VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE AND EQUITY FINANCING IN BRAZIL

The objective of this study was to verify whether, in the Brazilian market, voluntary disclosure is able to increase the amount of financing through issuance of equity, and conversely, to analyze if the amount of financing through equity increases firms’ voluntary disclosure level. It was made empirical research, using two multiple linear regression econometric models, we found the following results for the period studied (2010-2017): (i) the higher the level of voluntary disclosure, on average, the greater was the amount of equity financing of nonfinancial companies listed on the B3 (Brazilian Securities Exchange - Brasil Bolsa Balcão S.A.); and (ii) the greater the amount of equity financing, on average, the higher was the level of voluntary disclosure of nonfinancial companies listed on the B3. The relevance of this study, national and international, is to provide empirical evidence of the possibility of increasing the volume of financing through issuing shares by means of voluntary disclosure. Social implications, on the other hand, are the use of empirical results to help investors and regulators in decisions about the market's reaction to voluntary information.