DOES A LARGE slice of state ownership – and the required rigours that come with reporting to government and taxpayers as shareholders – make for better corporate managers?
It goes against the accepted wisdom of capitalism. But as governments around the world take equity stakes in struggling banks and other corporations, it is a question worth asking. One company in Brazil provides an interesting answer.
The Brazilian state owns 55.7% of Petrobras’s common shares – which have voting rights – and the rest of the stock is traded on Brazilian stock exchange Bovespa. It is run by a nine-member board, five of whom are appointed by the government.