Mergers in financial services and overlending

[Abstract]: In this paper we build a model of banking competition that considers a managerial-overconfidence setup resulting in two main findings. First, a merger between rational banks may change their behaviour in that, in post-merger conditions, they would follow the overconfident bank when they would not have done so pre-merger, thereby amplifying the credit boom. Second, the results overcome the merger paradox, in the sense that the merger would be profitable for participants and thus intrinsically stable.[Resumen]: Se propone un modelo de competencia bancaria que incluye un sesgo de exceso de confianza por parte de algunos gestores. Dos son los principales resultados que se derivan del modelo. Primero, una fusión entre bancos racionales puede cambiar su comportamiento de manera que, tras la fusión, seguirían al banco sesgado en condiciones en las que no lo habrían hecho antes de la fusión, ampliando el volumen de crédito concedido por el mercado bancario. Segundo, los resultados obtenidos resuelven la paradoja de las fusiones, en el sentido de que la fusión sería rentable para los participantes y, por tanto, intrínsecamente estable.The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support received from the Xunta de Galicia (Spain) through Research Project ED431B2016/001 Consolidación e estruturación – 2016 GPC GI-2016 Análise económica dos mercados e institucións. This research has also received the funding of the Program for the “Consolidation and Structuring of Competitive Research Units - Research Networks (Redes de Investigación)” (Ref. ED341D R2016/014), Proxectos Plan Galego IDT, from the Xunta de Galicia (Spain).Xunta de Galicia; ED431B2016/001Xunta de Galicia; ED341D R2016/01

¿Son realistas los modelos financieros de carácter normativo?

In this paper we approach financial investors to see how they analyze financial markets, adopt their investment decisions, and buy financial products. Our main goal is to ascertain whether or not the investment guidelines provided by the most accepted normative theories in Finance are carried out in practice by investors. In order to do that, we review the the main financial theories, either normative or descriptive, and we then provide empirical evidence of the investors’ behaviour. Findings show that investors often disobey the recommendations offered by normative theories in FinanceEn este artículo abordamos cómo los agentes que adquieren productos financieros toman sus decisiones de inversión. El objetivo es averiguar si las pautas de actuación emanadas de las modernas teorías de Finanzas se reproducen o no en la práctica. Para ello ofrecemos una panorámica de las principales teorías financieras de tipo normativo y descriptivo, así como evidencia empírica del comportamiento de los inversores. La conclusión es que el comportamiento de los inversores suele discrepar a menudo de las indicaciones ofrecidas por las teorías financieras de carácter normativ

El efecto de los sesgos de comportamiento en las decisiones financieras

[Abstract] Financial management decisions are made by people, and people, in all instances, are shaped by their behavioral traits. Here we provide extensive insight on the theoretical and empirical analysis made on cognitive biases and their influence on financial decisions. To provide a systematic exposition, we set three broad categories: heuristics and biases, choices (including framing and preferences) and social factors. We then describe the main biases within each category and provide an extensive revision of the main theoretical and empirical developments about their impact on financial decisions.[Resumen] Las decisiones de gestión financiera las toman las personas, y las personas, en todos los casos, están determinadas por sus rasgos de comportamiento. Aquí proporcionamos una visión amplia del análisis teórico y empírico realizado sobre los sesgos cognitivos y su influencia en las decisiones financieras. Para proporcionar una exposición sistemática, establecemos tres categorías amplias: heurísticas y sesgos, elecciones (incluidos encuadres y preferencias) y factores sociales. A continuación, describimos los principales sesgos dentro de cada categoría y proporcionamos una revisión exhaustiva de los principales desarrollos teóricos y empíricos sobre su impacto en las decisiones financieras

Consolidación fiscal y sostenibilidad de la deuda pública en los países GIPSI

Correcting fiscal imbalances and reducing public debt is a priority among the peripheral countries of the Eurozone (the so-called GIPSI countries). However, there is no consensus about which is the most appropriate policy mix to achieve it: the debate on fiscal austerity vs. growth is bitter now among researchers and international policymakers. In this paper we review the effects of different fiscal consolidation policies on macroeconomic performance. We also provide an empirical analysis that complements the recent study performed by the IMF regarding the sustainability of public debt for GIPSI countries in different scenarios of grpwth inflation, and fiscal and monetary policies. Finally, a policy mix is offered that would be suitable for these five countries to achieve both fiscal consolidation and economic growthCorregir los desajustes fiscales y reducir la deuda pública son dos objetivos prioritarios para los países periféricos de la Eurozona, si bien no existe consenso sobre la política más adecuada para alcanzarlos. En este artículo repasamos los efectos que las diferentes políticas de consolidación fiscal tienen sobre los agregados macroeconómicos y ofrecemos un análisis empírico que complementa el reciente estudio del FMI sobre la sostenibilidad de la deuda pública en los citados países en diferentes escenarios de crecimiento, inflación, y políticas fiscales y monetarias. Asimismo, describimos la política que consideramos más deseable para los países de la periferia de la Eurozona al objeto de alcanzar la consolidación fiscal y el crecimiento económicoAcknowledges financial aid received from the Galician Regional Government (Xunta de Galicia) through Grant GPC2013-04

