Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP14759
Authors: Mario Daniele Amore; Fabio Quarato; Valerio Pelucco
Abstract: Prompted by the shakeup of Covid-19 on financial markets, scholars have begun to explore the corporate traits that can make firms more resilient to a pandemic. In this paper, we test how the involvement of families in ownership and governance positions influences the financial performance of Italian listed firms during the spread of Covid-19. Our results indicate that firms with controlling family shareholders fared significantly better than other firms in the pandemic period. This effect is particularly pronounced among firms in which a family is both the controlling shareholder and holds the CEO position. Collectively, our results expand existing knowledge on the determinants of organizational resilience in the wake of adverse events.
Keywords: Family Business; Covid19; Financial Performance; CEOs
JEL Codes: G34; D10
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| controlling family ownership (G34) | better financial performance (G29) |
| family-owned firms (J54) | better financial performance (G29) |
| family ownership (J54) | better access to resources (I24) |
| family ownership (J54) | higher employee productivity (J24) |
| better financial performance (G29) | higher capm-adjusted abnormal returns (G12) |