Upholding integrity: The influence of executives’ backgrounds on corporate information environment

Abstract

Motivated by the roles of corporate management in shaping corporate decisions and the importance of stock liquidity in financial markets, we examine whether trust in management influences the liquidity costs of the firm that they manage. Using manually collected propriety data from several datasets, this study documents that firms led by ex-military CEOs are associated with higher stock market liquidity than firms run by non-military CEOs. Military CEOs influence stock liquidity by improving their firms’ information environment and reducing performance volatility. Firms led by military CEOs have higher social capital, higher levels of voluntary disclosure, fewer stock price delays, and lower levels of informed trading. In addition, firms run by military CEOs have lower costs of capital and default risk. Overall, consistent with behavioral consistency theory, our findings highlight the importance of executives’ early-life experience in reducing information frictions, fostering trust, and improving secondary market quality.

“I think of all the time I spent in the military and in law enforcement and the many times I saw someone do the right thing because it was the right thing to do. The essence of integrity is what you do in and of yourself — you must be true to yourself.”

---Patrick O’Toole, Director & Executive Vice President, HealthMarkets Insurance Agency.