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Does equity holding by main banks affect the earnings quality of client firms? Empirical evidence from Japan

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  • Kojima, Koji
  • Adhikary, Bishnu Kumar
  • Mitra, Ranjan Kumar

Abstract

This paper empirically investigates the role of the main banks in enhancing earnings quality of their client firms in Japan and unveils some intriguing results. First, equity holdings of the main banks improve earnings quality of their client firms. Second, such shareholdings help attenuate the adverse effect of foreign shareholdings on earnings quality, indicating that the main banks can substitute the monitoring role of foreign shareholders. Third, the effect of institutional, executive and dominant shareholdings on earnings quality disappears when the main banks inject equity, implying that the main banks can significantly reduce agency problem in financial intermediation even in Japan’s contemporary financial setup where the market-based monitoring system for firms has been encouraged. Furthermore, the role of the main banks remains significant when the cross-shareholding and stable shareholding are taken into account, suggesting that the equity ownership of the main banks help improve earnings quality through effective monitoring.

Suggested Citation

  • Kojima, Koji & Adhikary, Bishnu Kumar & Mitra, Ranjan Kumar, 2017. "Does equity holding by main banks affect the earnings quality of client firms? Empirical evidence from Japan," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 42, pages 56-73.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:mulfin:v:42-43:y:2017:i::p:56-73
    DOI: 10.1016/j.mulfin.2017.10.003
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Equity ownership; Main bank; Earnings quality; Governance; Japan;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • E51 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Money Supply; Credit; Money Multipliers
    • C33 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models

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