As a series of financial crisis and accounting scandals occur around the world, the government, many institutions and the public have put great emphasis on corporate governance. Most of the prior research focus on how the corporate governance monitoring system can enhance the firm value and reduce the financial crisis. This empirical analysis includes investment opportunity set (IOS) as an environmental factor and tests the interaction between IOS, firm performance and external corporate governance mechanisms (audit quality and institutional investor ownership) as well as internal corporate governance mechanisms (CEO duality and pledged shares ratio of directors and supervisors) in Taiwan. The sample consists of 999 Taiwan publicly listed companies both in electronics industry and non-electronics industries in 2003. This empirical study uses common factor analysis, Pearson¡¦s correlation analysis and regression analysis to test four hypotheses. The hypotheses are as follows: (1) the relationship between IOS and firm performance will be affected if the auditor is from the Big 4 auditing firm. (2) The relationship between IOS and firm performance will be changed due to the institutional investor ownership. (3) The CEO duality will influence the relationship between IOS and firm performance. (4) The pledged shares ratio of directors and supervisors has an influence on the relationship between IOS and firm performance. The results show that audit quality has no influence on the association of IOS and firm performance, but the institutional investor ownership has a negative and significant influence on that relationship. In non-electronics industries, CEO duality won¡¦t change the firm performance but a negative influence is reported in this study. Eventually, while many companies with financial distress have a higher pledged shares ratio than other normal companies, a positive influence is shown in this study when the investment opportunity set is considered.

The investment opportunity set was the component of the organisation’s value resulting from the option to make future investments or growth opportunity. The value of an organisation comprised of assets in place and discretionary investments in positive net present value projects or growth opportunity. This investment opportunity set or growth opportunity was relevant to both the organisation and the economy for value creation. The discretionary investments included any discretionary expenditure necessary for the future growth the organisation and were packaged as policy decisions. This study elected debt policies, dividend policies, and broad-based empowerment shareholding as relevant policy decisions with the purpose of establishing the relationship between these policies and growth opportunity. This study was conducted over a five year period at company-level and industry-level. T-tests, correlation and regression tests were employed to explore the relationship between the variables. The results revealed that debt and growth opportunity was positively associated; dividend and growth opportunity was negatively associated although the evidence was weak; and black economic shareholding was negatively associated with growth opportunity and positively associated with assets in place. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

[pt] A idade média das firmas que abrem capital em bolsas de valores varia significativamente entre países, mesmo entre aqueles com níveis similares de proteção a acionistas minoritários. Nesta dissertação, a variação entre países do tempo para abertura de capital é explicada pela frequência com que oportunidades de novos investimentos aparecem em cada país. Intuitivamente, novas oportunidade de investimento implicam necessidades de financiamento que permitem à empresa de capital fechado se expor aos mercados bancário e de capitais, gerando um fluxo de informações que aumentam a probabilidade de a devedora atingir um nível de avaliação de crédito que dá acesso ao mercado acionário. O modelo prevê ondas de IPO concentradas em épocas de crescimento econômico e otimismo no país. / [en] The average age of firms going public in stock markets varies significantly across countries, even controlling for those with similar levels of minority shareholder protection. In this thesis, such cross-section variation is explained by how frequently new investment opportunities occur in each country. Intuitively, new investment opportunities result in private firms demanding funds through bank lending or capital markets, generating a flow of information which increases the probability of a borrower firm to acquire credit rating enough to give it access to stock markets. The model predicts IPO waves concentrated in times of economic growth and optimism in a country.

