Given the increasing use of equity-incentive compensation in Europe, we examine the effects of executive compensation and investor protection on payout policy. We find a negative (positive) relationship between equity-incentive compensation and dividends (repurchases). In countries with weak...

Research suggests that firms can use either debt or dividends as a commitment device to mitigate the free cash flow problem. We hypothesize that firms which face limitations on debt may use increased dividend payments as a second-best bonding device. Limitations on debt are implicit in state...