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A Theory of Firm Decline

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Author Info
Gian Luca Clementi
Thomas F. Cooley
Sonia Di Giannatale

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Abstract

We study the problem of an investor who buys an equity stake in an entrepreneurial venture, under the assumption that the former cannot monitor the latter’s operations. The dynamics implied by the optimal incentive scheme is rich and quite different from that induced by other models of repeated moral hazard. In particular, our framework generates a rationale for firm decline. As young firms accumulate capital, the claims of both investor (outside equity) and entrepreneur (inside equity) increase. At some juncture, however, even as the latter keeps on growing, invested capital and firm value start declining and so does the value of outside equity. The reason is that incentive provision is costlier the wealthier the entrepreneur (the greater is inside equity). In turn, this leads to a decline in the constrained–efficient level of effort and therefore to a drop in the return to investment.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 15192.

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Date of creation: Jul 2009
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:15192

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
E0 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General
L11 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms

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This page was last updated on 2009-11-25.

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