企业零杠杆现象及其研究:回顾与展望

MM理论、最优权衡理论和融资优序理论一直是经典资本结构的基石。然而,众多学者发现以美国为首的G20发达资本市场中存在大量零负债企业,并将其定义为"零杠杆之谜"。纵观我国资本市场,也不乏大量零杠杆企业的存在和相关学术探讨。这一世界性的极端债务保守行为,无疑对传统资本结构理论提出了新的挑战。本文以企业零杠杆现象及其表征为研究的切入点,从财务弹性、融资约束、产品市场竞争、税盾、公司治理及经济后果等方面对国内外有关此话题的文献成果进行梳理、归纳和总结,分析性地指出当前该研究领域存在的不足,提出未来研究方向。研究为进一步推动资本结构理论的发展及完善,为破解零杠杆异象拓展了研究视角。

Zero-leverage Phenomenon: Retrospect and Prospect

MM theory,trade-off theory and the pecking order theory have always been the cornerstones of classic capital structure.However,many scholars have discovered that there are a large number of zero-debt enterprises in the G20 developed capital markets led by the United States,which is defined as the puzzle of zero-leverage.Throughout the development of China’s capital market in recent years,there are also a large number of zero-leverage companies and related academic discussions.This worldwide extreme debt conservative act undoubtedly poses a new challenge to the traditional capital structure theory.Taking the zero leverage phenomenon and its characterization as the breakthrough point,the paper summarizes the literatures on this topic at home and abroad from the financial flexibility,financing constraints,product market competition,tax shield,agency problem and economic consequences etc.,and analytically puts forward some the future research direction based on the problems of current research in order to promote the further development of the capital structure theory and provide a new perspective for the study of zero-leverage.