The Economics of Demutualization

Whenever an economic institution is being transformed, researchers have an unusual opportunity to study causes and effects of the transformation and to test the economic theory related to the institution itself. Over the course of the last decade the global securities exchange industry has undergone such a tremendous change. Stock exchanges have demutualized and have turned into for-profit entities. Securities exchanges play a crucial role in modern market economies. They provide market participants with financial instruments of all sorts, serve as mechanism for price discovery and are an important source for external financing. Despite their important role, research covering the demutualization of stock exchanges has been sparse. Felix Treptow seeks to fill this gap in the literature and presents in this book an in depth analysis of the demutualization phenomenon. In his thesis, he applies advanced econometric methods to data sets which were assem­ bled specifically for the purpose of his analysis. Each of the three self-contained chapters of this volume addresses different issues which are of importance to the various stake­ holders in this process. The analysis covers the micro- and macroeconomic causes of demutualization, its impact on market liquidity and the changing relationship between exchanges and issuers.