一、主题：The power of Connections: Evidence from financial companies
二、主讲人：David Dickinson
David Dickinson，英国伯明翰大学经济学教授。曾任经济系主任、商学院经理和社会科学学院国际化主任。本科毕业于英国曼彻斯特大学，博士毕业于英国谢菲尔德大学。目前，他是绿色经济和可持续发展联合研究所的社会科学带头人。他的研究领域为银行和金融市场，在过去15年里他一直致力于研究中国问题。他出版了大量的专著，其学术论文也发表于Journal of Banking and Finance、Pacific-Basin Finance Journal、Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money等国际知名期刊。 

三、时间：11月27日（周五）20:00-21:30
四、地点：腾讯会议 ID （216 405 648）
五、主持人：陶坤玉，国际金融系
六、内容介绍：
Abstract：The role of political connections has been highlighted as an important influence on firm behaviour and value. We argue that political connections are just part of a wider pool of connections such as those with regulatory bodies and government officials. Using a quasi-experiment, we provide empirical evidence that broader directors' connections reduce company risk. More specifically, we find a negative and significant relationship between directors with both government and regulatory bodies' connections and company risk. Interestingly, we find that connected female directors are less risk-averse compared with their male counterparts. Our results also reveal that connected directors, though offered generous compensation packages, do not necessarily generate higher stock abnormal performance. Therefore, shareholders of financial companies should consider the trade-off between the incremental costs and benefits of appointing connected directors. The paper provides helpful insights for regulators and wider stakeholder groups.