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Political Connections, Business Groups and Innovation

Author

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  • Commander, Simon

    (IE Business School, Altura Partners)

  • Estrin, Saul

    (London School of Economics)

  • De Silva, Thamashi

    (Capital Economics)

Abstract

It has been argued that Asia's remarkable economic achievements of the past 50 years build on institutional arrangements very different from the West, notably the central role of business groups (BGs). As Asian economies move from extensive to intensive growth, we enquire whether the business group organsational format will be as effective going forward. We argue that the ubiquity of BGs has been associated with the accretion of major market power, as well as overall concentration. Our empirical work, drawing on a sample of more than 9000 Asian firms, finds that while BGs are more innovative than non-affiliates, this is unsurprising given their access to additional resources. However, when we look at innovation at the country level, we find that the wider consequences of BGs on innovation may be negative.

Suggested Citation

  • Commander, Simon & Estrin, Saul & De Silva, Thamashi, 2023. "Political Connections, Business Groups and Innovation," IZA Discussion Papers 16007, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
  • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16007
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    innovation; R&D; Asian business groups; market power; overall concentration;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L22 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Organization and Market Structure
    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - General
    • O53 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Asia including Middle East

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