A thesis submitted to the Faculty Of Arts in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Masters in Community Work in the Department of Social Work at the University Of Zululand, 2017 / Disability and poverty can no longer be denied as being some of the major factors that affect a number of people across South Africa and other developing, or even developed countries. Yet, disability and poverty are still ill-defined and under researched. South Africa has developed an income system aimed at helping people with disabilities: The Disability Cash Transfer (DCT). Physical and mental conditions of people with disabilities vary from one person to another, which means that the type of care they require as they grow older is also different. Therefore, people with disabilities constantly require financial care and societal acceptance. This is why the South African government provides DCT for people with disabilities who cannot perform any formal work as a way to generate income for themselves. This study seeks to evaluate if the DCT has an effect on people’s lives, with regards to poverty reduction, within Nqutu Local Municipality. Based on the Nqutu Local Municipality Integrated Development Plan First review (2013/2014:6), the estimated dependency ratio on social grants is 90.60%. The Disability Cash Transfer is within that estimated percentage. In this study, both qualitative and quantitative data was obtained using questionnaires and interview schedules. The research instruments that were employed in this study to collect data from beneficiaries of DCT were questionnaires, and to gather information from SASSA officials, interview schedules were used. The study target population were the beneficiaries of DCT as well as SASSA officials of Nqutu Local Municipality. To sample DCT beneficiaries, convenience sampling was used, and to select SASSA officials, simple random sampling was employed. This researcher managed to get 73 DCT beneficiaries and 8 SASSA officials. Content analysis was used to analyse interview schedules, in which all SASSA officials expressed that DCT does have an effect on poverty reduction. To analyse questionnaires descriptive analysis and the statistics program (SPSS) was used. The findings of the study reveal that although the DCT may be satisfactory, there is a necessity for implementers to re-evaluate current operations to avoid the exclusion and inclusion errors that exist in the DCT distribution. Therefore, it is prudent for the government, community members, and SASSA to work concurrently into introducing new strategies that will strip off distribution errors and mitigate poverty. Findings, further exhibited that 91.78% respondents believe that the DCT has effects at Nqutu Local Municipality because beneficiaries are able to provide essential needs for their families. A high number of respondents 57.53% mentioned that there are challenges in the DCT distribution. These challenges were found to be the result of the imperfection of the system as it appeared the DCT beneficiaries would sometimes not receive full amount of their grant. It is recommended that the Department of Social Development working together with SASSA revisit the distribution procedure to avoid fraudulent activities that the DCT beneficiaries experience. To reduce poverty people with disabilities should also be given employment opportunities equal to people with no disabilities as a way to reduce a dependency ratio to social grants. / National Research Foundation Of South Africa

This thesis examines important topics in corporate cash holdings and forecaster overconfidence. First, I provide an in-depth study of the interaction between intra-industry contagion risk and cash holdings. I develop a novel measure of a firm’s exposure to contagion risk that builds on the firm’s stock return comovement with other industry participants and separates contagion and competition effects caused by the expected financial distress of its industry peers. I show that high contagion-risk firms hold more cash because they face higher costs of external finance due to the potential decrease in their collateral values and the increased likelihood of their future financial distress caused by the net contagion effect. Second, in a co-authored paper with Drs. Jiaping Qiu and Chi Wan, we conduct a cross-country analysis to examine how financial development affects the reliance of corporate liquidity management on tangible capital. We find that financial development and better institutions lower the cash-tangibility sensitivity. This supports the view that financial development reduces the collateral role of tangible assets, thereby relaxing financial constraints of firms with low asset tangibility. This provides further firm-level evidence and sheds new light on the link between financial development and economic growth, as financial development promotes more efficient allocations of economic resources and hence facilitates investments and economic growth. Third, in a co-authored paper with Drs. Richard Deaves and Michael Schröder, we document using the ZEW panel of German stock market forecasters that weak forecasters tend to be overconfident in the sense that they provide extreme forecasts and their confidence intervals are less likely to contain eventual realizations. Moderate filters based on forecast accuracy over short rolling windows are somewhat successful in improving predictability. While poor performance can be due to various factors, a filter based on a prior tendency to provide extreme forecasts also improves predictability. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This thesis describes and analyzes the cash pool from the perspective of large companies and corporations. The main aim of this thesis is a description and analysis of cash pooling structures in the company E.ON in the Czech Republic. Based on the analysis benefits of involvement in the cash pooling structures are quantitatively assessed in terms of comparison of interest received / paid under the cash pooling and without the involvement of the cash pooling, the compensation for the interest involving cash pooling, economies of scale involving cash pooling and reduce volatility in cash involving cash pooling. The theoretical part provides a basic summary of the cash pooling. Factors that influence the development of cash pooling structures are primarily legal environment, integrating banking market in the Eurozone and banking structure of ownership. The contribution of this thesis is a summary of information obtained on the cash pooling, which is not fully available in study materials.

