Economics tends to teach that developed countries have good institutions while developing countries do not, and that this is the factor that constrains the latter's growth. However, the picture is far messier than this explanation suggests. Building on the varieties of capitalism framework, this book brings together the tools of institutional economics with historical analyses of institutional evolution of different kinds of property rights and legal systems, protected by different kinds of state, giving rise to distinct corporate governance structures. It constructs institutional development histories across leading liberal capitalisms in Britain and the United States, compared with continental capitalisms in France and Germany, and contemporary transitional capitalisms in China and Tanzania. This volume is innovative in combining both historical and economic insights, and in combining developed country with developing country institutional emergence, dispelling the prevailing sense of complacency about the inevitability of the path of institutional development for the developed areas of the world and the paths that developing countries are likely to follow. This volume will be of great importance to those who study international economics, development economics and international business.

Economics tends to teach that developed countries have good institutions while developing countries do not, and that this is the factor that constrains the latter's growth. However, the picture is far messier than this explanation suggests. Building on the varieties of capitalism framework, this book brings together the tools of institutional economics with historical analyses of institutional evolution of different kinds of property rights and legal systems, protected by different kinds of state, giving rise to distinct corporate governance structures. It constructs institutional development histories across leading liberal capitalisms in Britain and the United States, compared with continental capitalisms in France and Germany, and contemporary transitional capitalisms in China and Tanzania. This volume is innovative in combining both historical and economic insights, and in combining developed country with developing country institutional emergence, dispelling the prevailing sense of complacency about the inevitability of the path of institutional development for the developed areas of the world and the paths that developing countries are likely to follow. This volume will be of great importance to those who study international economics, development economics and international business.

Why do firms in high technology industries cluster at particular locations? The authors examine whether firms grow faster at such locations, and whether disproportionately more new firms are created in clusters. They compare the clustering process in the UK and the US in both computing and biotechnology, and investigate the policy implications.

This book brings together a collection of papers by leading academics, bankers, and consultants, in a masterful survey of leading issues in corporate governance. The papers concentrate upon the financing of corporations, and the role of the banks and stock markets in the United Kingdom, Germany, and Japan. A central theme of the book is a constant awareness of the links between the accountability of senior managers, the system of corporate governance, and the performance of a company. This book examines the role of shareholders, company boards, and managers under a market-based system as in the UK and USA, in comparison with the 'insider' system found in Japan and, to a lesser extent, Germany. The contributors discuss the view that this UK system leads to a preoccupation with short-term corporate performance and a greater likelihood of hostile takeovers. The contribution of the banks to corporate finance and control is examined in several papers, including a discussion of the special problems of small firms. Part II of the book begins with a chapter comparing and contrasting the British experience with other systems, and then authoritatively analyses the Japanese and the German financial and corporate systems. Capital Markets and Corporate Governance provides an essential insight into issues of corporate financing, accountability of managers, and efficiency. The contributors deal with this complex and topical subject in a comprehensive and lucid manner.