The Geography of Financial Misconduct
Working Paper 20347
DOI 10.3386/w20347
Issue Date
We find that a firm's tendency to engage in financial misconduct increases with the misconduct rates of neighboring firms. This appears to be caused by peer effects, rather than exogenous shocks like regional variation in enforcement. Effects are stronger among firms of comparable size, and among CEOs of similar age. Moreover, local waves of financial misconduct correspond with local waves of non-financial corruption, such as political fraud.
Published Versions
CHRISTOPHER A. PARSONS & JOHAN SULAEMAN & SHERIDAN TITMAN, 2018. "The Geography of Financial Misconduct," The Journal of Finance, vol 73(5), pages 2087-2137.