IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/corfin/v18y2012i1p92-104.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do they do it for the money?

Author

Listed:
  • Bhattacharya, Utpal
  • Marshall, Cassandra D.

Abstract

Using a sample of all top management who were indicted for illegal insider trading in the United States for trades during the period 1989–2002, we explore the economic rationality of this white-collar crime. If this crime is an economically rational activity in the sense of Becker (1968), where a crime is committed if its expected benefits exceed its expected costs, “poorer” top management should be doing the most illegal insider trading. This is because the “poor” have less to lose (present value of foregone future compensation if caught is lower for them). We find in the data, however, that indictments are concentrated in the “richer” strata after we control for firm size, industry, firm growth opportunities, executive age, the opportunity to commit illegal insider trading, and the possibility that regulators target the “richer” strata. We thus rule out the economic motive for this white-collar crime, and leave open the possibility of other motives.

Suggested Citation

  • Bhattacharya, Utpal & Marshall, Cassandra D., 2012. "Do they do it for the money?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 92-104.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:corfin:v:18:y:2012:i:1:p:92-104
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2011.11.010
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0929119911001271
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2011.11.010?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. Jonathan S. Feinstein, 1991. "An Econometric Analysis of Income Tax Evasion and its Detection," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 22(1), pages 14-35, Spring.
    2. Gary S. Becker, 1974. "Crime and Punishment: An Economic Approach," NBER Chapters, in: Essays in the Economics of Crime and Punishment, pages 1-54, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Agrawal, Anup & Jaffe, Jeffrey F & Karpoff, Jonathan M, 1999. "Management Turnover and Governance Changes following the Revelation of Fraud," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 42(1), pages 309-342, April.
    4. Meulbroek, Lisa K, 1992. "An Empirical Analysis of Illegal Insider Trading," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 47(5), pages 1661-1699, December.
    5. Graetz, Michael J & Reinganum, Jennifer F & Wilde, Louis L, 1986. "The Tax Compliance Game: Toward an Interactive Theory of Law Enforcement," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 2(1), pages 1-32, Spring.
    6. Jonathan M. Karpoff & D. Scott Lee & Gerald S. Martin, 2014. "The Consequences to Managers for Financial Misrepresentation," Springer Books, in: Roberto Pietra & Stuart McLeay & Joshua Ronen (ed.), Accounting and Regulation, edition 127, chapter 0, pages 339-375, Springer.
    7. Shane A. Johnson & Harley E. Ryan & Yisong S. Tian, 2009. "Managerial Incentives and Corporate Fraud: The Sources of Incentives Matter," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 13(1), pages 115-145.
    8. Murphy, Kevin J., 2003. "Stock-based pay in new economy firms," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(1-3), pages 129-147, January.
    9. Mitchell A. Petersen, 2009. "Estimating Standard Errors in Finance Panel Data Sets: Comparing Approaches," Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(1), pages 435-480, January.
    10. Feinstein, Jonathan S, 1990. "Detection Controlled Estimation," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 33(1), pages 233-276, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Czarnocki, Kazimierz & Janulek, Dawid & Olejnik, Łukasz, 2019. "When stealing, go for millions? Quantitative analysis of white-collar crime sentencing in Poland," MPRA Paper 92340, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Davidson, Robert H., 2022. "Who did it matters: Executive equity compensation and financial reporting fraud," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(2).
    3. Ordu, Umut & Schweizer, Denis, 2015. "Executive compensation and informed trading in acquiring firms around merger announcements," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 260-280.
    4. Kim, Y. Han (Andy), 2013. "Self attribution bias of the CEO: Evidence from CEO interviews on CNBC," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(7), pages 2472-2489.
    5. Cumming, Douglas & Dannhauser, Robert & Johan, Sofia, 2015. "Financial market misconduct and agency conflicts: A synthesis and future directions," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 150-168.
    6. Ahmed Tahoun & Laurence van Lent, 2016. "The Personal Wealth Interests of Politicians and the Stabilization of Financial Markets," Working Papers Series 52, Institute for New Economic Thinking.
    7. Lin, Zhaoxin & Sapp, Travis R.A. & Ulmer, Jackie Rees & Parsa, Rahul, 2020. "Insider trading ahead of cyber breach announcements," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    8. Hillier, David & Korczak, Adriana & Korczak, Piotr, 2015. "The impact of personal attributes on corporate insider trading," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 150-167.
    9. Cline, Brandon N. & Posylnaya, Valeriya V., 2019. "Illegal insider trading: Commission and SEC detection," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 247-269.
    10. Shantaram Hegde & Tingyu Zhou, 2019. "Predicting Accounting Misconduct: The Role of Firm-Level Investor Optimism," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 160(2), pages 535-562, December.
    11. Haß, Lars Helge & Müller, Maximilian A. & Vergauwe, Skrålan, 2015. "Tournament incentives and corporate fraud," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 251-267.
    12. Kallunki, Juha-Pekka & Mikkonen, Jenni & Nilsson, Henrik & Setterberg, Hanna, 2016. "Tax noncompliance and insider trading," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 157-173.
    13. Cziraki, P. & de Goeij, P.C. & Renneboog, L.D.R., 2014. "Corporate governance rules and insider trading profits," Other publications TiSEM 4678560b-6867-43cc-91d2-b, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    14. Agrawal, Anup & Nasser, Tareque, 2012. "Insider trading in takeover targets," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 18(3), pages 598-625.
    15. Zhou, Fangzhao & Zhang, Zenan & Yang, Jun & Su, Yunpeng & An, Yunbi, 2018. "Delisting pressure, executive compensation, and corporate fraud: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 17-34.
    16. Agrawal, Anup & Cooper, Tommy, 2015. "Insider trading before accounting scandals," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 169-190.
    17. Millicent Chang & Yilin Lim, 2016. "Late Disclosure of Insider Trades: Who Does It and Why?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 133(3), pages 519-531, February.
    18. Robert H. Davidson & Aiyesha Dey & Abbie Smith, 2020. "Executives' Legal Records and the Deterrent Effect of Corporate Governance†," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 37(3), pages 1444-1474, September.
    19. Chenhao Hu, 2023. "The dual role of state shareholders in disclosed corporate misconduct: Evidence from China," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 44(3), pages 1732-1748, April.
    20. Chang, Millicent & Watson, Iain, 2015. "Delayed disclosure of insider trades: Incentives for and indicators of future performance?," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 35(PA), pages 182-197.

