← Search

Journal of Banking & Finance Vol. 165 2024

The impact of cultural distance on fund transfers in the internal capital market

John Fan Zhang1; Yang Wang2; Qingjie Du3

1 University of Macau · 2 The University of Sydney · 3 University of Birmingham

open access

Abstract

This paper examines how cultural distance affects fund transfers in the internal capital market of multinational firms. The results show that a larger cultural distance significantly reduces internal fund transfers to foreign subsidiaries. These results are robust to alternative measures of cultural distance and different econometric specifications. External shocks do not affect the results. Further analysis shows that the negative cultural impact is driven mainly by the dimensions of power distance, individualism, and uncertainty avoidance. Furthermore, the effect of cultural distance on internal fund transfers is independent of subsidiary productivity, and a larger cultural distance exacerbates the negative impact of corporate diversification on firm value. Overall, our findings highlight the important role that culture plays in multinationals’ global operations.

DOI
10.1016/j.jbankfin.2024.107224
Volume
165
Pages
107224
Language
en
Sources
openalex crossref bibtex:phds-export.bib

Cite