審計委員會財務專家與資金成本

Abstract

This thesis examines the relationship between financial experts on the audit committee in the period after the implementation of Section 407 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the cost of equity capital. Prior research supports the importance of financial expertise on the audit committee. However, the final rules implementing Section 407 continue to allow a broader definition of financial expertise that includes CEO/Presidents without direct accounting or finance experiences. For a sample of S&P 500 firms from year 2004 through 2006, I examine empirically whether the presence of financial experts on the audit committee has effect on the cost of equity capital. The evidence suggests a significant positive association between audit committee financial experts and the cost of equity capital.