsibility," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    27. Bottazzi, Laura & Da Rin, Marco & Hellmann, Thomas, 2008. "Who are the active investors?: Evidence from venture capital," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(3), pages 488-512, September.
    28. Rui Albuquerque & Yrjö Koskinen & Chendi Zhang, 2019. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Risk: Theory and Empirical Evidence," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(10), pages 4451-4469, October.
    29. Callen, Jeffrey L. & Fang, Xiaohua, 2015. "Religion and Stock Price Crash Risk," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 50(1-2), pages 169-195, April.
    30. Gaspar, Jose-Miguel & Massa, Massimo & Matos, Pedro, 2005. "Shareholder investment horizons and the market for corporate control," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(1), pages 135-165, April.
    31. Li, Qian & Guo, Mengting, 2022. "Do the resignations of politically connected independent directors affect corporate social responsibility? Evidence from China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    32. Lin Zhang & Xueyong Zhang, 2022. "The foreign experience and investment performance of venture capitalists," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(S1), pages 1675-1714, April.
    33. Cumming, Douglas & Dai, Na, 2010. "Local bias in venture capital investments," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 17(3), pages 362-380, June.
    34. 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.
    35. Cronqvist, Henrik & Yu, Frank, 2017. "Shaped by their daughters: Executives, female socialization, and corporate social responsibility," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(3), pages 543-562.
    36. Jian Zhang & Dongmin Kong & Ji Wu, 2018. "Doing Good Business by Hiring Directors with Foreign Experience," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(3), pages 859-876, December.
    37. Wang, Li & Dai, Yunhao & Kong, Dongmin, 2021. "Air pollution and employee treatment," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    38. Mariassunta Giannetti & Guanmin Liao & Xiaoyun Yu, 2015. "The Brain Gain of Corporate Boards: Evidence from China," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 70(4), pages 1629-1682, August.
    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. Gillan, Stuart L. & Koch, Andrew & Starks, Laura T., 2021. "Firms and social responsibility: A review of ESG and CSR research in corporate finance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    2. Xuezhou Zhao & Libing Fang & Ke Zhang, 2022. "How Foreign Institutional Shareholders' Religious Beliefs Affect Corporate Social Performance?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 178(2), pages 377-401, June.
    3. Lin Zhang & Xueyong Zhang, 2022. "The foreign experience and investment performance of venture capitalists," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(S1), pages 1675-1714, April.
    4. Amin, Abu & Chourou, Lamia & Kamal, Syed & Malik, Mahfuja & Zhao, Yang, 2020. "It’s who you know that counts: Board connectedness and CSR performance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    5. Li, Chengcheng & Wang, Xiaoqiong, 2022. "Local peer effects of corporate social responsibility," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    6. Chao Yan & Jiaxin Wang & Zhi Wang & Kam C. Chan, 2023. "Awe culture and corporate social responsibility: Evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 63(3), pages 3487-3517, September.
    7. Hans B. Christensen & Luzi Hail & Christian Leuz, 2021. "Mandatory CSR and sustainability reporting: economic analysis and literature review," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 26(3), pages 1176-1248, September.
    8. Liu, Xianda & Hou, Wenxuan & Main, Brian G.M., 2022. "Anti-market sentiment and corporate social responsibility: Evidence from anti-Jewish pogroms," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    9. Buchanan, Bonnie G. & Cao, Cathy Xuying & Wang, Shuhui, 2021. "Corporate social responsibility and inside debt: The long game," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    10. Zhichuan Frank Li & Saurin Patel & Srikanth Ramani, 2021. "The Role of Mutual Funds in Corporate Social Responsibility," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 174(3), pages 715-737, December.
    11. Najah Attig, 2024. "Relaxed Financial Constraints and Corporate Social Responsibility," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(1), pages 111-131, January.
    12. Cheng, Xin & (Helen) Wang, He & Wang, Xianjue, 2022. "Common institutional ownership and corporate social responsibility," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    13. Gao, Feng & Li, Yubin & Wang, Xinjie & Zhong, Zhaodong (Ken), 2021. "Corporate social responsibility and the term structure of CDS spreads," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    14. Xia, Changyuan & Yang, Junjie & Yang, Zeng & Chan, Kam C., 2023. "Do directors with foreign experience increase the corporate demand for directors' and officers' liability insurance? Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    15. Barka, Zeineb & Hamza, Taher & Mrad, Senda, 2023. "Corporate ESG scores and equity market misvaluation: Toward ethical investor behavior," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    16. Kong, Dongmin & Ji, Mianmian & Zhang, Fan, 2022. "Individual investors’ dividend tax reform and corporate social responsibility," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    17. Leon Zolotoy & Don O’Sullivan & Keke Song, 2021. "The Role of Ethical Standards in the Relationship Between Religious Social Norms and M&A Announcement Returns," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 170(4), pages 721-742, May.
    18. Yuan, Tiezhen & Wu, Ji (George) & Qin, Ni & Xu, Jian, 2022. "Being nice to stakeholders: The effect of economic policy uncertainty on corporate social responsibility," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    19. Chowdhury, Hasibul & Hodgson, Allan & Hasan, Mostafa Monzur, 2022. "Does a competitive external labour market affect corporate social responsibility? Evidence from industry tournament incentives," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(C).
    20. Cheng Xiang & Fengwen Chen & Paul Jones & Senmao Xia, 2021. "The effect of institutional investors’ distraction on firms’ corporate social responsibility engagement: evidence from China," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 15(6), pages 1645-1681, August.

    More about this item

    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:bla:acctfi:v:63:y:2023:i:5:p:4961-4988. 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: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaanzea.html .

    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.