Stora koncerner med verksamhet i flera företag och inte sällan i flera länder kan gynnas av att styra hela koncernens ekonomi från en gemensam enhet. Moderbolaget har olika stor insyn i dotterbolagens verksamheter beroende på koncernens storlek och organisationsstruktur och därmed kan centralisering av likviditetsstyrningen ske på olika sätt. Syftet med uppsatsen är att ur ett ledarskapsperspektiv studera hur centraliserad likviditetsstyrning utförs samt hur det kan påverka koncerner. För att uppnå syftet har kvalitativa intervjuer genomförts med ekonomicheferna i fyra koncerner. Studien har därmed gjorts ur ett ledarskapsperspektiv och personliga intervjuer har gjorts för att få en djupare förståelse för hur koncernerna väljer att centralisera sin likviditetsstyrning samt vilken påverkan det har. Koncernerna som intervjuats har i hög grad centraliserad likviditetsstyrning och de viktigaste besluten fattas i huvudsak från en och samma enhet, resultatet av intervjuerna visar att centraliserad likviditetsstyrning skapar ökad översikt och kontroll. Ekonomicheferna anser sig ha god insyn i dotterbolagens verksamheter och kan därmed fatta de beslut som är de bästa för koncernen.  För att få en ökad förståelse för hur cash pooling kan användas som instrument för att centralisera likviditetsstyrningen intervjuades även två banker. Cash pooling ger en översiktlig bild över koncernens likviditet genom interna överföringar mellan konton med intern ränta. Därmed används det befintliga kapitalet på ett effektivt sätt innan externa lån behöver tas. Tre av koncernerna använder sig av cash pooling och de anser att det skapar en överskådlighet över koncernens likviditet samt en ökad effektivitet eftersom antalet externa banklån reduceras. Bankerna är eniga och menar att cash pooling skapar en samlad bild över koncernens likviditet. Utöver cash pooling tar studien även upp begrepp som centralisering, cash management och treasury management, vilka även de kan ses som sätt att effektivisera likviditetsstyrningen i en koncern. / Business groups with companies active in several countries can benefit from managing the entire group’s economy from one single entity. The parent company’s transparency of its subsidiaries is depending on the size and the organizational structure of the concern. Therefore, centralization of the liquidity can be done in several ways. The purpose of the study aims to clarify how centralization of the liquidity can be performed and what consequences it gives the concern. The study has been conducted through the leaders’ perspectives of the business groups. Interviews have been carried out with the financial chiefs of four business groups, in order to get a deeper knowledge of how the liquidity is centralized and what effects it brings. The business groups have in a great extent centralized their liquidity to one entity where the most important decisions are made. The financial chiefs consider themselves to have the right knowledge to make decisions with the concern’s best interest in mind. To get a deeper knowledge about centralization of liquidity from the perspectives of the banks, and also to get awareness of cash pooling and how it is used, the decision of interviewing two banks as well, was made. Cash pooling is an instrument for optimizing the liquidity within business groups and thereby enabling an effective management of cash, and reducing the need for external borrowings. Three out of the four concerns interviewed are users of cash pooling and they all consider it an effective instrument that creates transparency and control over the liquidity. The banks agree and say that it gives a more composed picture of the liquidity of the concern, which simplifies the contact with the bank. In addition to cash pooling, the study also discusses cash management and treasury management. In conclusion, it is clear to say that there are considerable advantages, such as a greater transparency and control, when a corporate group is centralizing its liquidity. It also creates legitimacy against banks.

