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Dr Frank Obenpong Kwabi

Job: Associate Professor in Accounting and Finance

Faculty: Business and Law

School/department: Leicester Castle Business School

Address: Hugh Aston Building

T: 0116 201 3862

E: frank.kwabi@dmu.ac.uk

W:

 

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Personal profile

Frank is Associate Professor in Accounting and Finance at 51漫画. He is the Deputy Director for Finance and Banking Research Center (FiBRe) and also Institute Head of Research Students. He was previously the Postgraduate Research Coordinator for the Department of Accounting and Finance. He is a Co-Editor of a special issue (SI) in the Sustainability Journal. Prior to joining De Montfort Frank worked at the University of Strathclyde as a part-time Lecturer in Finance whilst pursuing his PhD. He joined 51漫画 in 2016 as a VC2020 Lecturer in Accounting and Finance and was promoted to Senior Lecturer (2018) and Associate Professor (2019). Frank received PhD in Finance from the University of Strathclyde, MSc in Finance from Heriot Watt University and BA (Hons) in Accounting and Finance from Edinburgh Napier University, Scotland. He is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA). 

His research interests are concentrated in the area of international finance, cost of capital, insider trading laws, investor protection standards, stock market development, high frequency trading, and corporate social responsibility. He has a growing research in internally quality journals. His research has been published in a variety of journals including Bristish Journal of Management (ABS ranking 4), International Review of Financial Analysis (ABS ranking 3), Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation (ABS ranking 3), Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting (ABS ranking 3), Economics Letters (ABS ranking 3), International Journal of Finance and Economics (ABS ranking 3), Empirical Finance (ABS ranking 2), Journal of Multinational Financial Management (ABS ranking 2). Frank has served as a reviewer internationally quality journals such Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, International Review of Financial Analysis, International Journal of Finance and Economics, Emerging Markets Review, Journal of Multinational Financial Management,Technological Forecasting and Social Change.

He has supervised over 10 PhD students to successful completion and has examined four PhD viva. He is currently supervising eight PhD students in the above-mentioned research areas. He was the winner of the Faculty of Business and Law Award for Postgraduate Research Supervisor of the year (2020), He was also the winner of Research OSCARS for Outstanding Contribution to Research Supervision (2020). Frank was shortlisted for the following Faculty of Business and Law Awards; Contribution to Research (2020), Research Mentor (2020).

He has supervised over 35 MSc dissertations and he has taught several modules both at postgraduate and undergraduate levels. These modules include International Financial Markets and Institutions (Postgraduate), Entrepreneurial Finance and Financial Management (Postgraduate), Corporate Finance (3rd year), Business Finance (3rd year), Financial Derivatives (3rd year), Introduction to Accounting and Finance (1st year), Professional Communication (1st year). 

Publications and outputs


  • dc.title: CEO hubris and corporate carbon footprint: The role of gender diversity dc.contributor.author: Kwabi, Frank; Fulgence, Samuel; Adamolekun, Gbenga dc.description.abstract: This paper investigates the effect of an overconfident CEO on firm greenhouse gas emissions. Using panel data of 160,115 firm鈥恲ear observations from 41 countries for 2000鈥�2021, we find a negative relationship between CEO overconfidence and greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, drawing on the theories of gender socialisation and diversity, we find that great representation of females on the board further compels overconfident CEOs to reduce firm carbon emissions. Our findings are robust to varying estimation techniques and identification strategies. These findings offer important insights to green investors, corporate boards, managers and policymakers on the role of overconfident CEOs and female leadership in the carbon abatement efforts of public companies. dc.description: open access article

