Topic:

Executives in Politics

Time&Date: 

13:00-14:30, 2021/2/26 (Friday)

Speaker:

Prof. Viktar Fedaseyeu (China Europe International Business School)

We document that the share of corporate executives in federal elected office increased from13.3% in 1980 to 22.6% in 2018 and find evidence consistent with executives entering politics to advance their firms’ interests. First, firms make substantial political contributions to their former executives. Second, executives’ electoral wins and legislation passage are associated with positive stock returns for their firms. Third, executives are more likely to join congressional committees overseeing their firms’ industries. Fourth, executives accumulate a pro-business voting record. Finally, executives are more likely to seek political office when their industries are hit by competitive shocks. Overall, our results indicate that corporate executives have increased their direct involvement in the legislative process in the United States and that this involvement may have generated substantial benefits for their firms.

Biography:

Dr. Viktar Fedaseyeu is an Associate Professor of Finance at CEIBS. Prior to joining CEIBS, he was an Assistant Professor in the Finance Department at Bocconi University. Since 2012, Dr. Fedaseyeu has also served as a visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.

Dr. Viktar Fedaseyeu’s research interests are in the areas of corporate finance, political economy, and consumer finance. His most recent work studies the intended and unintended consequences of firms’ interactions with the political system as well as the determinants of corporate political participation. Prof. Fedaseyeu’s research has been featured in highly influential international media outlets such as the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Boston Globe and the Harvard Business Review and has been published in major international scientific journals such as the Journal of Financial Economics, Review of Financial Studies, Management Science, and Journal of Corporate Finance.

Dr. Viktar Fedaseyeu’s teaching interests include corporate finance and financial markets. While at Bocconi University, he was a two-time recipient of the Teaching Excellence Award. He received his PhD in Finance from Boston College and his B.S. in Economics from Belarus State Economic University.