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AbstractAgricultural Cooperatives (ACs) enable rural households to fight against poverty. ACs provide credit and non‐credit support services to improve household welfare. However, the results of AC effects on household welfare are mixed. This study contributes to the growing literature by investigating the effects of AC credit and non‐credit support services on rural Thai household welfare using the Endogenous Switching Regression and Endogenous Switching Probit models. Data was collected in 2017 using a household survey. A two‐stage stratified sampling technique was employed to obtain the study sample from rural Thai households. The result shows that AC services play important roles in improving household welfare. Both AC credit and marketing services exhibit significant, positive effects on household and farm income. AC marketing services are more effective in improving household welfare compared to AC credit. However, only AC credit considerably increases household consumption and the adoption of improved farm technologies and practices. Interestingly, AC credit and marketing services do not improve children's education in terms of educational expenditure and school enrolment rates.

Microfinance institutions (MFIs) play an important role in enabling poor households to escape poverty. MFIs cannot help borrowers if their own performance is poor. This study evaluates financial performance of Village Funds (VFs) and Saving Groups for Production (SGPs) to determine how well the MFIs are performing financially and how to improve the institutions' future performances. The study evaluates MFIs' performance, including MFI characteristics, outreach, productivity, financial structure and financial performance. Data are collected from the annual reports of MFIs between 2014 and 2016. VF and SGP annual reports were collected by the Government Savings Bank between 2014 and 2016. Data are analyzed using descriptive statistics, such as means, to compare the VFs' and SGPs' performance. The result shows that SGPs are bigger than VFs in terms of the average number of members and borrowers. However, VFs provide more loans than SGPs to poorer clients. In terms of loan management, SGP staff are more efficient than VF staff. SGPs' profits are significantly higher than VFs' profits. In the context of financial structure, SGPs are funded through member deposits, while VFs receive government subsidies. The results indicate that both VFs and SGPs are profitable and financially sustainable.

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries are still constrained to seize the opportunity of trade liberalization as compared to their large counterparts. It has been argued that effective efforts to foster SME export require clear understanding of the factors that stimulate them to export. This study investigates the export stimuli of 385 Indonesian SMEs at different export stages (pre-exporting and exporting) and different internationalization pathways (domestically established exporter and born-global SMEs). Three types of export stimuli are consistently identified as the most important in all sub-samples: the presence of foreign buyers, the confidence in the products and the aspiration to find alternative markets. By contrast, two types of export stimuli are consistently found as the least important in all sub-samples: government support and Indonesian diaspora communities. The academic and policy implications of the findings are discussed.

This study investigates the relationship between inward foreign direct investment inflows and governance of the United States, China, and Singapore. The study employs governance indicators including control of corruption, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, political stability and the absence of violence, rule of law, voice, and accountability to examine the relationship between inward foreign direct investment flows and governance for the period 2002–2019. The baseline regression results are based on bivariate and multivariate regressions with fixed effects. The results confirm a direct and significant relationship between governance and foreign direct investment. The results are robust while applying other regression techniques such as Prais–Winsten regression, Driscoll–Kraay regression, and a two-step system generalized method of moments' estimation. More specifically, all six governance indicators including control of corruption, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, political stability and the absence of violence, rule of law, voice, and accountability exhibit the same i.e., direct and significant relationship. The paper also suggests various recommendations for investors at the individual and country levels.

The relationship between executive compensation and firm performance is well documented in the existing literature. However, in the case of Asia Pacific firms, the least attention is paid while investigating this relationship. This study examines the relationship between executive compensation and firm performance in the Asia Pacific firms throughout 2007–2019. We use the total salary paid to chief executive officers and equivalent, the total compensation paid to the CEO, and the equivalent and total salaries and bonuses paid to the CEO and equivalent as a measure of executive compensation. For the firm performance, both accounting measure (ROA) and market measure Tobin's [Formula: see text] (TQ), and various control variables were used. We found that a firm performance has a positive relationship with total compensation paid to CEO and total salaries and bonuses paid to the CEO. Our results support the agency theory by confirming that higher CEO compensation will lead towards higher firm performance by motivating executives to maximize shareholder benefits. However, the total salary does not have any significant relationship. The overall result of the study indicates that the results of the Asia Pacific regions complement the results obtained in another part of the developed world. The results are supported by the social comparison theory. The study has a practical implication for policymakers, business owners, shareholders, and executives by suggesting aligning their business strategies based on compensation parameters for achieving the best firm performance.

This paper examines the effect of corporate tax avoidance on firm value using a sample of Vietnamese nonfinancial listed firms for the period 2007 to 2018. Using fixed effect, ordinary least square and system generalized method of moment estimation, the results show a positive and statistically significant relationship between corporate tax avoidance and firm value. Our result demonstrates the bright side of corporate tax avoidance at the firm level. Further analysis shows that the positive effect of corporate tax avoidance on firm value can be intensified by the effectiveness of the board of directors in monitoring management.

Extant literature suggests that microcredit may improve borrowers' social and economic welfare. This study aimed to investigate the microcredit accessibility of rural households in Indonesia. Binary Logistic regression was used to distinguish the characteristics of microcredit borrowers and non-borrowers, and the factors affecting the approval of microcredit application. Primary data was collected through a survey on 488 rural households in Bantul, Yogyakarta. The empirical results suggested that age, marital status and education attainment significantly affect the characteristics of clients and non-clients of microcredit. The results also revealed that age of borrowers, household income, interest rates, and loan duration are key determinants affecting microcredit accessibility. The implications of the findings were provided.

