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Do financial constraints in an unstable emerging economy mitigate the opportunistic behavior of entrenched family owners?

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  • Kabbach-de-Castro, Luiz Ricardo
  • Kalatzis, Aquiles Elie Guimarães
  • Pellicani, Aline Damasceno

Abstract

Prior research is not conclusive whether information asymmetries or managerial discretion are the cause of observed investment-cash flow sensitivity. This paper examines the effect of family firms' governance heterogeneity on firm's investment-cash flow sensitivity in Brazil. The Brazilian economic and corporate governance context present several idiosyncratic features, including weak minority shareholder protection, an underdeveloped capital market, macro-economic uncertainties, the presence of controlling shareholders (especially families), and the excessive use of control-enhancing mechanisms, allowing us to explore in greater detail the drivers of investment-cash flow sensitivity. We find that investment is more sensitive to cash flow for firms with a highly entrenched family presence (divergence between corporate control and voting rights coupled with family management) than in less entrenched family firms. This result emerges primarily due to financial constraints from asymmetric information, rather than agency problems of free cash flow from abuse of managerial discretion. Our findings shed new light on the role of excessive control rights in investment decisions, allowing family managers to reallocate capital to cope with financial constraints in times of economic uncertainties.

Suggested Citation

  • Kabbach-de-Castro, Luiz Ricardo & Kalatzis, Aquiles Elie Guimarães & Pellicani, Aline Damasceno, 2022. "Do financial constraints in an unstable emerging economy mitigate the opportunistic behavior of entrenched family owners?," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ememar:v:50:y:2022:i:c:s1566014121000467
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ememar.2021.100838
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate investment; Corporate governance; Agency theory; Emerging economy; Family firms; Control-enhancing mechanisms;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • E22 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Investment; Capital; Intangible Capital; Capacity
    • G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General

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