IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/quaeco/v98y2024ics1062976924001340.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Debtholder responses to controlling shareholders’ share pledging

Author

Listed:
  • Hou, Xiaohui
  • Lu, Xiaonan

Abstract

This study investigates debtholders’ responses to controlling shareholders’ share pledging. We found that share pledging by controlling shareholders is crucial for reducing agency costs. This lessens the information asymmetry of outsiders by strengthening pledgee supervision, and decreases companies’ risk-taking by adopting a relatively conservative investment strategy that hedges excessive risks. This also reduces the impact of insider control, decreases the interest spread, and increases the length of loan maturity. Further analyses show that the favorable effect of share pledging on bank loan covenants weakens for companies with a higher degree of financing deficit. Additionally, the role of share pledging varies with the agency costs of companies’ insider controls. The effects of share pledging on bank loan terms are more profound for companies with a higher degree of corporate governance performance. Robustness analyses addressing potential endogeneity further confirm our primary conclusions.

Suggested Citation

  • Hou, Xiaohui & Lu, Xiaonan, 2024. "Debtholder responses to controlling shareholders’ share pledging," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:quaeco:v:98:y:2024:i:c:s1062976924001340
    DOI: 10.1016/j.qref.2024.101928
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1062976924001340
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.qref.2024.101928?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Anderson, Ronald C. & Duru, Augustine & Reeb, David M., 2009. "Founders, heirs, and corporate opacity in the United States," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(2), pages 205-222, May.
    2. Xin Wang & Jiacai Xiong & Jitao Ou, 2022. "Does Share Pledging Affect Management Earnings Forecasts?," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(2), pages 512-524, January.
    3. Franks, Julian & Mayer, Colin, 2001. "Ownership and Control of German Corporations," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 14(4), pages 943-977.
    4. Edward I. Altman & Amar Gande & Anthony Saunders, 2010. "Bank Debt versus Bond Debt: Evidence from Secondary Market Prices," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 42(4), pages 755-767, June.
    5. Dan Yang & Linyin Cheng & Guojun Wang & Yuetang Wang & Lu Zhang, 2020. "Investor protection and cost of debt: Evidence from dividend commitment in firm bylaws," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(5), pages 294-308, September.
    6. Patrizio Pagano & Fabiano Schivardi, 2003. "Firm Size Distribution and Growth," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 105(2), pages 255-274, June.
    7. Pamela Jakiela, 2021. "Simple Diagnostics for Two-Way Fixed Effects," Department of Economics Working Papers 2021-05, Department of Economics, Williams College.
    8. Jingjing Xu & Yan Zhang & Yizhe Xie, 2020. "Controlling Shareholder’s Share Pledging and Firm’s Auditor Choice," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(4), pages 750-770, March.
    9. Chou, Robin K. & Wang, Yu-Chun & Jimmy Yang, J., 2021. "Share pledging, payout policy, and the value of cash holdings," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 18-33.
    10. Naughton, Barry J., 2018. "The Chinese Economy: Adaptation and Growth, second edition," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 2, volume 1, number 0262534797, December.
    11. April Klein & Emanuel Zur, 2011. "The Impact of Hedge Fund Activism on the Target Firm's Existing Bondholders," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 24(5), pages 1735-1771.
    12. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez‐De‐Silanes & Andrei Shleifer, 1999. "Corporate Ownership Around the World," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(2), pages 471-517, April.
    13. Ivashina, Victoria, 2009. "Asymmetric information effects on loan spreads," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(2), pages 300-319, May.
    14. Li, Michelle & Liu, Chelsea & Scott, Tom, 2019. "Share pledges and firm value," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 192-205.
    15. Faccio, Mara & Lang, Larry H. P., 2002. "The ultimate ownership of Western European corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(3), pages 365-395, September.
    16. Ni, Xiaoran & Yin, Sirui, 2018. "Shareholder litigation rights and the cost of debt: Evidence from derivative lawsuits," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 169-186.
    17. Zhou, Jingting & Li, Wanli & Yan, Ziqiao & Lyu, Huaili, 2021. "Controlling shareholder share pledging and stock price crash risk: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    18. Chen, Jun & King, Tao-Hsien Dolly & Wen, Min-Ming, 2015. "Do joint ventures and strategic alliances create value for bondholders?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 247-267.
    19. Yehning Chen & Shing-Yang Hu, 2007. "The controlling shareholder's personal leverage and firm performance," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(8), pages 1059-1075.
    20. Claessens, Stijn & Djankov, Simeon & Lang, Larry H. P., 2000. "The separation of ownership and control in East Asian Corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 81-112.
    21. Jiang, Fuxiu & Xia, Xiaoxue & Zheng, Xiaojia, 2021. "Does controlling shareholders' share pledging raise suppliers' eyebrows?," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    22. Ronald Anderson & Michael Puleo, 2020. "Insider Share-Pledging and Equity Risk," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 58(1), pages 1-25, August.
    23. Feng, Xiaoli & Li, Wenjing & Peng, Yuanhuai & Tan, Youchao, 2021. "International trade friction and the cost of debt: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    24. Arthur Lewbel, 2012. "Using Heteroscedasticity to Identify and Estimate Mismeasured and Endogenous Regressor Models," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(1), pages 67-80.
    25. Gao, Hao & He, Jing & Li, Yong & Qu, Yuanyu, 2020. "Family control and cost of debt: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    26. Chiu, Wan-Chien & Wang, Chih-Wei, 2019. "Rollover risk and cost of bank debt: The role of family-control ownership," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 362-378.