    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. Humphery-Jenner, M., 2011. "Internal and External Discipline Following Securities Class Actions," Discussion Paper 2011-044, Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research.
    2. Humphery-Jenner, Mark L., 2012. "Internal and external discipline following securities class actions," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 21(1), pages 151-179.
    3. Humphery-Jenner, M., 2011. "Internal and External Discipline Following Securities Class Actions," Other publications TiSEM 072318eb-d214-4c7a-ac7a-d, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    4. Aitken, Michael & Cumming, Douglas & Zhan, Feng, 2015. "Exchange trading rules, surveillance and suspected insider trading," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 311-330.
    5. Humphery-Jenner, M., 2011. "Internal and External Discipline Following Securities Class Actions," Other publications TiSEM 9bcb5c91-4bab-431f-9891-1, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    6. Cline, Brandon N. & Posylnaya, Valeriya V., 2019. "Illegal insider trading: Commission and SEC detection," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 247-269.
    7. Cumming, Douglas & Dannhauser, Robert & Johan, Sofia, 2015. "Financial market misconduct and agency conflicts: A synthesis and future directions," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 150-168.
    8. Kai Wai Hui & Clive Lennox & Guochang Zhang, 2014. "The Market's Valuation of Fraudulently Reported Earnings," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(5-6), pages 627-651, June.
    9. Mark Egan & Gregor Matvos & Amit Seru, 2019. "The Market for Financial Adviser Misconduct," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 127(1), pages 233-295.
    10. Dan Amiram & Zahn Bozanic & James D. Cox & Quentin Dupont & Jonathan M. Karpoff & Richard Sloan, 2018. "Financial reporting fraud and other forms of misconduct: a multidisciplinary review of the literature," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 732-783, June.
    11. Jian Zhang, 2018. "Public Governance and Corporate Fraud: Evidence from the Recent Anti-corruption Campaign in China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(2), pages 375-396, March.
    12. Jun Honda, 2020. "Career Concerns, Risk-Taking, and Upward Mobility in the Financial Services Industry: Evidence from Top Ranked Financial Advisers," Working Papers 2020-16, Faculty of Economics and Statistics, Universität Innsbruck.
    13. Mukhtar Ali & H. Cecil & James Knoblett, 2001. "The effects of tax rates and enforcement policies on taxpayer compliance: A study of self-employed taxpayers," Atlantic Economic Journal, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 29(2), pages 186-202, June.
    14. Cécile Bazart, 2002. "Les comportements de fraude fiscale. Le face à face contribuables — administration fiscale," Revue Française d'Économie, Programme National Persée, vol. 16(4), pages 171-212.
    15. Armstrong, Christopher S. & Guay, Wayne R. & Weber, Joseph P., 2010. "The role of information and financial reporting in corporate governance and debt contracting," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(2-3), pages 179-234, December.
    16. Slemrod, Joel & Yitzhaki, Shlomo, 2002. "Tax avoidance, evasion, and administration," Handbook of Public Economics, in: A. J. Auerbach & M. Feldstein (ed.), Handbook of Public Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 22, pages 1423-1470, Elsevier.
    17. Chen, Donghua & Chen, Yinying & Li, Oliver Zhen & Ni, Chenkai, 2018. "Foreign residency rights and corporate fraud," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 142-163.
    18. Erard, Brian, 1997. "Self-selection with measurement errors A microeconometric analysis of the decision to seek tax assistance and its implications for tax compliance," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 81(2), pages 319-356, December.
    19. Aitken, Michael & Cumming, Douglas & Zhan, Feng, 2013. "Exchange trading rules, surveillance and insider trading," CFS Working Paper Series 2013/15, Center for Financial Studies (CFS).
    20. Marisa Agostini & Giovanni Favero, 2012. "Accounting fraud, business failure and creative auditing: A micro-analysis of the strange case of Sunbeam Corp," Working Papers 12, Department of Management, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia, revised Mar 2013.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    White-collar crime; Insider trading; SEC enforcement; CEO compensation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G18 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance
    • G38 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Government Policy and Regulation

    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:corfin:v:18:y:2012:i:1:p:92-104. 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/jcorpfin .

    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.