As organizações, para financiar suas atividades, fazem uso de fontes internas e externas de recursos financeiros. Entretanto, na presença de imperfeições no mercado de capitais, como assimetria de informações, problemas de agência e custos de transação, elas podem optar por uma fonte em detrimento a outra. As imperfeições do mercado aliadas as restrições de financeiras podem afetar o gerenciamento de caixa das organizações. Em contextos de crise, por exemplo, os efeitos da indisponibilidade de financiamento podem ser ainda maiores. Sendo assim, este trabalho teve como objetivo analisar os efeitos das Restrições Financeiras e crise financeira sobre as políticas de caixa, assim como, estudar os impactos de uma boa Governança Corporativa e seus efeitos sobre os níveis de caixa. Para tanto, fez-se uso de uma amostra composta por 141 empresas de capital aberto, não financeiras, obtidas por meio da base de dados Economática®. O período analisado compreende 15 anos, iniciando em 2000 e se estendendo até 2014. Optou-se pela utilização do modelo de regressão com dados em painel, por meio de um painel desbalanceado, no intuito de não reduzir o número de observações utilizadas (1906). Os resultados indicaram que o nível de caixa das organizações é impactado pelo nível de sua restrição financeira, assim como por contextos de crise, onde as companhias elevaram as suas reservas de caixa sob tal cenário. De forma geral, observou-se uma associação positiva entre as variáveis de Governança Corporativa utilizadas, apesar de apenas uma ter obtido significância estatística. Logo, o resultado obtido sugere que os acionistas de uma empresa permitem ao agente gerenciar maiores reservas de caixa apenas quando há mecanismos de governança corporativa para protegê-las. Além do mais, os resultados ainda indicam que as boas práticas de governança corporativa fornecem um meio de controlar as ações dos gestores, de modo que eles utilizem as reservas de caixa apenas em situações que maximizem a utilidade dos acionistas, evitando, assim, o gasto excessivo de caixa. Em relação a adoção das normas internacionais de contabilidade (IFRS), verificou-se uma redução significativa dos níveis de caixa posteriormente a segunda fase de adoção às normas, assim como uma associação negativa e significativa entre a variável dummy representando a adoção obrigatória. Sendo assim, este trabalho contribui com a literatura científica de maneira a fornecer evidências acerca dos efeitos das restrições financeiras, uma boa governança corporativa, crise financeira e adoção do padrão IFRS sobre as políticas de caixa das companhias brasileiras / Organizations, to finance their activities, can use internal and external sources of financial resources. However, in the presence of imperfections in the capital market, as asymmetric information, agency problems and transaction costs, they can choose one over the other. The imperfections of the market coupled with financial restrictions may affect the cash management of organizations. In times of crisis, for example, the effects of the unavailability of funding may also be higher. Thus, this study aimed to analyze the effects of Financial Restrictions and financial crisis on cash holdings, as well as study the impacts of a good Corporate Governance and its effects on cash levels. To do so, we used a sample of 141 listed companies, non-financial, obtained through Economática® database. The analyzed period consists of 15 years, starting in 2000 and extending to 2014. We opted for the use of the Panel Data regression model using an unbalanced panel, in order not to reduce the number of observations used (1906). The results indicated that the cash level of organizations is impacted by the level of its financial constraints, as well as for crisis contexts, where companies increased their cash reserves under such a scenario. In General, there was a positive association between the variables of Corporate Governance used, although only one has obtained statistical significance. Therefore, the obtained results suggest that the shareholders of a company allow the agent manage larger cash reserves only when there is corporate governance mechanisms to protect them. Moreover, the results also indicate that good corporate governance practices provide a way to control the actions of managers, so that they use cash holdings only in situations that maximize the value of shareholders, thus avoiding spending excessive cash holding. Regarding the adoption of international accounting standards (IFRS), there was a significant reduction in cash levels after the second phase adoption of the standards, as well as a negative and significant association between the dummy variable representing the mandatory adoption. Thus, this study contributes to the literature in order to provide evidence about the effects of financial constraints, good corporate governance, financial crisis and the adoption of IFRS on the cash policies of Brazilian companies