La vuelta a la amortización del fondo de comercio y la rentabilidad financiera de las empresas públicas y privadas en España

We take advantage of the change in goodwill regulation in Spain after 2016, to contribute with a comprehensive analysis of a scenario barely studied in the recent literature: the inverse transition from goodwill impairment to the systematic amortisation of goodwill. Using a database with the individual financial statements of all Spanish non-financial firms, both listed and non-listed, with positive goodwill on balance, we contribute in two instances. On the one hand, we seek to obtain evidence of whether managers behaved opportunistically during the impairment regulation period using a test of the determinants of goodwill impairment recognition. On the other hand, through a differences-in-differences approach against a sample of4,000 control firms, we test the differential impact of the change in regulation on the return on assets of those firms with goodwill in their balances. Our results are in line with extant research suggesting that the systematic amortisation of goodwill paired with a periodic impairment test limits earnings management practices and help investors assess the economic performance of a firm.Aprovechamos el cambio en la regulación del fondo de comercio en España a partir de 2016, para analizar un escenario escasamente estudiado en la literatura reciente: la transición inversa del deterioro del fondo de comercio a la amortización sistemática del mismo. Construyendo una base de datos a partir de los estados financieros individuales de todas las empresas no financieras españolas, cotizadas y no cotizadas, con fondo de comercio positivo en balance, contribuimos a la literatura en dos instancias. Por un lado, tratamos de obtener evidencia de si los gestores se comportaron de forma oportunista durante el periodo de regulación del deterioro mediante un test de los determinantes del reconocimiento del deterioro del fondo de comercio. Por otro lado, mediante un enfoque de diferencias en diferencias frente a una muestra de 4.000 empresas de control, comprobamos el impacto diferencial del cambio en la regulación sobre la rentabilidad de los activos de aquellas empresas con fondo de comercio en sus balances. Nuestros resultados concuerdan con las investigaciones existentes, que sugieren que la amortización sistemática del fondo de comercio, junto con una prueba periódica de deterioro, limitan las prácticas de gestión de beneficios y ayudan a los inversores a evaluar los resultados económicos de una empresa

The effect of behavioral biases on financial decisions

Financial management decisions are made by people, and people, in all instances, are shaped by their behavioral traits. Here we provide extensive insight on the theoretical and empirical analysis made on cognitive biases and their influence on financial decisions. To provide a systematic exposition, we set three broad categories: heuristics and biases, choices (including framing and preferences) and social factors. We then describe the main biases within each category and provide an extensive revision of the main theoretical and empirical developments about their impact on financial decisions.Las decisiones de gestión financiera las toman las personas, y las personas, en todos los casos, están determinadas por sus rasgos de comportamiento. Aquí proporcionamos una visión amplia del análisis teórico y empírico realizado sobre los sesgos cognitivos y su influencia en las decisiones financieras. Para proporcionar una exposición sistemática, establecemos tres categorías amplias: heurísticas y sesgos, elecciones (incluidos encuadres y preferencias) y factores sociales. A continuación, describimos los principales sesgos dentro de cada categoría y proporcionamos una revisión exhaustiva de los principales desarrollos teóricos y empíricos sobre su impacto en las decisiones financieras

La vuelta a la amortización del fondo de comercio y la rentabilidad financiera de las empresas públicas y privadas en España

