• Journal of Information Technology Services
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.171-184
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• 2023

FinTech, which has brought innovation to the financial industry thanks to the advancements in ICT since 2010, has contributed to the growth of the financial ecosystem and increased consumer benefits. Furthermore, there has been a growing demand for social responsibility and sustainability in financial institutions, which have a significant impact on governments, businesses, and people's lives. Despite this, many FinTech companies and traditional financial institutions are still in the early stages of establishing ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management philosophy or lack long-term plans. In this study, we aim to examine the impact of ESG management on the FinTech industry, focusing on representative domestic cases, and derive policy and institutional measures to spread it in the financial industry. Specifically, we will adopt MSCI rating indicators, which are internationally accepted by various industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, and transportation, to evaluate the 35 ESG management subcategories of FinTech companies. As a result, a total of 22 compliance items were disclosed in the ESG report, and it was possible to confirm the detailed management. Through this, we intend to propose effective management strategies for the organizational structure, operations, programs, and performance evaluation of FinTech companies, which are positioning themselves as sustainable growth drivers in the domestic industry.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.725-735
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• 2021

This study investigates whether the Islamic Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) provide significant benefit to investors relative to conventional ETFs. Six pairs of Islamic and conventional ETFs with 10-year daily price data from 2010 to 2019 have been selected from major market indices like MSCI World Index, MSCI Emerging Markets, MyETF Dow Jones Islamic Market Malaysia, MSCI South East Asia and Wahed FTSE Shariah USA Index for this study. For ETFs that are launched after 2010, the price data from launch date to 2019 are used. Our results show: First, Islamic ETFs are more likely to trade at a premium rather than at a discount, implying the investors are willing to pay a premium. Second, it is also found that Islamic ETFs have a relatively shorter period of price deviation from the benchmark, implying more price stability. Third, conventional ETFs have higher return and lower tracking errors relative to Islamic ETFs. These new findings add to the stylized facts of Islamic ETFs in the extant literature for investors, plan sponsors and regulators as to the differences between the ETFs. As policy suggestion, asset management companies can design new investment products to bridge the gap between conventional and Islamic finance.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.75-80
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• 2016

Purpose - A growing demand for sustainability reporting has placed pressure on firms with non-financial information that affects firm valuation, growth, and development. In particular, a number of researchers have investigated various topics in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), non-financial information. Prior studies suggest that CSR may affect corporate outcomes like corporate reporting, financial performance, and disclosures. However, the results from prior studies are not clear whether CSR affects corporate outcomes. This is partially due to the measurement issues with CSR. In this study, we examine whether CSR affects the quality of corporate reporting, one of the popular measures in corporate outcomes. We find an evidence that CSR positively affects the quality of corporate reporting. Research design, data, and methodology - In this study, we collected a unique dataset of CSR from MSCI. Total 169 firms listed in the Korean Stock Exchange from 2011 to 2014 were collected and analysed with the detailed CSR reports. Using a correlation test, we found a weak association between CSR and the quality of corporate reporting. However, the regression tests provided a strong relationship between CSR and the quality of corporate reporting after controlling for other variables that may affect the quality of corporate reporting. Additionally, we calculated the t-statistics based on heteroskedaticity-consistent standard errors (White, 1980). Results - Before we run the regression test, we sort the measures of the two dependent variables into each rating of CSR (from AAA to CCC). The results indicate that the quality of corporate reporting measured by discretionary accruals and performance-matched discretionary accruals monotonically decrease as the CSR ratings increase. This supports our hypothesis. In the regression tests, the coefficient on MJDA (PMDA) is -0.183 (-0.173) and significant at the 5% level. We can interpret the results as CSR affecting the quality of corporate reporting in positive ways. Other coefficients on control variables are consistent with prior studies. For example, the coefficients on both LOSS and LEV are positive and significant at conventional level, meaning that firms with financial difficulty may harm their quality of corporate reporting. Conclusion - We found an evidence that CSR is positively associated with the quality of corporate reporting. This study contributes to the literature in various ways. First, this study extends the line of CSR research by providing additional evidence in the setting of ethical behaviors by managements. This is consistent with the hypothesis and supports the results of prior studies. Second, to the best of my knowledge, this is the first study using the MSCI CSR ratings. In contrast with prior studies using different measures of CSR, the MSCI CSR ratings allow us to provide in-depth analysis. Third, the additional measure of dependent variable (PMDA) allows us to improve the robustness of our results. Overall, the results provided this study to extend the findings in prior studies by providing incremental evidence.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.711-719
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• 2024

This study examined the policy of opening up the Chinese A-share market and its performance in four aspects: institutional investors system, cross-trading system with overseas stock markets, inclusion of A-shares into global indices, and establishment of a new board. Then, the impact of these policies on the Stock Index was empirically analyzed, and it was confirmed that institutional investors system such as QFII and RQFII, cross-trading system with overseas stock markets such as Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect and Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect, inclusion of A-shares into global indices such as the MSCI EM index and FTSE Russell index, and the establishment of a new board of the Science Innovation Board all had statistically significant positive impacts on the stock index. Based on the results of these analysis, we conclude that China should further expand its stock market opening to the outside world, that mutual efforts are needed to alleviate political conflicts and improve understanding, and that easing industry regulations, including real estate, will help China's economic recovery and foreigners' investment in the A-share market.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.14 no.11
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• pp.5586-5593
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• 2013

