Using data on 158 large German firms, the paper analyses the two main distinctive features of the German corporate governance system - ownership concentration and the role of banks. Ownership concentration is shown to have a positive effect on firm profitability (except when the owners are public-sector bodies). However, banks do not appear to play a role in corporate governance which is distinct from their position as one of several different types of large equity-holder. The results call into question the standard view that banks are an important component of the German system of corporate governance.
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Paper provided by CESifo Group Munich in its series CESifo Working Paper Series with number
CESifo Working Paper No. 180.
Length: Date of creation: 1999 Date of revision: Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_180
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Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997.
" A Survey of Corporate Governance,"
Journal of Finance,
American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 737-83, June.
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