Shareholder wealth effects from mergers and acquisitions in the Greek banking industry

This paper examines the shareholder wealth effects of mergers and acquisitions in the Greek banking industry from 1995 to 2001, using the “event study methodology”. The results suggest that targets’ shareholders earned significant abnormal returns upon the announcement of horizontal and diversifying deals. On the other hand, bidders’ shareholders had significant losses in cases of horizontal and zero effects in diversifying deals. Although mergers and acquisitions in the Greek banking industry are not found to be value-enhancing, they can be rationalized as an external growth strategy, whose goal was to strengthen the position of the participants in the domestic market and help them become more tenacious in a fiercely competitive international environment.Mergers and Acquisitions; Banking; Valuation effects

Union structure and firms incentives for cooperative R&D investments

We examine how different unionisation structures and the spillovers of R&D activities affect R&D investments and firms’ incentives to form a Research Joint Venture. We find that whenever firms invest non-cooperatively, an industry union increases R&D investments, if industry specific spillovers are low. In case of a Research Joint Venture, investments are always higher under firm-level unions. We also find that firms’ incentives to form a Research Joint Venture are stronger when they face an industry union, if spillovers are low. Rigidities in the labour market, such as high unemployment benefits or/and a central union, have negative effects on employment, output and profits and hinder the diffusion of the efficiency created by a RJV to consumers and employees. Integrated labour market and R&D policies are also discussed.Trade Unions; Oligopoly; Process Innovations

Downstream Research Joint Venture with Upstream Market Power

In this paper, we examine how the structure of an imperfectly competitive input market affects final-good producers’ incentives to form a Research Joint Venture (RJV), in a differentiated duopoly where R&D investments exhibit spillovers. Although a RJV is always profitable, downstream firms’ incentives for R&D cooperation are non-monotone in the structure of the input market, with incentives being stronger under a monopolistic input supplier, whenever spillovers are low. In contrast to the hold-up argument, we also find that under non-cooperative R&D investments and weak free-riding, final-good producers invest more when facing a monopolistic input supplier, compared with investments under competing vertical chains. Integrated innovation and competition policies are also discussed.Oligopoly; Process Innovations, Research Joint Ventures

Union structure and firms incentives for cooperative R&D investments

This paper investigates the impact of alternative unionization structures on firms' incentives to spend on cost-reducing R&D activities as well as to form a Research Joint Venture, in the presence of R&D spillovers. We show that, in contrast to the "hold up" argument, if firms invest non-cooperatively and spillovers are low, R&D investments are higher when an industry-wide union sets a uniform wage rate than under firm-level unions. In contrast, investments are always higher under firm-level unions in the case of RJVs. Firms' incentives to form an RJV are non-monotonic in the degree of centralization of the wage-setting, with the incentives being stronger under an industry-wide union if and only if spillovers are low enough. Finally, centralized wage-setting as well as high unemployment benefits may hinder the formation of costly RJVs and their potential welfare benefits.Unions, Oligopoly, Cost-reducing Innovations, Research Joint Ventures, Spillovers

Downstream Mode of Competition With Upstream Market Power

In contrast with previous studies we assume no ex-ante commitment over the �price or quantity� type of contract which downstream firms will independently offer consumers in a two-tier oligopoly. Under competing vertical chains, we propose that the downstream mode of competition which in equilibrium emerges is the outcome of independent implicit agreements, between each downstream firm and its exclusive input supplier, in each vertical chain. Our findings suggest that input suppliers may thus act as commitment devices sufficient to endogenously sustain the quantity (Cournot) mode of competition.Oligopoly; Vertical relations; Wholesale prices; Equilibrium mode of competition

Equilibrium Mode of Competition in Unionized Oligopolies: Do Unions Act as Commitment Devices to Cournot Outcomes?

In contrast with previous studies, we postulate that there is no ex-ante commitment over the type of contract (i.e., price or quantity) which a firm offers consumers. In the context of a unionized symmetric duopoly we instead argue that the mode of competition which in equilibrium emerges is the one that entails the most beneficial outcome for both the firm and its labour union, in each firm/union pair, given the choice of the rival pair. Our findings suggest that monopoly unions with risk-averse/neutral members may effectively act as commitment devices driving firms to the symmetric Cournot mode of competition.Oligopoly, Monopoly unions, Equilibrium mode of competition

Certification of Corporate Social Responsibility Activities in Oligopolistic Markets

We investigate the impact of alternative certifying institutions on firms' incentives to engage in costly Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities as well as their relative market and societal implications. We find that the CSR certification standard is the lowest under a for-profit private certifier and the highest under a Non Governmental Organization (NGO), with the standard of a welfare maximizing public certifier lying in between. Yet, regarding industry output, this ranking is reversed. Certification of CSR activities is welfare enhancing for consumers and firms and thus should be encouraged. Finally, depending on whether certification takes place before or after firms' CSR activities, a public certifier and a NGO lead to different market and societal outcomes.Corporate Social Responsibility, Oligopoly, Vertical Differentiation, Certification

Strategic delegation in experimental duopolies with endogenous incentive contracts

Often, deviations of firm behavior from profit maximization are the result of managerial incentive contracts. We study the endogenous emergence of incentive contracts used by firm owners to delegate the strategic decisions of the firm. These contracts are linear combinations either of own firm's profits and revenues, or own and rival firms' profits. A two- and three-stage game are studied depending on whether owners commit or not to a certain contract type before setting the managerial incentives and the level of output to produce in the market. We report experimental results which confirm some of the predictions of the model, especially those concerning owners' preference for relative performance incentives over profit-revenue contracts. Neglected behavioral aspects are proposed as possible explanation of some divergence between the theory and the experimental evidence, more specifically the relation between contract terms and managers' output choicesExperimental economics; Oligopoly theory; Managerial delegation; Endogenous contracts.