    27. Ginka Borisova & William L. Megginson, 2011. "Does Government Ownership Affect the Cost of Debt? Evidence from Privatization," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 24(8), pages 2693-2737.
    28. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    29. Goodman-Bacon, Andrew, 2021. "Difference-in-differences with variation in treatment timing," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 254-277.
    30. Pang, Caiji & Wang, Ying, 2020. "Stock pledge, risk of losing control and corporate innovation," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    31. Cheng Cheng & Mark Hoekstra, 2013. "Does Strengthening Self-Defense Law Deter Crime or Escalate Violence?:Evidence from Expansions to Castle Doctrine," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 48(3), pages 821-854.
    32. Sudheer Chava & Dmitry Livdan & Amiyatosh Purnanandam, 2009. "Do Shareholder Rights Affect the Cost of Bank Loans?," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(8), pages 2973-3004, August.
    33. Sergio Correia, 2016. "reghdfe: Estimating linear models with multi-way fixed effects," 2016 Stata Conference 24, Stata Users Group.
    34. Yogesh Chauhan & Ajay Kumar Mishra & Ronald W. Spahr, 2021. "Stock pledging and firm risk: Evidence from India," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 50(1), pages 261-280, March.
    35. Chen, Anlin & Kao, Lanfeng, 2011. "Effect of collateral characteristics on bank performance: Evidence from collateralized stocks in Taiwan," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(2), pages 300-309, February.
    36. Li, Wanli & Zhou, Jingting & Yan, Ziqiao & Zhang, He, 2020. "Controlling shareholder share pledging and firm cash dividends," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 42(C).
    37. Jayanthi Sunder & Shyam V. Sunder & Wan Wongsunwai, 2014. "Debtholder Responses to Shareholder Activism: Evidence from Hedge Fund Interventions," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 27(11), pages 3318-3342.
    38. Wang, Yu-Chun & Chou, Robin K., 2018. "The impact of share pledging regulations on stock trading and firm valuation," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 1-13.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Luo, Danglun & Piao, Zhirong & Wu, Cen & Zhang, Frank Feida, 2024. "Collateral damage: Evidence from share pledging in China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    2. Li, Manman & Qi, Luguang, 2025. "Controlling shareholder equity pledging and tone management: Evidence from China," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    3. He, Mingfeng & Huang, Dengshi & Zhou, Jianan, 2023. "The impacts of share pledging on firm investment timing and valuation," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    4. Wang, Xiaoqiong & Zhen, Hongxian & Zhu, Feifei, 2023. "Voting with their feet: Controlling shareholders' share pledging and other major shareholders' strategic response," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    5. Li, Shaofang & Tian, Sihua & Gu, Qinen, 2025. "Share pledging and non-financial corporations’ systemic risk contribution: Evidence from China," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 73(PA).
    6. Zhou, Jingting & Li, Wanli & Yan, Ziqiao & Lyu, Huaili, 2021. "Controlling shareholder share pledging and stock price crash risk: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    7. Hou, Xipei & Shen, Yinjie(Victor) & Xing, Jing & Zhou, Fuzhao, 2023. "Hastily announced: Mergers and acquisitions with pledging shareholders," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    8. Zhang, Huili & Huang, Yibo & Zou, Zhiwei, 2024. "Does share pledging affect corporate sustainability performance? Empirical evidence from an emerging market," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    9. Gao, Yang & Ling, Yun & Peng, Hui, 2024. "Before thrive, first survive: The impact of controlling shareholder pledging on corporate ESG performance," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    10. Wang, Mingwei & Zhang, Junping & Liang, Decui, 2024. "Multi-period share pledging with sequential three-way proportion decision," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    11. Zhu, Bing & Xia, Xiaoxue & Zheng, Xiaojia, 2021. "One way out of the share pledging quagmire: Evidence from mergers and acquisitions," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    12. Chengcheng Li & Xiaoqiong Wang & Feifei Zhu, 2024. "Does share pledging impair stakeholder welfare? Evidence based on corporate social responsibility," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 63(4), pages 1155-1192, November.
    13. Li, Shengnan & Zheng, Xinya & Niu, Jianbo & Ma, Xuan, 2024. "Share pledging of controlling shareholders and corporate social responsibility disclosure," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(PA).
    14. Li, Wanli & Zhou, Jingting & Yan, Ziqiao & Zhang, He, 2020. "Controlling shareholder share pledging and firm cash dividends," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 42(C).
    15. Hu, Jun & Long, Wenbin & Luo, Le & Peng, Yuanhuai, 2021. "Share pledging and optimism in analyst earnings forecasts: Evidence from China," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).
    16. Godlewski, Christophe J. & Le, Nhung Hong, 2022. "Family firms and the cost of borrowing: empirical evidence from East Asia," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    17. Xin Wang & Yue Sun & Yanlin Li & Cuijiao Zhang, 2024. "Share pledge and accounting conservatism in share-pledging firms: Evidence from a natural experiment in China," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 19(7), pages 1-34, July.
    18. Jiang, Fuxiu & Xia, Xiaoxue & Zheng, Xiaojia, 2021. "Does controlling shareholders' share pledging raise suppliers' eyebrows?," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    19. Lin, Chen & Ma, Yue & Malatesta, Paul & Xuan, Yuhai, 2011. "Ownership structure and the cost of corporate borrowing," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(1), pages 1-23, April.
    20. Shen, Haomin & Cheng, Xiaoke & Ouyang, Caiyue & Li, Ya & Chan, Kam C., 2022. "Does share pledging affect firms' use of derivatives? Evidence from China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Share pledging; Controlling shareholder; Bank loan; Agency problem; China;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:quaeco:v:98:y:2024:i:c:s1062976924001340. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/620167 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.