As organizações, para financiar suas atividades, fazem uso de fontes internas e externas de recursos financeiros. Entretanto, na presença de imperfeições no mercado de capitais, como assimetria de informações, problemas de agência e custos de transação, elas podem optar por uma fonte em detrimento a outra. As imperfeições do mercado aliadas as restrições de financeiras podem afetar o gerenciamento de caixa das organizações. Em contextos de crise, por exemplo, os efeitos da indisponibilidade de financiamento podem ser ainda maiores. Sendo assim, este trabalho teve como objetivo analisar os efeitos das Restrições Financeiras e crise financeira sobre as políticas de caixa, assim como, estudar os impactos de uma boa Governança Corporativa e seus efeitos sobre os níveis de caixa. Para tanto, fez-se uso de uma amostra composta por 141 empresas de capital aberto, não financeiras, obtidas por meio da base de dados Economática®. O período analisado compreende 15 anos, iniciando em 2000 e se estendendo até 2014. Optou-se pela utilização do modelo de regressão com dados em painel, por meio de um painel desbalanceado, no intuito de não reduzir o número de observações utilizadas (1906). Os resultados indicaram que o nível de caixa das organizações é impactado pelo nível de sua restrição financeira, assim como por contextos de crise, onde as companhias elevaram as suas reservas de caixa sob tal cenário. De forma geral, observou-se uma associação positiva entre as variáveis de Governança Corporativa utilizadas, apesar de apenas uma ter obtido significância estatística. Logo, o resultado obtido sugere que os acionistas de uma empresa permitem ao agente gerenciar maiores reservas de caixa apenas quando há mecanismos de governança corporativa para protegê-las. Além do mais, os resultados ainda indicam que as boas práticas de governança corporativa fornecem um meio de controlar as ações dos gestores, de modo que eles utilizem as reservas de caixa apenas em situações que maximizem a utilidade dos acionistas, evitando, assim, o gasto excessivo de caixa. Em relação a adoção das normas internacionais de contabilidade (IFRS), verificou-se uma redução significativa dos níveis de caixa posteriormente a segunda fase de adoção às normas, assim como uma associação negativa e significativa entre a variável dummy representando a adoção obrigatória. Sendo assim, este trabalho contribui com a literatura científica de maneira a fornecer evidências acerca dos efeitos das restrições financeiras, uma boa governança corporativa, crise financeira e adoção do padrão IFRS sobre as políticas de caixa das companhias brasileiras / Organizations, to finance their activities, can use internal and external sources of financial resources. However, in the presence of imperfections in the capital market, as asymmetric information, agency problems and transaction costs, they can choose one over the other. The imperfections of the market coupled with financial restrictions may affect the cash management of organizations. In times of crisis, for example, the effects of the unavailability of funding may also be higher. Thus, this study aimed to analyze the effects of Financial Restrictions and financial crisis on cash holdings, as well as study the impacts of a good Corporate Governance and its effects on cash levels. To do so, we used a sample of 141 listed companies, non-financial, obtained through Economática® database. The analyzed period consists of 15 years, starting in 2000 and extending to 2014. We opted for the use of the Panel Data regression model using an unbalanced panel, in order not to reduce the number of observations used (1906). The results indicated that the cash level of organizations is impacted by the level of its financial constraints, as well as for crisis contexts, where companies increased their cash reserves under such a scenario. In General, there was a positive association between the variables of Corporate Governance used, although only one has obtained statistical significance. Therefore, the obtained results suggest that the shareholders of a company allow the agent manage larger cash reserves only when there is corporate governance mechanisms to protect them. Moreover, the results also indicate that good corporate governance practices provide a way to control the actions of managers, so that they use cash holdings only in situations that maximize the value of shareholders, thus avoiding spending excessive cash holding. Regarding the adoption of international accounting standards (IFRS), there was a significant reduction in cash levels after the second phase adoption of the standards, as well as a negative and significant association between the dummy variable representing the mandatory adoption. Thus, this study contributes to the literature in order to provide evidence about the effects of financial constraints, good corporate governance, financial crisis and the adoption of IFRS on the cash policies of Brazilian companies