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries are still constrained to seize the opportunity of trade liberalization as compared to their large counterparts. It has been argued that effective efforts to foster SME export require clear understanding of the factors that stimulate them to export. This study investigates the export stimuli of 385 Indonesian SMEs at different export stages (pre-exporting and exporting) and different internationalization pathways (domestically established exporter and born-global SMEs). Three types of export stimuli are consistently identified as the most important in all sub-samples: the presence of foreign buyers, the confidence in the products and the aspiration to find alternative markets. By contrast, two types of export stimuli are consistently found as the least important in all sub-samples: government support and Indonesian diaspora communities. The academic and policy implications of the findings are discussed. AbstrakKontribusi Usaha Kecil dan Menengah (UKM) terhadap ekspor di negara berkembang masih sangat terbatas. Hasil studi sebelumnya menunjukkan bahwa upaya meningkatkan ekspor UKM memerlukan pemahaman akan faktor-faktor yang mendorong ekspor (pemicu ekspor). Studi ini meneliti pemicu ekspor pada 385 UKM di Indonesia, meliputi UKM pada tahapan pra-ekspor dan eksportir serta meliputi UKM dengan jalur internasionalisasi yang berbeda. Hasil studi ini menunjukkan bahwa terdapat tiga jenis pemicu utama ekspor: kontak dari calon pembeli luar negeri, rasa percaya diri atas produk dan keinginan untuk memperluas pasar. Sebaliknya, dukungan pemerintah dan komunitas diaspora Indonesia belum menjadi pemicu utama ekspor. Temuan ini memiliki implikasi bagi diskursus akademis dan pengambil kebijakan di bidang pengembangan UKM.Kata kunci: Pemicu Ekspor; Usaha Kecil dan Menengah (UKM); Tahapan Ekspor; Jalur Internasionalisasi; Perusahaan Born-Global; IndonesiaJEL classifications: F23; L25; M13; M16; O17

"Fintech and Green Investment: Transforming Challenges into Opportunities is a comprehensive resource that aims to provide insights into the challenges and opportunities of the transitional process to green investments through the fintech revolution. The book focuses on how the intersection of fintech and green investment can be used to overcome challenges and create new opportunities. It discusses how fintech is rapidly transforming the financial sector landscape and blurring the boundaries of financial firms and the financial sector, resulting in a paradigm shift that has various policy implications. The book also discusses the importance of broadening monitoring horizons and reassessing the role of financial regulation in the new landscape. Fintech and Green Investment is a collection of scientific articles and case studies in all countries, covering all primary areas of finance. The book provides a comprehensive resource for anyone interested in understanding the impact of fintech on green investment, and the potential opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. It offers valuable insights into how the transformative power of fintech can be harnessed to create a sustainable future."

AbstractResearch Question/IssueMotivated by the recent regulatory reforms, in the forms of the UK Corporate Governance Code (UK CGC) in 2011 and the enaction of section 414C of the Companies Act 2006, to increase female representation on corporate boards, this study investigates the effect of boardroom gender diversity (BGD) on investment inefficiency (IE). These reforms were aimed at enhancing corporate governance by allowing a pool of female directors into directorship positions and bringing fresher and independent perspective of female directors, thus strengthening board monitoring and its internal control systems. This study therefore seeks to understand whether and how female directors align managers' and shareholders' interests by improving investment efficiency.FindingsUsing a sample of UK listed firms from 2005 to 2018, this study provides the first empirical evidence on the impact of BGD on IE. Consistent with our theoretical predictions, we find a negative and statistically significant association between BGD and IE. Furthermore, in a difference‐in‐differences analysis, we find a significant impact of UK CGC on the BGD‐IE relationship. We also identify three possible channels (board dynamics, stewardship effect, and information environment) through which BGD is likely to affect IE. Finally, we also document that the said relationship is more pronounced in firms with three or more female directors, which is consistent with critical mass theory, and that BGD mitigates concerns surrounding both the underinvestment and overinvestment decisions. Our main results are robust to endogeneity bias, alternative measures of BGD and IE, and controlling for potential bias with a two‐step investment estimation method.Policy ImplicationsOur findings have important implications for regulators, policy‐makers, and other corporate stakeholders. Most importantly, the recent policy initiatives on improving representation of female directors can strengthen board monitoring and could reduce inefficient investments.

Thailand has experienced severe air-quality problems for the past 10 years. Complicating this situation, the Thai government allocates an insufficient budget for the management of air pollution. Using the contingent valuation method, this paper estimates the willingness to pay for air-quality improvement in Thailand to reveal the benefits that people will gain if air-quality improves. The results show that the total benefits from air-quality improvement would be 18.8 billion baht in 2020. The Thai government can use these findings as a guideline to redistribute its budget to address air pollution more effectively.

PurposeThis study explores the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak and its following lockdown on daily stock returns in Vietnam, a fast-growing emerging market that successfully revived after the pandemic lockdown.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses panel-data regression models to evaluate the influence of the daily increase in the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases during pre-lockdown and lockdown on daily stock returns of 723 listed firms in Vietnam from 30 January to 30 May 2020.FindingsThe study confirms the adverse impact of the daily increasing number of COVID-19 cases on stock returns in Vietnam. The study also discloses that the Vietnam stock market before and during the nationwide lockdown performed in opposing ways. Though COVID-19 pre-lockdown had a significant, negative impact on Vietnam's stock returns, the lockdown period had a significant, positive influence on stock performance of the entire market and the different business sectors in Vietnam. The financial sector was hardest hit on the Vietnam stock market during the COVID-19 outbreak.Research limitations/implicationsThe study indicates investors' confidence and trust in the Vietnam government's decisions to combat COVID-19 and favorable stocks prices were the main reasons that the Vietnam stock market rebounded during and after lockdown.Originality/valueThis is the first study to examine the impact of COVID-19 during the pre-lockdown and lockdown periods on stock performance in Vietnam, a rapidly developing economy that was successful in controlling the pandemic with a rejuvenated stock market after lockdown.