Capital Markets and Corporate Governance

This volume deals with the financing of industry, currently an issue much discussed by academics and policy-makers. The collection of papers focuses on the differences between the stock market-based system in use in the UK and USA, and the bank-based system more common in Germany and Japan.

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Contributors: N. Dimsdale, J. Kay, P. Marsh, J. Charkham, A. Sykes, D. McWilliams, A. Sentance, M. Middleton, D. Lomax, C. Mayer, A. Beecroft, A. Hughes, M. Prevezer, M. Ricketts, J. Edwards, E. Schneider-Lenné, J. Corbett, S. Masuyama, K. Fischer

Written by leading academics, bankers, and consultants, this book discusses major issues in corporate governance. The papers concentrate upon the financing of corporations, and the role of the banks and stock markets in the United Kingdom, Germany, and Japan. A central theme of the book is a constant awareness of the links between the accountability of senior managers, the system of corporate governance, and the performance of a company.

The contributors examine the role of shareholders, company boards, and managers under a market-based system as in the UK and USA, in comparison with the `insider' system found in Japan and, to a lesser extent, Germany. They discuss the view that this UK system leads to a preoccupation with short-term corporate performance and a greater likelihood of hostile takeovers. The contribution of the banks to corporate finance and control is also examined, including a discussion of the spcial problems of small forms. The Japanese and the German financial and corporate systems are authoritatively analysed.