Está cada vez mais presente no mercado de crédito a concessão de financiamentos de longo prazo pelas instituições financeiras cujas garantias reais da operação de crédito são empreendimentos de base imobiliária (EBIs), tais como shopping centers, hotéis, hospitais, edifícios de escritórios para locação (EEL), entre outros. Em decorrência, a valuation de EBIs tornou-se de extrema relevância paras os agentes financeiros, uma vez que impacta diretamente na determinação do índice de garantia (IG), importante indicador utilizado pelo credor para aferir a margem de segurança do agente financiador em caso de inadimplência do tomador de recursos. Contudo, a reducionista análise do IG atrelada a atual simplificação promovida pelos bancos de se adotar critérios de avaliação de EBIs sustentados na abordagem do custo, que resulta no valor patrimonial, pode conduzir a resultados viesados ou inconsistentes, além de criar uma pseudoblindagem de exposição ao risco, falseando o processo de tomada de decisão e até mesmo anulando a possibilidade de explorá-lo em benefício do ganho de competividade e rentabilidade. Diante disto e a fim de subsidiar os bancos no que tange à análise da adequabilidade de incorporar EBIs em colateral, a presente tese propõe a estruturação de um sistema de rating para a classificação do risco de vinculação de EBIs em garantia, de forma a refletir o efetivo grau de cobertura proporcionado pelo colateral ante a operação de crédito. O sistema de rating ora proposto está sustentado em dois pilares: [i] na arbitragem do valor de garantia, segundo o conceito de valor da oportunidade de investimento e sob o princípio do value at risk, em que o valor arbitrado do empreendimento está associado à capacidade de geração de renda da propriedade e tem um grau de probabilidade e risco e [ii] na construção da matriz de rating, que constitui o núcleo do sistema de rating e envolve a determinação das dimensões de risco (e dos respectivos parâmetros de risco) ponderadas pela referida matriz, assim denominadas: [a] suficiência da garantia, [b] volatilidade do valor de garantia e [c] lastro patrimonial do empreendimento. Nesta tese, demonstrou-se a aplicação do sistema de rating a partir de um protótipo de referência que considera as relações encontradas no respectivo segmento de mercado e reproduz a configuração de um processo decisório que envolve uma operação de financiamento lastreada por um EEL. Os resultados obtidos evidenciaram que o sistema de rating pode auxiliar a gestão do risco de crédito pelos bancos, na medida em que constitui o ferramental adequado para fornecer informações, de forma ágil e eficiente, acerca do perfil de risco de vinculação de EBIs em colateral, agregando o nível de conforto necessário à decisão. O sistema de rating ora proposto abre uma nova perspectiva de análise do risco de vinculação de EBIs em garantia e constitui uma alternativa consistente ao uso do IG em operações de crédito de longo prazo. / There is a steady trend for the long-term financing of financial institutions whose real guarantees of the credit operation are commercial real estate properties (CREP), such as shopping malls, hotels, hospitals, office buildings, among others. As a result, the valuation of CREP has become extremely relevant for financial agents, since it directly impacts the determination of the guarantee index (GI), an important indicator used by the creditor to assess the margin of safety of the financing agent in the event of default of the borrower. However, the reductionist analysis of the GI coupled with the current simplification promoted by banks to adopt CREP valuation criteria based on the cost or patrimonial value approach may lead to biased or inconsistent results, as well as creating a pseudo-protection of risk exposure, distorting the decision-making process and even nullifying the possibility of exploiting it for the benefit of gaining competitiveness and profitability. In view of this and in order to subsidize the banks in the analysis of the suitability of incorporating CREP into collateral, this thesis proposes the structuring of a rating system for the risk classification of linking CREP into collateral, in order to reflect the effective degree of coverage provided by the collateral before the credit operation. The rating system proposed here is based on two pillars: [i] in the arbitrage of the guarantee value, according to the concept of investment opportunity value and under the principle of value at risk, in which the arbitrated value of the CREP is associated with the ability to generate income from the property and has a degree of probability and risk and [ii] in the construction of the rating matrix, which constitutes the core of the rating system and involves the determination of the risk dimensions (and risk parameters) weighted by that matrix, so-called: [a] collateral sufficiency, [b] volatility of the guarantee value and [c] patrimonial coverage of the property. In this thesis, we demonstrated the application of the rating system from a reference prototype that considers the relationships found in the respective market segment and reproduces the configuration of a decisionmaking process that involves a financing operation backed by an office building. The results obtained showed that the rating system can help the management of credit risk by the banks, as it is the adequate tool to provide information, in a quick and efficient way, about the risk profile of linking CREP into collateral, adding the level of comfort necessary for such decision. The proposed rating system opens a new perspective for analyzing the risk of linking CREP into collateral and constitutes a consistent alternative to the use of the GI in long-term credit operations.

