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1 – 10 of 526Timóteo Zagonel, Paulo Renato Soares Terra and Diogo Favero Pasuch
This study aims to analyze the influence of taxes and corporate governance on the dividend policy of Brazilian companies.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to analyze the influence of taxes and corporate governance on the dividend policy of Brazilian companies.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors identify the changes of the tax legislation in Brazil in the period 1986-2011 and check their effect on corporate dividend policies for preferred and common shares. The authors use panel data Probit and Tobit estimation to verify the probability of companies to pay dividends under different tax regimes. The final sample comprises 672 companies, 1,159 traded stocks and 30,134 observations
Findings
The authors’ results suggest that changes in the tax legislation have a significant influence on dividend payments. Also, firms do not follow target payout ratios, but dividends are moderately dependent on past payments. Dividend payouts are affected by stock voting rights, privatization and dividend deductibility. Changes in regulation that reduce the agency problems among shareholders affect positively payout ratios.
Practical implications
For managers, maximizing shareholders’ value requires taking into account the consequences of the taxation when designing financial policies for the firm. For investors, stock portfolio selection should take into account payout behavior and how changes in dividend taxation affect stocks’ value. For policymakers, the effects of changes in the tax code on corporate behavior are of utmost importance to stimulate private investment and economic growth.
Originality/value
There are several tax law changes in Brazil within the period analyzed, creating a good opportunity to study the effect of taxation on dividend policy and its dynamics over time.
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Julie Harrison, Lisa Marriott, Sue Yong and Rob Vosslamber
Riyad Moosa and Smita Kashiramka
This study aims to explore the relationship between the objectives of Islamic banking, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty in the South African context. Diving deep, this…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore the relationship between the objectives of Islamic banking, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty in the South African context. Diving deep, this study also explores the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty.
Design/methodology/approach
Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used, resulting in 163 respondents participating in this study. The data was collected using an online survey and analysed using a structural equation model based on the partial least squares method.
Findings
The results indicate that the construct related to the objectives of Islamic banking influences both customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. In addition, customer satisfaction is also found to influence a customer’s loyalty to the Islamic bank.
Originality/value
In South Africa, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind; thus, the results provide context-specific insights into the extant literature on Islamic banking for Muslims residing in a non-Muslim majority country.
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Hanneke du Preez, Tanya Hill, Liza Coetzee, Lungelo Motsamai and Karen Stark
Students completing their tertiary education at a university may be equipped with theoretical knowledge with little to no practical experience. In order to bridge this gap in…
Abstract
Purpose
Students completing their tertiary education at a university may be equipped with theoretical knowledge with little to no practical experience. In order to bridge this gap in practical skills, a computer simulation was developed based on the e-filing platform of the South African Revenue Services (SARS). Students were exposed to this self-developed computer simulation to answer the question: to what extent will the e-filing simulation improve students' confidence to practically apply their theoretical knowledge?
Design/methodology/approach
The research applied a pre–post questionnaire research method to gauge the students' ability to apply their theoretical knowledge to a practical scenario before and after the simulation.
Findings
From the results, it is apparent that the students were inspired with confidence in getting to terms with the application of their theoretical knowledge in a real-life scenario. The computer simulation provided the platform for learning to take place in a practical environment without the risk of errors that would translate into real financial consequences.
Originality/value
The contribution of this research can be found in a teaching intervention that may support the training of future tax professionals in practical application skills. The contribution can be extended to the enhancement of education in the field of taxation, particularly with the results' showing that the students experienced high levels of increased confidence in their application of theoretical knowledge to real-life scenarios.
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Petra Sauer, Narasimha D. Rao and Shonali Pachauri
In large parts of the world, income inequality has been rising in recent decades. Other regions have experienced declining trends in income inequality. This raises the question of…
Abstract
In large parts of the world, income inequality has been rising in recent decades. Other regions have experienced declining trends in income inequality. This raises the question of which mechanisms underlie contrasting observed trends in income inequality around the globe. To address this research question in an empirical analysis at the aggregate level, we examine a global sample of 73 countries between 1981 and 2010, studying a broad set of drivers to investigate their interaction and influence on income inequality. Within this broad approach, we are interested in the heterogeneity of income inequality determinants across world regions and along the income distribution. Our findings indicate the existence of a small set of systematic drivers across the global sample of countries. Declining labour income shares and increasing imports from high-income countries significantly contribute to increasing income inequality, while taxation and imports from low-income countries exert countervailing effects. Our study reveals the region-specific impacts of technological change, financial globalisation, domestic financial deepening and public social spending. Most importantly, we do not find systematic evidence of education’s equalising effect across high- and low-income countries. Our results are largely robust to changing the underlying sources of income Ginis, but looking at different segments of income distribution reveals heterogeneous effects.
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Ayda A. Yurekli, Patricia Kovacevic, Emil Sunley and Karthik Ranganathan
This paper aims to describe the various government measures that regulate the market for novel tobacco harm reduction products (THRPs), with an emphasis on e-cigarettes…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to describe the various government measures that regulate the market for novel tobacco harm reduction products (THRPs), with an emphasis on e-cigarettes [electronic nicotine delivery systems (“ENDS”)], and evaluates the public health impact of excise taxes levied on these products.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper reviews the economic research on the impact ENDS. Using cited evidence, the paper compares the tax treatment of ENDS and cigarettes and provides a simulation of potential lives that can be saved under alternative tax treatment of ENDS.
Findings
ENDS are considerably less harmful than cigarettes. Imposing the same tax burden on them (per unit of “harm”) as on cigarettes leads to poorer health outcomes. Differential tax treatment of ENDS will encourage more cigarette smokers to switch to ENDS and could save millions of lives worldwide.
Research limitations/implications
Country experiences with regulatory measures on ENDS are limited to those with high THRP penetration. The paper’s simulation analysis used evidence from a limited number of studies. Rigorous economic analysis is needed to understand how ENDS could save lives and could prevent expected one billion premature deaths by the end of this century.
Originality/value
The paper uses research evidence in its analysis of the impact that the differential taxation of cigarettes and ENDS would have. It also provides a rough estimate of the number of lives that could be saved if more smokers who are trying to quit can make the switch to ENDS.
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Francesco Scarpa and Silvana Signori
This study aims to contribute to the debate about the place of corporate taxation in corporate social responsibility (CSR) by reviewing the present state of research, offering a…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to contribute to the debate about the place of corporate taxation in corporate social responsibility (CSR) by reviewing the present state of research, offering a comprehensive understanding of the content and dimensions of corporate tax responsibility (CTR) and discussing further developments in research and action.
Design/methodology/approach
The study builds on a systematic literature review of 117 theoretical and empirical papers on tax within the broad field of CSR published in peer-reviewed academic journals and books.
Findings
The analysis unfolds and discusses the construct of CTR and proposes a unified conceptualisation that elucidates for what firms are (or should be) held accountable on tax matters and the different dimensions (i.e. instrumental, political, integrative and ethical) which justify greater tax responsibility and enable its achievement.
Practical implications
The results can provide companies with practical guidance to enhance their tax responsibility and can give stakeholders and policymakers suggestions for new mobilisation strategies to achieve more responsible tax behaviour.
Social implications
Corporate tax payments are a fundamental dimension of CSR, as they fund public goods and services and reduce the unequal distribution of wealth. Providing a more structured understanding of CTR, this paper can contribute towards attaining more responsible tax outcomes which can better serve and benefit the whole society.
Originality/value
This study offers a structured overview of the present state of tax research in CSR, while providing a comprehensive understanding and conceptualisation of the construct of CTR, thus enabling scholars to situate their work and develop further relevant research in this field.
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