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Separation of ownership and control plays a significant role in determining the agency cost, and there are many consequences of this agency problem. The control-enhancing mechanisms enhance control of controlling shareholders who expropriate small shareholders. Controlling shareholders are different in different countries; majorly, family firms are controlling firms in Pakistani context. The use of control-enhancing mechanism is rampant in emerging economies, and even some developed countries, related research especially in Pakistan requires evidence. This study exhibits a pooled cross-sectional analysis of listed companies in Pakistan between 2005 and 2016. In this research, we have examined the influence of control-enhancing mechanisms on firms’ earnings management and which mechanism (pyramid control, multiple control chains, and cross-holding control) is significantly influencing the earnings management of firms. We have analyzed both types of earnings manipulation techniques (accrual and real earning management). Our results explicate that the pyramid control and multiple control chain mechanisms are significantly positively related to the accruals earning management and real earnings management, unveiling that firms with these controls manipulate earnings with discretionary accruals as well as with real activity manipulation. Real activity manipulation enhances firms to overproduce the inventory (decreasing the unit price) and to reduce the discretionary expenses (increasing the reported earnings).

This unique study examines the interactive role of bank competition and foreign bank entry in explaining the risk-taking of banks over the globe. We used cross-country data for the banking sector from 2000 to 2016. Using the pooled regression model and Two-stage Least Squares model (2SLS with Generalized Method of Moments GMM), we document that foreign bank entry decreases the risk-taking behavior of the banks to a certain level and exhibits an inverted U-shaped relation with financial stability. Furthermore, the joint effect of bank competition and foreign bank entry brings financial fragility because host banks tend to make risky investments due to undue competition induced by foreign bank entry. We support the competition–fragility hypothesis when foreign bank entry goes beyond a certain threshold. Our results also suggest that restrictions on bank activities and capital regulation stringency reduce the level of the risk factor. We also applied various robustness tests, which further confirm our mainstream results. Our findings have policy implications for foreign investors and regulatory authorities.

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This study analyzes the effect of control enhancing mechanisms (CEMs) on a firm's innovation activities. In the light of conflicting theoretical prophecies on the role of ultimate control, we analyze the ownership concentration by examining the cash flow and control rights deviation which embolden ultimate owners to expropriate. Empirical evidence suggests that CEMs have a negative effect on core and base innovation, although the effect is severe in intermediate aged firms and largest sized firms. These findings are robust in different specifications and have significant implications for policymakers.

This research study analyzes the variation in monthly returns of securities for companies listed in Pakistan Stock Exchange-PSX (Formerly known as KSE). The Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) of SLB has provided a method for researchers and experts to forecast the risks and returns. The main purpose of CAPM is to estimate beta of security to explain how much security is aligned or sensitive with the movement or changes in the market return. The research is conducted by means of monthly market capitalization of companies; portfolios are formed and the role of idiosyncratic risk in explaining the variations in the stock returns have been studied. With the same portfolios, the relationship of risk and return relationship has also been analyzed. This empirical analysis is conducted for the period of May 2010 - April 2014. Data analysis reveal that the idiosyncratic risk is a significant factor in explaining the stock returns. Capital Asset Pricing model is rejected in this study context because of positive and significant intercept in all portfolios. The research findings strongly support Chan and Chui (1996) and Strong and Xu (1997), assertions that the relationship between beta and security returns is weak. Therefore, CAPM is an empirically anemic model to be used in the Pakistani market.

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