  • dc.title: CEO tenure and cost of debt dc.contributor.author: Owusu, Andrews; Kwabi, Frank; Ezeani, Ernest; Owusu-Mensah, Ruth dc.description.abstract: In this study, we investigate the relationship between CEO tenure and cost of debt. Using a sample of the FTSE All-Share Index firms listed on the London Stock Exchange for the period 2009 to 2018 and the ordinary least squares regression (OLS) estimation method, we find that cost of debt is higher for firms with CEOs in their early tenure in office than those in their later tenure in office. Further analysis shows that board independence attributes including (1) the proportion of independent directors on the board, (2) full (100 per cent) independent audit committee members, and (3) a lead independent director representation on the board interact with CEO early tenure in office to reduce cost of debt due to the board鈥檚 effective monitoring ability when the CEO is new and risk-seeking. Our study extends CEO tenure and corporate outcomes in general and in particular CEO risk-taking incentives and cost of debt literature, and has important implications for firms seeking to raise finance from the debt market when their CEO is new as well as identifying the control mechanisms that they need to put in place to lower the cost of debt. dc.description: The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.

  • dc.title: The impact of political uncertainty on the cost of capital dc.contributor.author: Kwabi, Frank; Owusu, Andrews; Ezeani, Ernest; Boateng, Agyenim dc.description.abstract: We investigate the impact of political uncertainty on the relationship between foreign equity portfolio flow and the cost of capital. Using panel data from 40 countries from 2001 to 2016, our results show that the year before a national election is associated with a higher cost of capital. Further analyses show that the relationship between international equity portfolio flow and the cost of capital is sensitive to political uncertainty. In line with the institutional quality channel, we find that checks and balances interact with political uncertainty to reduce the negative effects of political uncertainty on the cost of capital. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that foreign investors strategically reduce their equity portfolio investment to the recipient country before a national election which reduces risk-sharing between domestic and foreign investors. dc.description: The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.

  • dc.title: Why Do Female Lead Auditors Charge a Fee Premium? Evidence from the UK Audit Market dc.contributor.author: Owusu, Andrews; O'Sullivan, Noel; Kwabi, Frank; Holmes, Mark David dc.description.abstract: Existing research documents a fee premium for female partner led audits (Ittonen & Peni, 2012; Hardies et al., 2015; Burke et al., 2019; Lee et al., 2019; Hardies et al., 2021). We take this work forward by investigating a possible justification for the observed premium by examining how auditor gender is related to audit report lag and whether the female partner audit fee premium is driven by audit report lag. We find that firms audited by a female lead auditor have a significantly shorter audit report lag but pay a significantly higher audit fee. In further analysis, we find that the fee premium for a female partner led audits is higher for clients receiving a more timely audit opinion. Our findings are consistent with female lead auditors delivering more timely audits and audit clients being prepared to pay a premium for such timeliness. Our study extends our understanding of the importance of gender in the auditing process and the value clients see in audits led by female auditors. Given the relatively low proportion of female lead auditors, our findings should also encourage audit firms to appreciate the economic value of female lead auditors and to actively facilitate their progression to senior roles. dc.description: The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.

  • dc.title: Impacts of cross-border equity portfolio flow and central bank transparency on financial development: the role of economic freedom and international bonds dc.contributor.author: Kwabi, Frank; Chizindu, Wonu; Ezeani, Ernest; Owusu, Andrews; Leone, Vitor dc.description.abstract: We investigate the effects of international equity portfolio diversification and central bank independence on financial development using panel data from 49 countries from 2001 to 2016. We find that international equity portfolio diversification improves financial development. We correspondingly examine potential factors through which international equity portfolio diversification may impact financial development and find that central bank transparency provides an important channel for improving financial development. We further find that the relationship between international equity portfolio diversification and financial development is sensitive to economic freedom. Concerning sequencing, we find that foreign equity and debt flow are complementary to financial system development. Our results are robust to endogeneity using the exogenous shock of the 2008 financial crisis. This study offers new empirical evidence on the relationship between international capital and financial development.

