This paper examines legal rules covering protection of corporate shareholders and creditors, the origin of these rules, and the quality of their enforcement in 49 countries. The results show that common law countries generally have the best, and French civil law countries the worst, legal protections of investors, with German and Scandinavian civil law countries located in the middle. We also find that concentration of ownership of shares in the largest public companies is negatively related to investor protections, consistent with the hypothesis that small, diversified shareholders are unlikely to be important in countries that fail to protect their rights.

Law and Finance

This paper examines legal rules covering protection of corporate shareholders and creditors, the origin of these rules, and the quality of their enforcement in 49 countries. The results show that common-law countries generally have the strongest, and Frenchcivil-law countries the weakest, legal protections of investors, with German- and Scandinavian-civil-law countries located in the middle. We also find that concentration of ownership of shares in the largest public companies is negatively related to investor protections, consistent with the hypothesis that small, diversified shareholders are unlikely to be important in countries that fail to protect their rights.

https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/shleifer/files/ip_corpgov.pdf

Investor Protection and Corporate Governance

The author argues that the preponderance of theoretical reasoning and empirical evidence suggests a positive first order relationship between financial development and economic growth. There is evidence that the financial development level is a good predictor of future rates of economic growth, capital accumulation, and technological change. Moreover, cross-country, case-style, industry level and firm-level analysis document extensive periods when financial development crucially affects the speed and pattern of economic development. The author explains what the financial system does and how it affects, and is affected by, economic growth. Theory suggests that financial instruments, markets and institutions arise to mitigate the effects of information and transaction costs. A growing literature shows that differences in how well financial systems reduce information and transaction costs influence savings rates, investment decisions, technological innovation, and long-run growth rates. A less developed theoretical literature shows how changes in economic activity can influence financial systems. The author advocates a functional approach to understanding the role of financial systems in economic growth. This approach focuses on the ties between growth and the quality of the functions provided by the financial systems. The author discourages a narrow focus on one financial instrument, or a particular institution. Instead, the author addresses the more comprehensive question: What is the relationship between financial structure and the functioning of the financial system?

/pdf/financial-development-and-economic-growth-views-and-agenda-1isr9l81uu.pdf

Financial development and economic growth : views and agenda

Explaining cross-country differences in growth rates requires not only an understanding of the link between growth and public policies, but also an understanding of why countries choose different public policies. This paper shows that ethnic diversity helps explain cross-country differences in public policies and other economic indicators. In the case of Sub-Saharan Africa, economic growth is associated with low schooling, political instability, underdeveloped financial systems, distorted foreign exchange markets, high government deficits, and insufficient infrastructure. Africa's high ethnic fragmentation explains a significant part of most of these characteristics.

https://williameasterly.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/17_easterly_levine_africasgrowthtragedy_prp.pdf

Africa's Growth Tragedy: Policies and Ethnic Divisions

Do well-functioning stock markets and banks promote long-run economic growth? This paper shows that stock market liquidity and banking development both positively predict growth, capital accumulation, and productivity improvements when entered together in regressions, even after controlling for economic and political factors. The results are consistent with the views that financial markets provide important services for growth and that stock markets provide different services from banks. The paper also finds that stock market size, volatility, and international integration are not robustly linked with growth and that none of the financial indicators is closely associated with private saving rates. Copyright 1998 by American Economic Association.

Stock Markets, Banks, and Economic Growth

Using data on 49 countries from 1976 to 1993, the authors investigate whether measures of stock market liquidity, size, volatility, and integration in world capital markets predict future rates of economic growth, capital accumulation, productivity improvements, and private savings. They find that stock market liquidity-as measured by stock trading relative to the size of the market and economy - is positivelyand significantly correlated with current and future rates of economic growth, capital accumulation, productivity growth, even after controlling for economic and political factors. Stock market size, volatility, and integration are not robustly linked with growth. Nor are financial indicators closely associated with private savings rates. Significantly, banking development -as measured by bank loans to private enterprises divided by GDP -when combined with stock market liquidity predicts future rates of growth, capital accumulation, and productivity growth when entered together in regressions. The authors determine that these results are consistent with views that (1)financial markets and institutions provide important services for long-run growth, and (2)stock markets and banks provide different financial services.

Stock markets, banks, and economic growth

Is there a strong empirical association between stock market development and long-term economic growth? Cross-country regressions suggest that there is a positive and robust association. Levine and Zervos empirically evaluate the relationship between stock market development and long-term growth. The data suggest that stock market development is positively associated with economic growth. Moreover, instrumental variables procedures indicate a strong connection between the predetermined component of stock market development and economic growth in the long run. While cross-country regressions imply a strong link between stock market development and economic growth, the results should be viewed as suggestive partial correlations that stimulate additional research rather than as conclusive findings. Much work remains to be done to shed light on the relationship between stock market development and economic growth. Careful case studies might help identify causal relationships and further research could be done on the time-series property of such relationships. Research should also be done to identify policies that facilitate the development of sound securities markets. This paper - a product of the Finance and Private Sector Development Division, Policy Research Department - is part of a larger effort in the department to study the relationship between financial systems and economic growth. The study was funded by the Bank's Research Support Budget under the research project Stock Market Development and Financial Intermediary Growth (RPO 679-53).

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm/543.pdf?abstractid=614946&mirid=1&type=2

Stock Market Development and Long-Run Growth

The authors empirically evaluate the relationship between stock market development and long-term growth. The data suggest that stock market development is positively associated with economic growth. Moreover, instrumental variables procedures indicate a strong connection between the predetermined component in the long run. While cross-country regressions imply a strong link between stock market development and economic growth, the results should be viewed as suggestive partial correlations that stimulate additional research rather than as conclusive findings. Careful case studies might help identify causal relationships and further research could be done on the time-series property of such relationships.

/pdf/stock-market-development-and-long-run-growth-jbtght8yof.pdf

Sara Zervos

Papers

Stock Markets, Banks, and Economic Growth

Stock markets, banks, and economic growth

Stock Market Development and Long-Run Growth

Stock market development and long-run growth

Capital control liberalization and stock market development