Abstract
Exploiting the large exogenous variation in privatisation around China's 2005 Non-tradeable Share (NTS) reform, we assess its impact on private benefits of control and performance. While the reform required all listed firms to convert its NTS into tradeable ones, the process was partial and staggered over the years. Difference-in-difference estimates show that private benefits of control persisted among newly privatised treated firms converting NTS into tradeable shares. This suggests that China's attempt to privatise without completely reforming its state sector failed to yield the positive performance premium, stifling its private sector development