scholarly journals Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs): the importance of human capital

Author(s):  
José Campino ◽  
Ana Brochado ◽  
Álvaro Rosa

Abstract The Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) subject has been gaining relevance due to its novelty, due to the capital amounts involved in the projects, as well as the disruptive technology and methods involved. ICOs are a disruptive way to finance new projects which involve high risks and which are mainly technological. This way to finance a project has been compared to others, namely, crowdfunding, venture capital or Initial Public Offerings (IPOs). Nevertheless, ICOs have very specific characteristics which make them unique. We have studied the ICO projects and developed a literature review on the topic. Building on the Human Capital Theory (HCT), we have also studied the importance given to the project’s team and its perceived impact on projects’ success. Our contribution to fill in this literature gap was to develop an econometric model which measures the impact of team’s characteristics on the success of a project. The database was collected with the combination of two data sources and is composed of 3158 profiles and 340 ICO projects. We have concluded that team variables are significant contributors to project’s success. Our data suggests that people’s location contributes to projects’ success as well as promoters’ networks. The ratings attributed by external parties to the project are also indicators of success. Several control variables such as the implementation of thresholds to investment, the number of currencies accepted, the platform in which the ICO is developed, the existence of bonus schemes and the year of the project were found to be statistically significant having an impact on projects’ outcome.

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 289-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Awounou-N’dri Honorine ◽  
Dubocage Emmanuelle

The article investigates the impact of stage financing and syndication practices on the underpricing level of venture-backed firms (VBFs) undertaking their initial public offerings (IPOs). This empirical study uses a unique hand-collected data set concerning more than 260 VBFs that went public on Euronext Paris and Alternext between 1997 and 2013. Our findings suggest a lower level of underpricing for firms backed by syndicated venture capital investment. Additionally, we find that the syndicate size is negatively associated with the level of underpricing. However, there is no evidence that stage financing has a significant impact. Syndication thus appears to be the only relevant mechanism to improve IPO performance (measured by the underpricing level), as it reduces agency costs and information asymmetry between the different stakeholders in an IPO process.


2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 99-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Luo ◽  
Xiaolin Qian ◽  
Jinjuan Ren

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of firms’ financing activities on the environment. Faced with a deteriorating global environment, both corporations and regulatory bodies have become more responsive to environmental conservation problems. However, existing literature has not adequately addressed the question of whether and how firms’ business activities influence the environment. Design/methodology/approach – Using the daily air pollution indices of 120 Chinese cities from 2001 to 2012, this study found that air pollution is alleviated after firms’ initial public offerings (IPOs). This paper proposes that firms’ IPOs influence the ambient air pollution through three channels: production scale, technical reform and corporate governance effects. Findings – The authors of this study found that the proceeds acquired in IPOs result in enlarged production scales that increase pollution, while the investment of these proceeds in social responsibility-related technical reform and enhanced corporate governance reduce pollution. Moreover, the authors discover that firms with a higher state ownership emit fewer pollutants, thus supporting the positive monitoring role of the Chinese government. Originality/value – Although this study investigates the impact of IPOs on air quality in China, the proposed analytical framework also applies to studies of other financing activities in global markets. This study has important policy implications for government regulations in environmental controls.


2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 440-451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie Pommet

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of venture capital (VC) involvement on the survival rate of French initial public offerings (IPOs) during the period 1996-2006. The paper examines the link between the survival rates of IPO companies, and several proxies for the quality of venture capitalist financing and monitoring. Design/methodology/approach To analyze the impact of the involvement of VC on both long and short run post-IPO survival, two methods are used: survival analysis (the Cox proportional hazard), and a logit model. Findings This paper shows that the quality of venture capitalist monitoring, measured by the duration of their investment before the IPO, is positively correlated with company survival rates. However, the author does not find the expected result when the author considers the experience of venture capitalists measured by their age. Research limitations/implications The findings are limited to a sample of VC-backed companies that went public. Practical implications The findings have implications for entrepreneurs. When analyzing the advantages and disadvantages linked to the presence of VC firms in the capital of their companies, entrepreneurs should consider that certain types of venture capitalists might be more or less able to be involved in the monitoring and value adding process. Originality/value To date, there is no comprehensive study on the French IPO market analyzing both long and short run post-IPO survival of VC-backed companies. This paper fills this gap.


2014 ◽  
Vol 73 ◽  
pp. 65-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Don M. Autore ◽  
Thomas J. Boulton ◽  
Scott B. Smart ◽  
Chad J. Zutter

2017 ◽  
Vol 81 (6) ◽  
pp. 42-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alok R. Saboo ◽  
V. Kumar ◽  
Ankit Anand

Using the notion of customer concentration, the authors argue that firms should evenly spread their revenues across their customers, rather than focusing on a few major customer relationships. Prior literature suggests that major customers improve efficiency and provide access to resources, thereby producing positive performance outcomes. However, building on industrial organizational literature and modern portfolio theory, the authors argue that concentration of revenues reduces the supplier firm's bargaining power relative to its customers and hurts the ability of the supplier firm to appropriate value, which, in turn, hurts profits. Using a sample of 1,023 initial public offerings (IPOs) and robust econometric methods, they find that customer concentration reduces investor uncertainty and positively impacts IPO outcomes, but significantly hurts balance sheet–based outcomes (e.g., profitability). The results suggest that a 10% increase in customer concentration reduces profitability by 3.35% (or about $7 million) in the subsequent year, or 9.4% cumulatively over the next four years (or about $20.32 million). Further, the authors find that the negative effects of customer concentration decrease with increase in organizational (marketing, technological, and operational) capabilities and increase with low customer credit quality.


2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (6) ◽  
pp. 924-942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiangchao Hao ◽  
Qingbin Meng ◽  
Kaijuan Gao ◽  
Kam C. Chan

Author(s):  
Nesrine Bouzouita ◽  
Carole Gresse

Based on a survival analysis on a sample of initial public offerings (IPOs) undertaken on Euronext and their subsequent seasoned equity offerings (SEOs) over the period 1995–2012, this chapter shows that analyst coverage in the months following an IPO facilitates subsequent SEOs and favors the longevity of the firm’s relationship with its initial underwriter. SEOs are facilitated in several dimensions: post-IPO analyst coverage increases the likelihood of the IPO firm to conduct an SEO with a firm commitment underwriting; it increases the occurrence speed of that SEO; and it increases the probability of that SEO to be intermediated by the same underwriter as the IPO.


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