This study investigates how the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) performance of a firm is associated with its financial performance in the stock market. Prior studies provide mixed evidence on the relation between CSR and financial performance. This study sheds some lights on the positive effect of CSR on firms' financial performance. Using a unique set of data on CSR performance of Korean firms provided by Morgan Stanley Capital International (MCSI), we find that firms' CSR performance is positively associated with their contemporaneous stock returns and Tobin's Q in the Korean market. This finding suggests that stock market participants value firms' CSR activities. This is the first study that provides empirical evidence on the existence of the positive association between the CSR performance of Korean firms and their financial performance using MCSI data which is considered more reliable than the data used in the prior CSR studies in Korea.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.121-128
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• 2020

The Marine Safety Culture Index (MSCI) was developed in the year 2018 for objectively assessing the public safety culture levels and for incorporating it as data to spread knowledge regarding the marine safety culture. The method for calculating the safety culture index should include issues that may affect the safety culture and should consist of appropriate attributes for estimating the current status. In addition, continuous verification and supplementation are required for addressing social and economic changes. In this study, to determine whether the questionnaire designed by marine experts reflects the people's interests and needs, we analyzed 915 marine safety proposals. Text mining was employed for analyzing the unstructured data of the marine safety proposals, and network analysis and topic modeling were subsequently performed. Analysis of the marine safety proposals was centered on attributes such as education, public relations, safety rules, awareness, skilled workers, and systems. Eighteen questions were modified and supplemented for reflecting the marine safety proposals, and reliability of the revised questions was analyzed. Furthermore, compared to the previous year, the questionnaire's internal consistency was improved upon and was rated at a high value of 0.895. It is expected that by employing the derived marine safety culture index and incorporating the improved questionnaire that reflects the requirements of marine experts and the people, the improved questionnaire will contribute to the establishment of policies for spreading knowledge regarding the marine safety culture.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.63-74
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• 2018

Recently, in the asset management industry, the smart beta strategy, which has an intermediate nature between passive and active strategies, is attracting attention. In this smart beta strategy, value, momentum, low volatility, and quality index are widely used. In this study, we analyzed the quality index which is not clear and complicated to calculate. According to the MSCI methodology, the quality index was calculated using three variables: return on equity, debt to equity, and earnings variability. In addition, we use the index using only return on equity variable, the index using only two variables of return on equity and debt to equity, and the KOSPI index as comparison targets for the quality index. In order to evaluate the performance of the indices used in the analysis, the arithmetic mean return, the coefficient of variation, and the geometric mean return were used. In addition, Fama and French (1993) model, which is widely used in related studies, was used as a pricing model to test whether abnormal returns in each index are occurring. The results of the empirical analysis are as follows. First, in all period analysis, quality index was the best in terms of holding period returns. Second, the quality index performed best in the currency crisis and the global financial crisis. Third, abnormal returns were not found in all indices before the global financial crisis. Fourth, in the period after the global financial crisis, the quality index has the highest abnormal return.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.9-13
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• 2019

The paper aims to investigate the performance of domestic Saudi Arabian ETFs. ETFs are investment vehicles in vogue. These instruments were the first levers for investors allowing them to enter some markets that have been highly protected or out of reach. Saudi Arabia, which has been promoted as an emerging country by MSCI, seeks to attract more foreign investors. The first ETFs were launched in the years 2010-2011. Even though their number has not increased since then, there is a desire to attract a large number of investors. We use premiums/discounts analysis, standard risk-return models, and tracking errors measurements to assess how closely their replicate the underlying benchmark based on monthly data. The results indicate that out of the three funds investigated two are slightly traded at premium, while the latter exhibit a price discount. However, tracking errors are at minimum for all funds suggesting that they track well the benchmark index. Further, the Jensen's model shows that alphas are negative or null, and betas capture largely the systematic risk which is consistent with index investing strategies. Finally, traditional risk-adjusted measures of performance are used to compare ETFs, and results exhibit negative ratios showing that portfolios achieve lower return than the risk-free rate.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.1-25
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• 2023

ESG management is becoming a necessity of the times, but there are about 600 ESG evaluation indicators worldwide, causing confusion in the market as different ESG ratings were assigned to individual companies according to evaluation agencies. In addition, since the method of applying ESG was not disclosed, there were not many ways for companies that wanted to introduce ESG management to get help. Accordingly, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced the K-ESG guideline jointly with the ministries. In previous studies, there were few studies on the comparison of evaluation grades by ESG evaluation company or the application of evaluation diagnostic items. Therefore, in this study, the ease of application and improvement of the K-ESG guideline was attempted by applying the K-ESG guideline to companies that already have ESG ratings. The position of the K-ESG guideline is also confirmed by comparing the scores calculated through the K-ESG guideline for companies that have ESG ratings from global ESG evaluation agencies and domestic ESG evaluation agencies. As a result of the analysis, first, the K-ESG guideline provide clear and detailed standards for individual companies to set their own ESG goals and set the direction of ESG practice. Second, the K-ESG guideline is suitable for domestic and global ESG evaluation standards as it has 61 diagnostic items and 12 additional diagnostic items covering the evaluation indicators of global representative ESG evaluation agencies and KCGS in Korea. Third, the ESG rating of the K-ESG guideline was higher than that of a global ESG rating company and lower than or similar to that of a domestic ESG rating company. Fourth, the ease of application of the K-ESG guideline is judged to be high. Fifth, the point to be improved in the K-ESG guideline is that the government needs to compile industry average statistics on diagnostic items in the K-ESG environment area and publish them on the government's ESG-only site. In addition, the applied weights of E, S, and G by industry should be determined and disclosed. This study will help ESG evaluation agencies, corporate management, and ESG managers interested in ESG management in establishing ESG management strategies and contributing to providing improvements to be referenced when revising the K-ESG guideline in the future.