  • dc.title: The Impact of Central Bank Independence and Transparency on Non-Performing Loans and Economic Stability dc.contributor.author: Mamoon, Abdullah; Kwabi, Frank; Ezeani, Ernest; Hu, Wansu

  • dc.title: Cross-country analysis of the effects of political uncertainty on stock price informativeness dc.contributor.author: Fulgence, Samuel; Kwabi, Frank; Boateng, Agyenim; Hu, Wansu; Paudyal, Krishna dc.description.abstract: We examine the effects of political uncertainty on the informativeness of stock prices. Using panel data from 49 countries and 441,882 firm-year observations from 2000 to 2020, our results evince several interesting aspects. First, we find that, whereas political uncertainty reduces stock price informativeness in the year prior to elections and during the elections, stock prices tend to be more informative in non-election years. Second, we find that the sensitivity of stock price informativeness to political uncertainty is reduced by the strength of institutional quality. Third, the effects of political uncertainty appear to be heterogeneous across less/unregulated and regulated industries. Lastly, our channel analysis indicates that during the year of elections, firms tend to disclosure less information thereby exerting a negative impact on stock price informativeness. Our results are robust to the system generalized method of moments (SGMM), difference-in-difference, and alternative specifications. dc.description: open access article

  • dc.title: Board characteristics and corporate cash holding: evidence from the UK, France and Germany dc.contributor.author: Ezeani, Ernest; Salem, Rami Ibrahim A.; Usman, Muhammad; Kwabi, Frank dc.description.abstract: Purpose Prior studies suggest that corporate cash holding will reflect firms' corporate governance (CG) environment. Consistent with this prediction, this study aims to examine the impact of board characteristics on firms' cash holding in the UK, France and Germany. Design/methodology/approach Using 2,805 firm-year observations between 2009 and 2019, the authors examine the relationship between board characteristics and corporate cash holding. The authors used two measures of cash holdings as our dependent variables. As independent variables, the authors used CG characteristics relevant to effective board monitoring such as board meetings, outside directors, board size and board gender diversity. Findings The authors find that board characteristics influence firms' cash holdings of firms in the UK, France and Germany. However, this study documents evidence of varying impacts of board monitoring on the cash holding of the UK when compared to German and French firms, the countries that are classifiable as bank-based economies. The result of this study is robust to alternative cash-holding measures and endogeneity. Practical implications This study provides evidence supporting the board's impact in mitigating agency conflict in shareholder- and stakeholder-oriented CG environments. Originality/value This study contributes to previous works on firms鈥� financial orientation by showing that the impact of board characteristics on corporate cash holdings varies between bank- and market-based economies.

  • dc.title: Do the educational profile, gender, and professional experience of audit committee financial experts improve financial reporting quality? dc.contributor.author: Komal, Bushra; Ezeani, Ernest; Usman, Muhammad; Kwabi, Frank; Ye, Chengang dc.description.abstract: Going beyond the mere presence of the audit committee financial experts (ACFEs) within the audit committee, we examine whether the educational profile, gender, and professional experience of ACFEs reduces the extent of earnings management. Using a sample of Chinese listed companies, we find evidence suggesting that ACFEs with postgraduate qualifications and other professional certifications mitigate earnings management. Female ACFEs with postgraduate qualifications are more effective in mitigating earnings management than their male counterparts. Also, the professional experience of ACFEs helps them reduce the extent of earnings management. Results are more pronounced in the case of female ACFEs with more professional experience. In addition, we found that ACFEs working in privately-owned Chinese firms better mitigate earnings management compared to those in state-owned Chinese firms. Overall, our results remain robust after controlling for potential endogeneity problems and using alternative earnings management proxies. Our study provides implications for regulators about necessary policy reforms regarding audit committee composition and recommends that companies appoint female ACFEs in China. dc.description: open access article

