Ownership Hierarchy and Cash Holding: A Study From Pakistan

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the impact of the ownership hierarchy on the retention of cash. Ownership structure has dissimilar from each organization as some firms have surplus cash holdings and some firms have fewer cash holdings. This study examines the pattern of shareholding in Pakistan and its consequences on holding of cash. Trade-off theory, peaking-order theory, and agency theory have already hashed out the sensation between cash holding and ownership structure. Fixed Redundant likelihood test, Hausman Test and Panel Data Regression model are used to compute the final results. This study involves 74 non-financial firms to investigate the prime effects. The data have been taken from the biggest database of Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) 100 index Pakistan and company financial reports from the period 2006 to 2017. Significant findings of this paper are based on two different research questions. First, how the pattern of shareholding has an impact on the decision of cash holding? Second, how the boundaries of the firm affect cash holding? These findings imply that cash holding and ownership structure are a vital element of the firm’s financial policy. This paper concludes that there is a negative and substantial relationship between cash holding and the pattern of shareholdings and the boundaries of the firm have an imperative effect on the holding of cash.