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Are hedge funds' charitable donations strategic?

Author

Listed:
  • Agarwal, Vikas
  • Lu, Yan
  • Ray, Sugata

Abstract

We study whether hedge funds make charitable donations to further their business interests. We find that donations are driven by poor fund flows and performance. Post-donation, donor funds experience lower outflows compared to matched non-donors. One-off donations and donations to charities which hold fundraising events catering to the hedge fund community are more likely to mitigate outflows after poor performance. These findings are consistent with strategic motivations driving at least some donations. While the economics of donations initially appear quite favorable to the hedge funds, the benefits from donations are not scalable. Moreover, investors punish donors through greater redemptions if poor performance persists post-donation.

Suggested Citation

  • Agarwal, Vikas & Lu, Yan & Ray, Sugata, 2020. "Are hedge funds' charitable donations strategic?," CFR Working Papers 20-14, University of Cologne, Centre for Financial Research (CFR).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:cfrwps:2014
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Hedge funds; Philanthropy; Trust; Charitable Donations; Capital Formation; Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR);
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D64 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
    • G23 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Non-bank Financial Institutions; Financial Instruments; Institutional Investors
    • G41 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making in Financial Markets

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