  • dc.title: Lead Independent Director, Managerial Risk-Taking and Cost of Debt: Evidence from UK dc.contributor.author: Owusu, Andrews; Kwabi, Frank; Owusu-Mensah, Ruth; Elamer, Ahmed Ahmed dc.description.abstract: We extend the existing literature on how the adoption of a lead independent director is related to corporate outcomes by documenting that the presence of a lead independent director on the board is significantly and negatively related to managerial risk-taking. The result is more pronounced for firms with a non-independent board chair. In a further analysis, we document that decreased managerial risk-taking leads to a reduction in the cost of debt for firms with a lead independent director on the board. Overall, our results suggest that the adoption of a lead independent director is an effective governance mechanism when the board chair is not independent, which supports the motivation of the United Kingdom corporate governance code. dc.description: open access article

Research interests/expertise

  • Corporate Finance
  • International portfolio diversification
  • Cost of capital
  • Stock market development
  • Investor protection standards
  • Insider trading
  • Equity home and foreign bias

Areas of teaching

  • Corporate Finance
  • Portfolio Management
  • Introduction to Finance and Accounting
  • Derivatives

Qualifications

PhD University of Strathclyde

MSc Heriot Watt University

PG Cert University of Strathclyde

BA (Hons) First Class Edinburgh Napier University

Courses taught

Current teaching:

  • Performance Measurement in Organisations (Year 2)
  • Professional Communication (Year 1)
  • International Financial Markets and Institutions (Postgraduate)

Previous taught:

  • ACFI 3203 Business Finance (Year 3)
  • ACFI 1203 Financial Decision Making (Year 1)
  • CORP 2165 Contemporary Management (Year 2)
  • LCBS5000 Entrepreneurial Finance and Financial Management (Postgraduate – Module Leader)

Previous admin role:

  • Doctoral Research Coordinator - Department of Accounting and Finance

Current admin roles:

  • Institute Head of Research Students
  • Module Leader: Performance Measurement in Organisations
  • Module Leader: International Financial Markets and Institutions

Honours and awards

1. Winner: Faculty of Business and Law Awards for Postgraduate Research Supervisor of the year (2020),

2. Winner: Research OSCARS for Outstanding Contribution to Research Supervision (2020).

3. Nominated: Faculty of Business and Law Awards for Contribution to Research (2020),

4. Nominated: Faculty of Business Awards for Research Mentor (2020).

Membership of external committees

European Finance Association

Royal Economic Society

American Finance Association

Senior Fellow of Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)

Conference attendance

Kwabi, F.O., Neupane, S., Paudyal, K., and Thapa, C., (2014) International portfolio investment and stock market development: British Accounting and Finance Association, London School of Economics, London. 

Kwabi, F.O., Neupane, S., Paudyal, K., and Thapa, C., (2014) Foreign portfolio investor’s influence and investor protection standards: Scottish DTC Business and Management Pathway PhD Colloquium at Stirling Management Centre. University of Stirling.

Kwabi, F.O., Faff, R., Marshall., and Thapa, C., (2013) Sub-optimal portfolio allocation and cost of capital: 7th International Accounting and Finance Doctoral Symposium. Bologna, Italy.

Key articles information

                              2024

32. Kwabi, F. O., Fulgence, S., Adamolekun, B. (2024). CEO Hubris and Corporate Carbon Footprint: The Role of Gender Diversity. Business Strategy and the Environment  – In press.

31. Kwabi, F. O., Owusu, A., Ezeani, E., Boateng, A. (2024). The impact of political uncertainty on the cost of capital. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting  – In press.

30. Kwabi, F. O., Wonu, C., Ezeani, E., Owusu, A., Leone, V. (2024). Impacts of cross-border equity flow and central bank transparency on financial development: The role of economic freedom and international bonds. International Journal of Finance & Economics  – In press.

29. Owusu, A., O’Sullivan, N., Kwabi, F. O., Holmes, M. D. (2024). Why do female lead auditors charge a fee premium? Evidence from the UK audit market. Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation  – Forthcoming.

28. Mamoon, A., Kwabi, F. O., Ezeani, E., Hu, W. (2024). The Impact of Central Bank Independence and Transparency on Banks' non-performing Loans and Economic Stability. Journal of Banking Regulations  - Forthcoming.

