Corporate governance has been at the center of interest in the corporate- nance literature for the past decade. The discussion has continuously int- si?ed due to the occurrence of multiple corporate governance failures which have triggered the introduction or further re?nement of national and inter- tional corporate governance codes. The necessity of regulatory action however rests on the need for a sound understanding of potentially negative e?ects of ownership structure on ?nancial performance. Unfortunately, the empirical literature so far has not delivered consistent evidence leaving the...