Está cada vez mais presente no mercado de crédito a concessão de financiamentos de longo prazo pelas instituições financeiras cujas garantias reais da operação de crédito são empreendimentos de base imobiliária (EBIs), tais como shopping centers, hotéis, hospitais, edifícios de escritórios para locação (EEL), entre outros. Em decorrência, a valuation de EBIs tornou-se de extrema relevância paras os agentes financeiros, uma vez que impacta diretamente na determinação do índice de garantia (IG), importante indicador utilizado pelo credor para aferir a margem de segurança do agente financiador em caso de inadimplência do tomador de recursos. Contudo, a reducionista análise do IG atrelada a atual simplificação promovida pelos bancos de se adotar critérios de avaliação de EBIs sustentados na abordagem do custo, que resulta no valor patrimonial, pode conduzir a resultados viesados ou inconsistentes, além de criar uma pseudoblindagem de exposição ao risco, falseando o processo de tomada de decisão e até mesmo anulando a possibilidade de explorá-lo em benefício do ganho de competividade e rentabilidade. Diante disto e a fim de subsidiar os bancos no que tange à análise da adequabilidade de incorporar EBIs em colateral, a presente tese propõe a estruturação de um sistema de rating para a classificação do risco de vinculação de EBIs em garantia, de forma a refletir o efetivo grau de cobertura proporcionado pelo colateral ante a operação de crédito. O sistema de rating ora proposto está sustentado em dois pilares: [i] na arbitragem do valor de garantia, segundo o conceito de valor da oportunidade de investimento e sob o princípio do value at risk, em que o valor arbitrado do empreendimento está associado à capacidade de geração de renda da propriedade e tem um grau de probabilidade e risco e [ii] na construção da matriz de rating, que constitui o núcleo do sistema de rating e envolve a determinação das dimensões de risco (e dos respectivos parâmetros de risco) ponderadas pela referida matriz, assim denominadas: [a] suficiência da garantia, [b] volatilidade do valor de garantia e [c] lastro patrimonial do empreendimento. Nesta tese, demonstrou-se a aplicação do sistema de rating a partir de um protótipo de referência que considera as relações encontradas no respectivo segmento de mercado e reproduz a configuração de um processo decisório que envolve uma operação de financiamento lastreada por um EEL. Os resultados obtidos evidenciaram que o sistema de rating pode auxiliar a gestão do risco de crédito pelos bancos, na medida em que constitui o ferramental adequado para fornecer informações, de forma ágil e eficiente, acerca do perfil de risco de vinculação de EBIs em colateral, agregando o nível de conforto necessário à decisão. O sistema de rating ora proposto abre uma nova perspectiva de análise do risco de vinculação de EBIs em garantia e constitui uma alternativa consistente ao uso do IG em operações de crédito de longo prazo. / There is a steady trend for the long-term financing of financial institutions whose real guarantees of the credit operation are commercial real estate properties (CREP), such as shopping malls, hotels, hospitals, office buildings, among others. As a result, the valuation of CREP has become extremely relevant for financial agents, since it directly impacts the determination of the guarantee index (GI), an important indicator used by the creditor to assess the margin of safety of the financing agent in the event of default of the borrower. However, the reductionist analysis of the GI coupled with the current simplification promoted by banks to adopt CREP valuation criteria based on the cost or patrimonial value approach may lead to biased or inconsistent results, as well as creating a pseudo-protection of risk exposure, distorting the decision-making process and even nullifying the possibility of exploiting it for the benefit of gaining competitiveness and profitability. In view of this and in order to subsidize the banks in the analysis of the suitability of incorporating CREP into collateral, this thesis proposes the structuring of a rating system for the risk classification of linking CREP into collateral, in order to reflect the effective degree of coverage provided by the collateral before the credit operation. The rating system proposed here is based on two pillars: [i] in the arbitrage of the guarantee value, according to the concept of investment opportunity value and under the principle of value at risk, in which the arbitrated value of the CREP is associated with the ability to generate income from the property and has a degree of probability and risk and [ii] in the construction of the rating matrix, which constitutes the core of the rating system and involves the determination of the risk dimensions (and risk parameters) weighted by that matrix, so-called: [a] collateral sufficiency, [b] volatility of the guarantee value and [c] patrimonial coverage of the property. In this thesis, we demonstrated the application of the rating system from a reference prototype that considers the relationships found in the respective market segment and reproduces the configuration of a decisionmaking process that involves a financing operation backed by an office building. The results obtained showed that the rating system can help the management of credit risk by the banks, as it is the adequate tool to provide information, in a quick and efficient way, about the risk profile of linking CREP into collateral, adding the level of comfort necessary for such decision. The proposed rating system opens a new perspective for analyzing the risk of linking CREP into collateral and constitutes a consistent alternative to the use of the GI in long-term credit operations.