                              2023

 27. Fulgence, S., Kwabi, F. O., Boateng, A., Hu, W., Paudyal, K. (2023). Cross-country analysis of the effects of political uncertainty on stock price informativeness. Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions & Money (In press).

26. Kwabi, F. O., Boateng, A., Wonu, C., Kariuki, C. W., Du, A. (2023). Political uncertainty and cross-border equity portfolio allocation decisions: international evidence. International Review of Financial Analysis (In press).

25. Kwabi, F. O., Ezeani, E., Owusu, A., Wonu, C., Hu, W. (2023). The impact of media on tourism development and income inequality. Journal of Sustainable Tourism 1-18. .

24. Kwabi, F. O., Adegbite, E., Ezeani, E., Wonu, C., Mumbi, H. (2023). Political uncertainty and stock market liquidity, size and transaction cost: The role of institutional quality. International Journal of Finance and Economics (In Press).

23. Ezeani, E., Salem, R., Usman, M., Kwabi, F. O., Bilal, F. (2023). Board characteristics and corporate cash holding from the UK, France and Germany. International Journal of Accounting and Information Management (In Press).

                             2022

22. Adamolekun, G., Kwansa, N. A., Kwabi, F. O. (2022). Corporate carbon emissions and market valuation of organic and inorganic investment. Economics Letters, Vol 221. .

21. Bushra, K., Ezeani, E., Muhammad, U., Kwabi, F. O. (2022). Do the educational profile, gender, and professional experience of audit committee financial experts improve financial reporting quality? Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation (forthcoming).

20. Owusu, A, Kwabi, F. O., Owusu, R., Elamer, A. (2022). Lead Independent Director, Managerial Risk-Taking and Cost of Debt: Evidence from UK. Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation (forthcoming).

19. Fulgence, S., Boateng, A., Wang, Y., Kwabi, F. O. (2022). Board Effect and the Moderating Role of CEO/CFO on Corporate Governance Disclosure: Evidence from East Africa, The International Journal of Accounting (In Press).

18. Kwabi, F. O., Owusu-Manu, S., Boateng, A., Ezeani, E., Du, A. (2022). Economic Policy Uncertainty and Cost of Capital. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting (In Press).

17. Ezeani, A., Kwabi, F. O., Salem, R. (2022). Corporate Board and Dynamics of Capital Structure: Evidence from UK, France, and Germany. International Journal of Finance and Economics. .

16. Owusu, A., Kwabi, F. O., Owusu, R., Ezeani, E. (2022). CEO tenure and cost of debt? Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting 59:507-544.

                              2021

15. Boateng, A., Du, M., Bi, X., Kwabi, F. O., Glaister, K. W. (2021). Ownership type, home country government-directed investment policies, and firm value in strategic sectors: Evidence from Chinese acquiring firms. British Journal of Management 33:1412-1431. .

14. Ezeani, E., Salem, R., Kwabi, F. O., Boutaine, K., Komal, B. (2022). Board monitoring and capital structure dynamics: Evidence from bank-based economics. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting 58, 473-498.

13. Boateng, A., Thai, N., Du, M., Kwabi, F. O. (2022). The impact of CEO compensation and excess reserves on bank risk-taking: The moderating role of monetary policy. Empirical Finance 62:1575-1598.

12. Kwabi, F. O., Boateng, A. (2021). The effects of insider trading laws and enforcement on stock market transaction cost. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 56 (3), 939-964.

11. Du, M., Kwabi, F. O., Yang, T. L. (2021). State ownership, prior experience and performance: A comparative analysis of Chinese domestic and cross-border acquisitions. International Journal of Accounting and Information Management 29:472-491.

                             2020

10. Kwabi, F. O., Boateng, A., Fosu, S., Zhu, T., Chijoke-Mgbame, M. (2020). Foreign equity portfolio and corruption: A cross-country evidence. International Journal of Finance and Economics 27:68-87. .

