This study investigates the payout policy of state-owned municipal firms. Based on insights from agency theory we derive an empirically testable model based on Lintner's corporate dividend policy model accounting for the characteristics of state-owned firms in terms of corporate governance and ownership structure. Exploiting a large and new panel dataset on German firms from the years 2003 to 20...
When unemployed persons start businesses, they are often characterized as necessity entrepreneurs because push motives, namely their unemployment, likely prompted their decision. Based on a panel data set of more than 2600 start-ups by unemployed persons, we show that not only push but also pull motives can be observed among previously unemployed business founders. Moreover, a third type of entrepreneur ...
Aufbauend auf der Klassifikation vom dezentralen und zentralen Banking untersucht dieser Beitrag die Diversität in der Unternehmenskreditvergabe des Vereinigten Königreichs. Anhand von Experteninterviews und Literaturrecherche wurde die Distanz in den Kreditvergabeentscheidungen an KMU für verschiedene Typen von Banken und anderen Finanzintermediären klassifiziert. Aufgrund des frühen Ausscheidens ...
The 2D:4D digit ratio, the ratio of the length of the 2nd digit to the length of the 4th digit, is often considered a proxy for testosterone exposure in utero. A recent study by Nicolaou et al. (2018) reported an association between the left-hand 2D:4D and self-employment (in a sample of about 1,000 adults). In this pre-registered study we replicate these results on a new and larger sample of about ...
We investigate the impact of a differential treatment of paid employees versus self-employed workers in a public health insurance system on the entry rate into self-employment. Health insurance systems that distinguish between the two sectors of employment create incentives or disincentives to start a business for different individuals. We estimate a discrete time hazard rate model of entry into self-employment ...
Many industries are seeing an increase in concentration, leading to a discussion on the effectiveness of horizontal merger enforcement. The policy debate shows that one of the key arguments put forward when supporting potential mergers is the possibility of realization of merger efficiency gains, specifically in the transport industry. Yet, there exists little empirical evidence on the actual effects ...
Abstract: I derive an optimal benefit-based corporate tax rate formula as a function of the public input elasticity of profits and the (net of) tax elasticity of profits. I argue that the existence of the corporate income tax should be justified by the benefit-based view of taxation: firms should pay tax according to the benefits they receive from the use of the public input. I argue that...
Abstract: Antitrust authorities try to detect and sanction existing cartels and hinder the formation of new ones. Firms nevertheless try to collude while avoiding sanctions, for example by colluding tacitly instead of explicitly forming a cartel. In this paper, we focus on differences in the communication of firms that either form an explicit cartel or try to collude tacitly. The latter may still...
Workshop organization: Hans-Helmut Kotz (SAFE, Harvard) and Dorothea Schäfer (DIW Berlin) in cooperation with Horst Gischer, head of Forschungszentrums für Sparkassenentwicklung e.V. at the University of Magdeburg. The workshop is part of the research project Banking Sector Diversity: Does it matter for sector stability and SME financing?
This workshop brings together high profile junior researchers from leading universities in Europe and the US, who present recent work on the nexus of firms and productivity in developing economies. The workshop is jointly organized by researchers from the DIW and the University of Munich (LMU). Attendance by invitation!
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