Nous analysons l’identification des opportunités d’investissement dans le cas spécifique du financement de l’amorçage des firmes porteuses d’innovation. L’absence d’informations pertinentes et objectives au démarrage remet en cause la capacité postulée des investisseurs à évaluer objectivement la rentabilité des firmes entrepreneuriales. Ainsi, nous étudions la vraie stratégie psycho-cognitive sous-jacente à la création du sens autour du potentiel des projets en se focalisant sur un acteur spécifique, le Business Angel (BA). Nous postulons que cet investissement suit un processus de jugement intuitif. L’analyse qualitative des notes d’observation et des entretiens permet de construire un modèle décrivant la manière dont le BA produit in situ de nouveaux construits utiles dans sa perception. Nous mettons aussi en évidence des comportements réflexifs réduisant l’erreur dans sa décision. Ainsi, l’intuition du BA doit être vue comme une réelle approche de transformation situationnelle d’indicateurs à travers des manipulations langagières. Nous offrons une nouvelle perspective dans la compréhension du comportement des capital-risqueurs qui sont susceptibles d’accompagner financièrement les firmes innovantes dès leur phase de démarrage. Nos résultats sont aussi généralisables à des contexte où l’aptitude intuitive devant une source d’efficience décisionnelle. Nous faisons des propositions théoriques qui orienteront les études futures. / We analyze the investment opportunities’s identification in the specific case of the innovative firm financing. The absence of relevant and objective informations at the early stage weaken the investor’s postulated ability inestimating objectively the profitability of the entrepreneurial firms. Then, we study the real cognitivestrategy underlying the sensemaking process around the potential of the projects by focusing on a specific actor, the Business angel (BA). We argue that this investment follows a process of intuitive judgment.The research design is a qualitative inductive approach with data collected by observation and interviews. We build a model of how the BA cognitively interpret the innovative firm’s potential in order to invest. We highlight also cognitive practices in reducting biais and errors during the sensemaking process. The BA’s intuition atearly stage must be viewed as a processus of meaning construction through labelling and speech articulation. This thesis contributes to a better understanding ofventure capitalist behaviors at early stage as well as a better comprehension of how meaning can be created intuitively in uncertain context. Theoretical propositions are made for future researchs.

This thesis focuses on the analysis of the business environment of the Republic of Belarus and trade relations with the Czech Republic. The goal of this thesis is to provide the reader a comprehensive document that provides a complete and relevant information to help readers to orientate themselves in the Belarusian business and investment environment. At the same time the aim of this thesis is to help Czech entrepreneur identify prospective business opportunities and Czech entrepreneur could realistically exploit his business activities. The mapping the business environment in Belarus, I used the PEST analysis, which is reflected in the logical construction of the thesis. The thesis charts the political and legal environment, economic environment, socio-cultural and technological environment of the country. I exploit my own knowledge and experience I have accumulated during numerous trips to Belarus in this thesis. This thesis clearly summarizes the significant characteristics of the business environment in Belarus. Getting familiar with its contents raises a presumption of successful entry of the Czech entity on the Belarusian market.

The master's thesis deals with the evaluation of a specific investment opportunity on the private equity real estate market in the Czech republic. The analysed investment project offers rare opportunity to create additional cash flow to the project under the management of the new owner. The theoretical part will define the core problematic of investment decision making process and the evaluation of investments. Practical part is focused on building a projection of cash flow and analysis of various return scenarios by using the internal rate of return as a key financial criteria to evaluate the investment opportunity.

本研究探討私募宣告事件之資訊內涵，以瞭解私募宣告事件對公司整體價值所造成之影響，進而探討影響私募宣告效果的可能因素，並比較具備投資機會組與不具備投資機會組之累積平均異常報酬。 實證結果發現以股東大會日為宣告日之私募股權宣告具有資訊內涵，而且宣告效果提早反應。影響私募宣告後累積異常報酬之因素包括價格壓力、投資機會、發行價格及資訊不對稱程度。股票流動性高、股價波動程度低、具備投資機會、發行價格高或資訊不對稱程度高時，私募宣告後之累積平均異常報酬會較高。在事件日前，無投資機會組比具備投資機會組有較高之累積平均異常報酬；在事件日之後，具投資機會組比無投資機會組有較高之累積平均異常報酬。 / This study examines the information content of private placement announcement to unveil its impact on firm value, explores the factors affecting the effect of private placement announcement, and compares the market performance of firms with investment opportunities and those without investment opportunities. The results indicate that the information content of private placement announcement exists with early information leakage. Firms with higher stock liquidity, lower stock price variation, more investment opportunity, higher subscribed price or higher degree of information asymmetry will have higher cumulative average abnormal returns after the announcement. The cumulative average abnormal returns of companies without investment opportunity are higher than those with investment opportunity before the announcement date.