9. Kwabi, F. O., Boateng, A., Du, A. (2020). Impact of central bank independence, transparency and institutional quality on foreign equity portfolio flow: a cross-country analysis. International Review of Financial Analysis 69:101464. .

8. Kwabi, F. O., Thapa, C., Paudyal, K., Neupane, S. (2020). Sub-optimal international equity portfolio diversification and stock market development. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 54(1) pp.389-412.

                             2019

7. Leone, V., Kwabi, F. O. (2019). High frequency trading, price discovery and market efficiency in FTSE100. Economics Letters, Vol 181, pp.174. .

6. Adegbite, E., Guney, Y., Kwabi, F. O., Tahir, S. (2019). Finance and corporate social performance in the UK listed firms: The relevance of non-linearity and lag effects. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 52(1), pp. 105-158.

5. Kwabi, F. O., Boateng, A., Adegbite, E. (2019). International portfolio investment and enforcement of insider trading laws: A cross-country analysis. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 53(2) pp. 327-349.

                              2018

4. Ahiabor, F. S., James, G., Kwabi, F. O., Siems, M. M. (2018). Shareholder protection, stock markets and cross-border mergers. Economic Letters, Vol 171, 54-57. .

3. Kwabi, F. O., Boateng, A., Adegbite, E. (2018). The impact of stringent insider trading laws on cost of capital. International Review of Financial Analysis Vol 60, pp.127-137. .

                             2017

2. Kwabi, F. O., Thapa, C., Paudyal, K., Adegbite, E. (2017). Biases in international portfolio allocation and investor protection standards. International Review of Financial Analysis Vol 53, pp. 66-79. .

                             2016

1. Kwabi, F. O., Faff, R., Marshall., Thapa, C. (2016). Sub-optimal portfolio allocation and cost of capital. Journal of Multinational Financial Management Vol 35, (6), pp. 41-58. .

Current research students

  • Samuel Owusu-Manu
  • Manoj Koppula
  • Suvra Bank
  • Nadina North
  • Grace Nicholas
  • Alexia Niang
  • Olusegun Orija

Completed PhDs

10. Dr Chizundu Wonu (2022). "The impact of international equity portfolio diversification on financial development, country-level institutional quality and cross-border mergers and acquisitions"  - First Supervisor.

9. Dr Abdullah Mamoon (2022): "The Impact of Central Bank Independence and Transparency on the Cost of Capital, Equity Home Bias and Foreign Bias, Debt Home and Foreign Bias"  - First Supervisor.

8. Dr Mathew Udenge (2022): "Consumer insurance fraud prevention initiatives in the UK insurance sector: A stakeholder perspective from Motor and Household insurance"  - First Supervisor.

7. Dr Katarzyna Jaskowiec (2021): "Does CEO compensation encourage risk-taking? Empirical evidence from FTSE350" - First Supervisor.

6. Dr Samuel Fulgence (2020): "The effects of board and ownership structure on corporate governance disclosure: Evidence from East African Countries" - Second Supervisor.

5. Dr Rawinder Kaur (2020): “Relationship between corporate social responsibility and bankruptcy: Evidence from U.K” - Second Supervisor.

4. Dr Nuha Alofi (2020): “The effect of corporate social responsibility disclosure on firms’ stock performance of the top 100 Tadawul Listed Companies” - First Supervisor.

3. Dr Dalia Sharaf (2019).

2. Dr Babatunde Adejumo (2019). "The internal audit function as a corporate governance mechanism in a developing economy: An empirical study of Nigerian Financial Sector" - Second Supervisor

1. Dr Wardah Abdulrahman Bindabel (2018): “The impact of Shariah (Islamic Principles) corporate governance on cross-border merger and acquisitions involving Islamic companies in the Gulf Countries” - Second Supervisor.

 

FRANK-KWABI