Due to ubiquity of internet, the development of electronic commerce is growing up rapidly. Many payment mechanisms of electronic transactions are proposed, such as electronic cash, credit cards, and electronic wallets. Electronic cash (e-cash) is like the digital version of paper cash, which possesses some key features such as anonymity and untraceability, and it can be used on the Internet for various electronic transactions. In general, electronic cash is classified into two types which are on-line electronic cash and off-line electronic cash. Each of them is suitable for different applications and environments. All of the proposed electronic cash schemes only focus on one of two types. In these schemes, users must decide which type of electronic cash they will use later before withdrawing. However, in this thesis we propose a novel electronic cash scheme which supports a user to withdraw a generic e-cash and then decide to spend it as an on-line e-cash or an off-line e-cash. Our proposed scheme is more convenient for users and more flexible for the bank and shops. It not only satisfies the necessary properties of electronic cash but also provides flexibility.

Corporate cash holdings is a topic constantly under review, companies hoarding cash are criticized by shareholders who rather have companies using their cash for new investments or dividend payouts. Recent academic research has discovered that levels of cash holding are high in times when risk is deemed to be high and found that levels of corporate cash holdings are substantially higher than they used to, making more coverage and a better understanding of the phenomenon crucial. This thesis is investigating an aspect of the interconnection between corporate cash holdings and shareholders by examining if there is a relationship between the level of corporate cash holdings and the risk of the company stock. This research is conducted on the Stockholm Stock Exchange during the four year period of 2009-2012 and investigates for a relationship not only on the entire stock exchange but also for each size and sector individually. In order to investigate this relationship a cash to assets ratio has been employed to represent the level of corporate cash holdings and the measures of stock beta and volatility are used to represent the risk of the stock. The cash holding ratio is tested for a relationship with both beta and volatility separately using the Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient. This thesis have adopted a quantitative research and implemented an archival research strategy by using official records and numbers. Through these statistical tests this thesis establishes significant relationships between both the cash holding ratio and stock beta and stock volatility separately for the entire stock exchange and some differences arises between different sizes and sectors. For cash holding and stock beta a negative correlation relationship has been discovered for the entire sample, the medium cap size and the health care and industrial sectors. For cash holdings and stock volatility positive correlation findings have been made for the entire sample as well as the small cap size and the sectors of basic materials, health care and technology. This finding implicates that cash holdings to some extent relates stock risk and several potential explanations to this relationship are given and connected to well-established financial theories.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Western Australia, 2006.

The objective of this research is to make a theoretical and empirical investigation into the application of a cashflow accounting system. The theoretical investigation provides a definition for cash-flow accounting; it also examines the major arguments for a cash-flow reporting system. Three hypotheses are proposed for testing. The first states that during periods of changing prices, performance indicators that are based on the conventional accrual accounting will diverge from performance indicators that are based on cash-flow accounting and will continue to diverge over time. The second states that this divergence will disappear if the effects of inflation are partialled out. The third states that cash-flow statements, properly interpreted, will enable users to predict business failure.