This thesis investigates the determinants of UK corporate cash holdings between 1980 and 2012. The global and long term phenomenon of corporate cash pilling has drawn significant attention from researchers. Similarly, this study aims at shedding light on the empirical relationship between cash holding and specific firm characteristics. Our preliminary research incorporates a comprehensive literature review. Towards this end, the relevant financial theory is presented and the previous empirical studies are highlighted. Afterwards, the expected results of our research are synthesized into a set of distinct hypotheses and tested with regression analysis. The empirical findings suggest that cash holdings are positively related to investment opportunity, as R&D and market to book ratio. Cash ratio is also positively related to industry cash flow volatility and negatively affected by cash flow, net working capital, capital expenditures, leverage, tax expenses, age and size. Regarding the development of the determinants of cash holdings, the study indicates that three major variables influenced cash holdings over the years of analysis. In particular, leverage, tax regime and capital expenditures significantly affect the corporate liquidity in UK market. Furthermore, the results suggest that cash holdings are mostly defined by trade off theory. Indeed, our findings offer stimulating insights on the factors that determine the firms’ cash holdings during the past three decades. These findings may be beneficial for financial managers, investors and consultants. / Στην παρούσα διατριβή εξετάζονται οι προσδιοριστικοί παράγοντες του δείκτη μετρητών σε επιχειρήσεις του Ηνωμένου Βασιλείου μεταξύ των ετών 1980 και 2012. Η διακράτηση μετρητών αποτελεί παγκόσμιο φαινόμενο και λαμβάνει της ανάλογης προσοχής από πληθώρα ερευνητών. Σε αυτή τη βάση, η μελέτη αυτή έχει ως στόχο να ρίξει φως σχετικά με την εμπειρική σχέση μεταξύ του δείκτη μετρητών και τα συγκεκριμένα χαρακτηριστικά που επηρεάζουν την ρευστότητα στις επιχειρήσεις διαχρονικά. Αρχικά η έρευνα ενσωματώνει μια βιβλιογραφική ανασκόπηση. Προς το σκοπό αυτό, οι σχετικές οικονομικές θεωρίες και οι προηγούμενες εμπειρικές μελέτες παρουσιάζονται. Στη συνέχεια, τα αναμενόμενα αποτελέσματα της έρευνας συντίθενται σε ένα σύνολο διακριτών υποθέσεων και δοκιμάζονται με ανάλυση παλινδρόμησης. Τα εμπειρικά ευρήματα υποδηλώνουν ότι ο δείκτης μετρητών σχετίζεται θετικά με τις επενδυτικές ευκαιρίες, τις δαπάνες Ε&Α και τον λόγο της αγοραίας προς τη λογιστική αξία των βιβλίων της επιχείρησης. Ο δείκτης μετρητών επίσης, σχετίζεται θετικά με την μεταβλητότητα των ταμειακών ροών του κλάδου και επηρεάζεται αρνητικά από τις ταμειακές ροές, το καθαρό κεφάλαιο κίνησης, τις κεφαλαιακές δαπάνες, την μόχλευση, τα φορολογικά έξοδα, την ηλικία και το μέγεθος των επιχειρήσεων. Όσον αφορά την εξέλιξη των προσδιοριστικών παραγόντων των ταμειακών ρευστών διαθεσίμων, η μελέτη δείχνει ότι τρεις είναι οι κύριες μεταβλητές που επηρεάζουν τη διακράτηση μετρητών κατά τη διάρκεια των χρόνων της ανάλυσης. Ειδικότερα, η μόχλευση, το φορολογικό καθεστώς και τις κεφαλαιακές δαπάνες επηρεάΖουν σημαντικά την απόφαση για εταιρική ρευστότητα στην αγορά του Ηνωμένου Βασιλείου. Επιπλέον, τα αποτελέσματα δείχνουν ότι η διακράτηση μετρητών ακολουθεί κυρίως την trade off θεωρία. Πράγματι, τα ευρήματά προσφέρουν χρήσιμες γνώσεις σχετικά με τους παράγοντες που καθορίζουν τη διακράτηση μετρητών των επιχειρήσεων κατά τη διάρκεια των τριών τελευταίων δεκαετιών. Τα ευρήματα αυτά μπορεί να είναι επωφελή για οικονομολόγους, επενδυτές και συμβούλους.