Defined benefit pension plans can entail one of the biggest liabilities that an exchange-listed company has on its balance-sheet. There exist comprehensive requirements for the reporting of such liabilities. This paper examines the impact that defined benefit pension plans had on the financial...

At the end of April 2010, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) published an exposure draft with proposed changes to International Accounting Standard No. 19 (IAS 19). IAS 19 is the current standard for the financial reporting of company pension obligations that stem from defined...

Some research has suggested that companies with defined benefit (DB) pensions are sometimes significantly misvalued by the market. This is because the measures of pension cost and pension net liabilities embedded in financial statements, taken at face value, can provide very misleading picture...

Much attention has been paid to the large decreases in value of non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) during the financial crisis. Many observers have argued that the fall in prices was partly caused by fire sales. We use capital requirements and accounting rules to identify...

We present evidence on the trading and performance impact of buy-side analysts. Using data provided by a large global asset manager, we relate buy-side analysts’ recommendations to fund transactions on a daily basis. We show that buy-side analysts significantly influence trading decisions:...

The aim of the article is to analyze and identify the dividend policy adopted by real estate development companies listed on the WSE. The first regular dividend paid by these entities was in 2007. Only 12% of real estate companies listed on the WSE regularly paid dividends. 48% of the surveyed...

This report reviews recent as well as planned changes to accounting and solvency regulations affecting insurers and pension funds and how they may impact long-term investing by these institutions. The review of existing evidence focuses mainly on the impact of risk-based solvency requirements,...

Kathryn Judge of Columbia University documents how financial intermediaries persistently impose high fees compared to the value rendered, attributes this to political influence, and suggests countervailing policy strategies, including stoking competition and enhancing disclosure to reduce...

This paper investigates the impact of unconventional monetary policy on firm financial constraints. It focuses on the Federal Reserve's maturity extension program (MEP), intended to lower longer-term rates and flatten the yield curve by reducing the supply of long-term government debt....

There is general acceptance of the importance of corporate governance for resolving agency problems. Nevertheless, the empirical literature investigating the individual effect of corporate governance mechanisms on corporate value has not been able to consistently identify positive effects. These...