Ultimate ownership structure and capital structure: evidence from Chinese listed companies

This study investigates the impact of the ultimate corporate ownership structure, particularly the divergence of ultimate controlling shareholder’s control rights and cash flow rights, on the capital structure decisions among firms listed in Chinese market where the legal protection for creditors and minority shareholders is weak. I find that firms with a wider divergence between the ultimate controlling shareholder’s control rights and cash flow rights have significantly higher leverage level of capital structure. I also identify factors that affect this relation, including state ownership, institutional ownership, the presence of large tradable shareholders and NTS reform. My results suggest that leverage-increasing motivation of ultimate controlling shareholders with the risk of expropriation dominates in Chinese market and raising debt is a tool for them to maintain control over resources and corporate decisions to facilitate their self-dealing expropriation