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The Rise and Fall of the Widely Held Firm - A History of Corporate Ownership in Canada

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  • Randall Morck
  • Michael Percy
  • Gloria Tian
  • Bernard Yeung

Abstract

A panel of corporate ownership data, stretching back to 1902, shows that the Canadian corporate sector began the century with a predominance of large pyramidal corporate groups controlled by wealthy families or individuals. By mid-century, widely held firms predominated. But, from the 1970s on, pyramidal groups controlled by wealthy families and individuals resurge, restoring a situation similar to that a century earlier. Institutional factors underlying this resurgence are shown to have antecedents deep in the country's colonial past.

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  • Randall Morck & Michael Percy & Gloria Tian & Bernard Yeung, 2004. "The Rise and Fall of the Widely Held Firm - A History of Corporate Ownership in Canada," NBER Working Papers 10635, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:10635
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