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Ownership structure and the temptation to loot : evidence from privatized firms in the Czech Republic

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  • Cull, Robert
  • Matesova, Jana
  • Shirley, Mary

Abstract

Using a new data set on privatized firms in the Czech Republic, the authors examine how the design of privatization affects outcomes. Earlier studies of privatization in the Czech Republic focused largely on how the broad distribution of shares through vouchers may have motivated the new owners to strip assets from the privatized firms. The authors find evidence for static asset stripping, but also for what Akerlof and Romer (1993) call looting - borrowing heavily with no intent to repay and using the loans for private purposes. This looting occurred because the larger privatized companies had privileged access to credit from state-controlled banks, which had little incentive to enforce debt contracts. The policy implications are significant: financial incentives and regulation are as important as ownership structure in the design of privatization.

Suggested Citation

  • Cull, Robert & Matesova, Jana & Shirley, Mary, 2001. "Ownership structure and the temptation to loot : evidence from privatized firms in the Czech Republic," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2568, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:2568
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Judy Day & Peter Taylor, 2004. "Institutional Change and Debt-based Corporate Governance: A Comparative Analysis of Four Transition Economies," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 8(1), pages 73-115, March.
    2. Howard Bodenhorn, 2012. "Voting Rights, Share Concentration, and Leverage at Nineteenth-Century US Banks," NBER Working Papers 17808, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Stepan Jurajda & Katherine Terrell, 2001. "What Drives the Speed of Job Reallocation during Episodes of Massive Adjustment?," CERGE-EI Working Papers wp170, The Center for Economic Research and Graduate Education - Economics Institute, Prague.
    4. Igor Filatotchev & Tomasz Mickiewicz, 2001. "Ownership Concentration, 'Private Benefits of Control' and Debt Financing," UCL SSEES Economics and Business working paper series 4, UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES).

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