Journal article
Are offshore firms worth more?
Journal of corporate finance (Amsterdam, Netherlands), Vol.36, pp.131-156
02/01/2016
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2015.11.002
Abstract
We examine how firms' reliance on Offshore Financial Centers (OFCs), either by registering or setting up subsidiaries in OFCs, affects their financial performance. Using multilevel mixed (fixed and random) effects regressions, we provide evidence that is consistent with the agency costs of tax avoidance. Information asymmetry and lax legal environments in OFCs offset tax benefits, especially for firms directly registered in OFCs. Firms directly registered in OFCs are valued 14% lower than onshore firms, while firms with subsidiaries in OFCs enjoy an 11% higher valuation than onshore firms. However, it appears that investors do not fully appreciate the extent of the agency costs due to increased information asymmetry of firms that set up subsidiaries in OFCs. We argue that the assessment of firm value must encompass the registration status of its subsidiaries rather than the parent company's origin.
•We examine valuation of offshore companies.•Companies that have subsidiaries in Offshore Financial Centers (OFCs) are valued 14% higher than onshore companies.•Companies directly registered in OFCs are valued 11% lower than onshore companies.•Investors do not fully capture the agency costs due to information asymmetry of firms that set up subsidiaries in OFCs.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Are offshore firms worth more?
- Creators
- Art Durnev - University of IowaTieMei Li - University of OttawaMichel Magnan - Concordia University
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of corporate finance (Amsterdam, Netherlands), Vol.36, pp.131-156
- Publisher
- Elsevier B.V
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2015.11.002
- ISSN
- 0929-1199
- eISSN
- 1872-6313
- Grant note
- DOI: 10.13039/501100000155, name: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, award: 844-330; name: S.A. Jarislowsky Chair in Corporate Governance, award: 200; name: Institute for the Governance of Public and Private Organizations, award: 072
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 02/01/2016
- Academic Unit
- Finance
- Record Identifier
- 9984380541702771
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