Heterogeneous shareholder participation and corporate maturity mismatch: Evidence from China

This study investigates the relationship between heterogeneous shareholder participation and corporate maturity mismatch of investment and financing in China from 2009 to 2022. Using a hand-collected database, we find that heterogeneous shareholder participation can reduce corporate maturity mismatch. Mechanism tests show that the participation of non-state-owned shareholders and state-owned shareholders can produce “supervision incentive” and “resource support” effects, respectively. These effects alleviate type I and type II agency costs of state-owned enterprises and increase government subsidies for non-state-owned enterprises, thereby reducing maturity mismatch. Furthermore, the negative relationship between heterogeneous shareholder participation and corporate maturity mismatch is more pronounced among companies in high-tech industries and among firms with higher internal control quality. This paper expands the research in the field of equity structure, constructs a theoretical analysis framework for two-way mixed ownership reform, and provides new ideas and evidence for improving corporate maturity mismatch.