Research

Research Summary:

My research interests cover economic history, political economy, and corporate finance. Most of my current work focuses on understanding how various frictions (e.g., politics, institutions, labour, market) shape the decisions and performances of firms and managers in both historical and contemporary settings. 

I am also interested in economic history and political economy topics more generally.

Selected Working Papers:

Ruling with Ideology: Politicians' Beliefs and Privatizations (R&R)

Summary: Provincial governors' ideologies profoundly shaped China's privatization wave around 2000.

Presentations: 2021 AFA Poster, 2022 AFAANZ Doctoral Symposium, Australia National University, 2021 Asia Pacific Economic and Business History Conference, 2021 Australasian Banking and Finance Conference, Duke Kunshan University, 2022 Econometric Society Australasian Meeting, 2023 EEA-ESEM, 2022 FIRN Annual Conference, 2022 FMA Annual Meeting, 2022 FMA Europe Doctoral Consortium, 2021 International Young Finance Scholars Conference, Monash Political Economy Group, Nazarbayev University, University of Melbourne (Economics), University of Melbourne (Finance), University of New South Wales, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Coverage: PolEconFin Blog Post


The Impact of National Leaders' Firm Visits on Industry Peers

Summary: Following national leaders' firm visits, industry peers experience positive return spillover and increase their (intangible) investments, but experience worse operating performance.

Presentations: 2022 AFAANZ Doctoral Symposium, 2022 Australasian Banking and Finance Conference, 2023 British Academy of Management Conference, 2023 CICF, 2023 Conference on Asia and Pacific Economies, 2022 FIRN PhD Symposium, 2022 FMA Europe Doctoral Consortium, 2024 FMA Turin, 2023 FMCG, 2022 New Zealand Finance Meeting, Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance, 2023 Western Economic Association International, University of Strathclyde

Awards:


Friends with benefit: Social Connection and Venture Capital Investment Efficiency (with Fanqi Meng)

Summary: VCs are more likely to invest in start-ups in regions with which they have stronger social ties, and these ties boost startups’ post-investment performance.

Presentations:  2023 CES Annual Conference†, 2023 Asian FA†, 2023 China Finance Review International & China International Risk Forum Joint Conference†, University of Melbourne Finance Brownbag†, University of Melbourne Finance Ph.D. Brownbag†


Export to Elude: Internationalization and Domestic Corporate Social Performance (with Jiangtao Hong)

Summary: The more a firm relies on foreign markets, the less it cares about its domestic CSR performance.

Presentations:  2023 BAM, 2023 FMCG, Shanghai University of International Business and Economics

† Presented by co-author

Selected Work in Progress:

British Political Directors over the Long Run: 1880-2024 (with Lyndon Moore)

Environmental Risk and Asset Demands (with Chunxiao Lu and Yuyang Zhang)