Dividend Policy and Corporate Governance in Emerging Markets

Dividend policy is one of the most frequently researched areas in the field of finance and dividend payout decision is an important element of corporate policy. The effect of ownership structure on the dividend policies of the non-financial firms attracts as much attention as has never before since the beginning of 1980s. Until this time, academicians and researchers have concentrated their efforts mostly on developed nations. However, as the world has become more globalized and as the emerging countries have received a higher proportion from the global equity investments, investors have also started to pay more attention to the dividend policies of emerging markets. This book aims to analyze the impact of various ownership structures on dividend policies of the selected non-financial corporations. Additionally, another aim is to investigate the dividend policies of emerging market economies. Finally, corporate governance has also a significant influence on dividend policy because companies with better governance mechanisms exhibit a stronger propensity to pay dividends in the form of larger dividends. From a different perspective, dividends are the result of good governance.