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German industry and german industrialisation: essays in German economic and business history in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries
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ISBN: 0415021553 Year: 1991 Publisher: London Routledge

Banks, finance and investment in Germany.
Authors: ---
ISBN: 0521453488 0521566088 0511002378 0511582374 0511884524 9780511002373 9780521453486 9780511582370 9780521566087 Year: 1994 Publisher: Cambridge Cambridge University

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Abstract

This book analyses the widely-held view of the merits of the 'bank-based' German system of finance for investment, and shows that this view is not supported by evidence from the post-war period. The institutional features of the German system are such that universal banks have control of voting rights at shareholders' meetings due to proxy votes, and they also have representation on companies' supervisory boards. These features are claimed to have two main benefits. One is that the German system reduces asymmetric information problems, enabling banks to supply more external finance to firms at a lower cost, and thus increasing investment. The other is that German banks are able to mould and control managements of firms on behalf of shareholders, and thus ensure that firms are run efficiently. This book assesses whether empirical evidence backs up these claims, and shows that the merits of the German system are largely myths.

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