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Corporate ownership and control in Victorian Britain

Author

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  • Acheson, Graeme G.
  • Campbell, Gareth
  • Turner, John D.
  • Vanteeva, Nadia

Abstract

Using ownership and control data for 890 firm-years, this paper examines the concentration of capital and voting rights in British companies in the second half of the nineteenth century. We find that both capital and voting rights were diffuse by modern-day standards. This implies that ownership was separated from control in the UK much earlier than previously thought, and given that it occurred in an era with weak shareholder protection law, it undermines the influential law and finance hypothesis. We also find that diffuse ownership is correlated with large boards, a London head office, non-linear voting rights, and shares traded on multiple markets.

Suggested Citation

  • Acheson, Graeme G. & Campbell, Gareth & Turner, John D. & Vanteeva, Nadia, 2014. "Corporate ownership and control in Victorian Britain," eabh Papers 14-02, The European Association for Banking and Financial History (EABH).
  • Handle: RePEc:zbw:eabhps:1402
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    corporate ownership and control; law and finance hypothesis; shareholder protection law; British financial history;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • K22 - Law and Economics - - Regulation and Business Law - - - Business and Securities Law
    • N24 - Economic History - - Financial Markets and Institutions - - - Europe: 1913-

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