Initial Public Offerings are, by definition, not seasoned securities. They have not been subjected to valuation by the community of investors. It is often difficult or impossible to forecast their future cash flows because most do not have a long history of publicly disclosed financial...

This paper establishes three analytical propositions that measure the aggregate resources wasted by firms competing in a rent-seeking contest. The propositions are derived from a model of monopoly rent-seeking where firms are assumed to compete in a contest in which the outcome is determined...