Foreign Ownership, Investor Attention and the Risk-Taking Behavior of Property and Casualty Insurance Firms: Evidence From Vietnam

Abstract

This study enriches the current literature because it is the first to examine how foreign ownership and Investor attention affect the risk-taking behaviors of property and casualty insurance companies in Vietnam. This study is unique because it tests whether foreign ownership moderates the relationship between investor attention and the risk-taking behavior of insurance firms or vice versa. This study employs the Random Effect Models, Generalized Least Squares, Johnson-Neyman test, and simple slope analyses to analyze 28 property and casualty insurance companies from 2010 to 2022. The findings indicate that foreign ownership and investor attention increases the risk-taking behaviors of insurance firms. Moreover, the findings indicate that foreign ownership moderates the relationship between investor attention and the risk-taking behavior of insurance firms in Vietnam. The findings align with agency theory, stakeholder theory, limited attention theory, and prior literature. This study supports managers and policymakers in developing the insurance sector sustainably, especially in emerging markets.