[Abstract] We take advantage of the change in goodwill regulation in Spain after 2016, to contribute with a comprehensive analysis of a scenario barely studied in the recent literature: the inverse transition from goodwill impairment to the systematic amortisation of goodwill. Using a database with the individual financial statements of all Spanish non-financial firms, both listed and non-listed, with positive goodwill on balance, we contribute in two instances. On the one hand, we seek to obtain evidence of whether managers behaved opportunistically during the impairment regulation period using a test of the determinants of goodwill impairment recognition. On the other hand, through a differences-in-differences approach against a sample of 4,000 control firms, we test the differential impact of the change in regulation on the return on assets of those firms with goodwill in their balances. Our results are in line with extant research suggesting that the systematic amortisation of goodwill paired with a periodic impairment test limits earnings management practices and help investors assess the economic performance of a firm.[Resumen] Aprovechamos el cambio en la regulación del fondo de comercio en España a partir de 2016, para analizar un escenario escasamente estudiado en la literatura reciente: la transición inversa del deterioro del fondo de comercio a la amortización sistemática del mismo. Construyendo una base de datos a partir de los estados financieros individuales de todas las empresas no financieras españolas, cotizadas y no cotizadas, con fondo de comercio positivo en balance, contribuimos a la literatura en dos instancias. Por un lado, tratamos de obtener evidencia de si los gestores se comportaron de forma oportunista durante el periodo de regulación del deterioro mediante un test de los determinantes del reconocimiento del deterioro del fondo de comercio. Por otro lado, mediante un enfoque de diferencias en diferencias frente a una muestra de 4.000 empresas de control, comprobamos el impacto diferencial del cambio en la regulación sobre la rentabilidad de los activos de aquellas empresas con fondo de comercio en sus balances. Nuestros resultados concuerdan con las investigaciones existentes, que sugieren que la amortización sistemática del fondo de comercio, junto con una prueba periódica de deterioro, limitan las prácticas de gestión de beneficios y ayudan a los inversores a evaluar los resultados económicos de una empresa

Producers of Electricity from Photovoltaic Energy in Spain: A Structural and Financial Analysis

[Abstract] The environmental scope of electricity generation that results in lower production costs and greater economic benefits is a main concern for planning post carbon cities. We perform a comparative economic and financial analysis of Spanish firms in the sector of photovoltaic energy production to, in order to check the impact of regulatory changes in the industry, and to compare firms in A Coruña and Galicia in the Spanish context. The effect of changes in regulation are obvious in terms of investment: In Spain and Galicia, more than 90% of the firms were launched in the decade of 2000s, and no asset increase by existing firms is observed in recent years. Firms launched in Galicia in that decade were relatively very small, and barely generated any employment. 95% of the firms in Spain are micro enterprises, but the structural analysis shows the negative impact on the competitiveness of the sector in Galicia of lacking large or medium companies. Finally, the exploratory statistical analysis shows a counter-intuitive result in terms of profitability: despite micro Galician firms have lower operating margins and generate a lower economic return than their Spanish counterparts, they are more profitable in terms of their return to shareholders

Long-Term Versus Short-Term Environmental Tax Policy Under Asymmetric Information

[Abstract] We examine the interaction between a firm that uses either a dirty or a clean technology to produce a product over two periods, 1 and 2, and an environmentally conscious regulator that chooses the environmental tax/subsidy policy. The regulator ignores with which technology the firm manufactures the product and only has a prior belief about it. In this context, if the regulator can credibly commit to the policy for both periods, social welfare is generally higher than if it cannot commit, because distortions in firm's production at period 1 for signalling purposes strongly reduces the optimality of an environmental policy of short duration. A period-by-period policy in which the regulator does not commit to the policy terms for period 2 (which will be contingent to information provided by the firm in period 1) is only optimal when clean technology is very expensive to produce with it and the regulator's environmental concern is not very high. The results highlight the importance of taking into account the time horizon in policymaking, as well as the limitations of regulatory policies that seek to elicit information about the type of technology used by firms.Manel Antelo acknowledges financial support from Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria (Xunta de Galicia) through Grant Consolidación e estruturación – 2019 GRC GI-2016 Análise económica dos mercados e institucións and Lluís Bru from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Innovation through Grant PID 2020-115018RB-C33Xunta de Galicia; 2019 GRC GI-201

Determinants of investing in innovative activities by agri-food and KIBS firms in rural areas: An exploratory analysis

Using a database on innovation activities by Spanish firms, we perform an exploratory analysis on a frequently overlooked area of research: innovation investment decisions by small firms in rural areas where socio-economic indicators are weak. We focus on two quite different sectors of interest there, agri-food and t-KIBS firms, to explore how the regional context influences the capacity and the nature of innovation. Following the TOE approach as a conceptual framework, we perform a multivariate statistical analysis based on MCA and PCA combined, to identify the most relevant factors among a list of 73 indicators in four broad domains, including innovation decisions as well as organisational, technological and environmental determinants. The exploratory results obtained suggest an open field of research. Thus, we observe a distinctive behaviour of marketing innovation by agri-food firms that is related to former ICT experience, while services innovation by t-KIBS would be related to the objective of entering new market niches. Some results confirm previous results for SMEs outside rural areas, such as financial constraints, lack of qualified personnel, and strong competition being relevant barriers to invest in R & D by t-KIBS firms. Contrariwise, we dispute the assertion that agri-food firms are primarily oriented towards product and process innovation: what comes together is product and organisational innovation