Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

acceptedVersion

Publication Date

1-2026

Abstract

China launched the registration-based IPO system in 2019 whereby all firms listed on the newly established STAR board (“peer firms”) are required to disclose specific innovation and industry-related information in their prospectus. Using this event as a quasi-experiment, our study investigates the causal effects of peer firms’ disclosures on individual firms’ disclosure strategy. We find that individual firms’ management earnings forecast (MEF) precision, both its form and width, significantly decreases when peer firms disclose more information during the IPO period. In cross-sectional analyses, we find this effect to be more pronounced for individual firms that are likely to experience greater competitive pressure from industry peer firms, and firms with higher risks and performance uncertainty that make them more cautious to external competitive pressure. This result suggests that peer firms’ disclosures induce greater competitive pressure and uncertainty about future firm performance, triggering managers of individual firms to adopt a more cautious disclosure strategy. Overall, our study extends the literature on the peer effects in corporate disclosure decisions and documents potential unintended consequences of mandatory disclosure policies.

Keywords

spillover effect, management earnings forecast, registration-based IPO system, mandatory disclosure

Discipline

Accounting | Corporate Finance

Research Areas

Corporate Reporting and Disclosure

Publication

Journal of Accounting, Auditing & Finance

Volume

41

Issue

1

First Page

3

Last Page

31

ISSN

0148-558X

Identifier

10.1177/0148558X241265768

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Copyright Owner and License

Authors

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1177/0148558X241265768

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