Purpose: New Zealand reintroduced titular honours (i.e. knighthoods and damehoods) in 2009. We document the prevalence of knights and dames on the board of directors. Design/methodology/approach: We use a probit regression to investigate what firm characteristics are significantly associated...

PurposeNew Zealand reintroduced titular honours (i.e. knighthoods and damehoods) in 2009. We document the prevalence of knights and dames on the board of directors.Design/methodology/approachWe use a probit regression to investigate what firm characteristics are significantly associated with...

Share pledging is when shareholdings are used as collateral to obtain loans. While uncommon in many developed economies, the practice is prevalent in the Chinese capital markets. Using a sample of Chinese listed firms over 2003–2015, we find a positive association between share pledges by the...