Hsin-Yi Yu | National University of Kaohsiung (original) (raw)

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Books by Hsin-Yi Yu

This thesis examines issues associated with the interaction of government and financial instituti... more This thesis examines issues associated with the interaction of government and financial institutions in the operation of a company through the board of directors in Japan and Taiwan. Specially, it highlights the relationships between a company, the main bank system, and the system of amakudari (appointing retired bureaucrats to the board of public companies). The focus is on why government and financial institutions intervene in the operation of a company, and whether the intervention of government and financial institutions is related to the subsequent operation of a company through the board of directors. The empirical results suggest that governments and financial institutions tend to appoint representatives to the board in order to help troubled companies. On the other hand, a negative relationship is established between the presence of retired bureaucrats (amakudari) and subsequent firm performance and the degree of internationalisation. Thus, while the system of amakudari may use its power in an attempt to save troubled companies, the argument that monitoring ability of the board may be jeopardised to the detriment of firm performance and the degree of internationalisation is supported. The empirical results also demonstrate that intervention of governments and financial institutions is an integral part of the operation a company in Japan and Taiwan.

Furthermore, with the latest reform of corporate governance in Taiwan, the thesis also introduces the institutional background of incentive payments and sub-committees and examines whether the level and the structure of top executives’ compensation and incentive payments are related to firm performance and the corporate governance mechanism. The empirical results indicate that the alignment between executives’ and shareholders’ interests is not less efficient in government-linked companies (GLCs) compared to non-government-linked companies (non-GLCs). Additionally, although the Taiwanese authorities have started to reform corporate governance in Taiwan, the grants of incentive payments to top executives are not necessarily related to performance or the corporate governance mechanism, such as the ratio of outside directors.

Papers by Hsin-Yi Yu

Zoological Studies, 2009

Hin-Kiu Mok1,2,*, Hsin-Yi Yu1, Jinn-Pyng Ueng3, and Ruey-Chang Wei4 1Institute of Marine Biology,... more Hin-Kiu Mok1,2,*, Hsin-Yi Yu1, Jinn-Pyng Ueng3, and Ruey-Chang Wei4 1Institute of Marine Biology, National Sun Yat-sen University, 70 Lienhai Road, Kaohsiung 804, Taiwan 2Kuroshio Research Group, Asia-Pacific Ocean Research Center, National Sun Yat-sen University, ...

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research), 2014

The short-fi nned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus) is a mid-sized toothed whale, widely d... more The short-fi nned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus) is a mid-sized toothed whale, widely distributed throughout warm-temperate to tropical regions of the Atlantic, Pacifi c, and Indian oceans. There is suggestive evidence that the taxonomy within the species is unresolved: a "Southern form" in southern Japanese waters is considered distinctive in its morphological, ecological, and genetic characteristics to a "Northern form" found in northern Japanese waters, and each might represent different subspecies or species. Short-fi nned pilot whales in the tropical west Pacifi c are poorly studied and their taxonomic status remains uncertain. The aim of this study was to determine the phenotype(s) and genotype(s) of pilot whales sighted or sampled from Taiwanese waters and compare them with whales found in adjacent Northeast and Southeast Asian waters. We examined 892 photographs taken from 14 groups of whales at sea around Taiwan, as well as the body length and photographic records of 19 whales stranded on the Taiwanese coast including genetic data (derived from a 689-bp mitochondrial DNA control region fragment) from eight of these. We also examined a group of short-fi nned pilot whales in a video clip fi lmed in the South China Sea, as well as a 593-bp mitochondrial DNA control region fragment sampled from two whales in Philippine waters. Our results revealed morphological and genetic similarities to available data from the more northerly located "Southern form" short-fi nned pilot whales from Japan, and indicate that the Southern form whales are indeed distributed more southward into the tropical west Pacifi c: viz, in the waters around Taiwan, in the South China Sea, and in the Philippines. The extent of the southern boundary for the range of the Southern form of short-fi nned pilot whales in the tropical west Pacifi c Ocean could be better defi ned with further observational and genetic studies.

PLOS ONE, 2015

The developments of marine observatories and automatic sound detection algorithms have facilitate... more The developments of marine observatories and automatic sound detection algorithms have facilitated the long-term monitoring of multiple species of odontocetes. Although classification remains difficult, information on tonal sound in odontocetes (i.e., toothed whales, including dolphins and porpoises) can provide insights into the species composition and group behavior of these species. However, the approach to measure whistle contour parameters for detecting the variability of odontocete vocal behavior may be biased when the signal-tonoise ratio is low. Thus, methods for analyzing the whistle usage of an entire group are necessary. In this study, a local-max detector was used to detect burst pulses and representative frequencies of whistles within 4.5-48 kHz. Whistle contours were extracted and classified using an unsupervised method. Whistle characteristics and usage pattern were quantified based on the distribution of representative frequencies and the composition of whistle repertoires. Based on the one year recordings collected from the Marine Cable Hosted Observatory off northeastern Taiwan, odontocete burst pulses and whistles were primarily detected during the nighttime, especially after sunset. Whistle usage during the nighttime was more complex, and whistles with higher frequency were mainly detected during summer and fall. According to the multivariate analysis, the diurnal variation of whistle usage was primarily related to the change of mode frequency, diversity of representative frequency, and sequence complexity. The seasonal variation of whistle usage involved the previous three parameters, in addition to the diversity of whistle clusters. Our results indicated that the species and behavioral composition of the local odontocete community may vary among seasonal and diurnal cycles. The current monitoring platform facilitates the evaluation of whistle usage based on group behavior and provides feature vectors for species and behavioral classification in future studies.

Passive acoustic monitoring is effective for examining the temporal variation of cetacean occurre... more Passive acoustic monitoring is effective for examining the temporal variation of cetacean occurrences through continuous recording. However, the interpretation of behavior variability remains difficult. Cetacean tonal sounds are believed to play an important role in communication. Changes in tonal sound usage can be indicative of changes in cetacean behavior. In this study, we applied a generalized tonal sound detector on recordings from the marine cable hosted observatory (MACHO) off Northeastern Taiwan. The tonal sound detector is a modified local-max detector, which examines the prominence of tonality in 2 ms time intervals. Detections were confirmed based on the short-time transient characteristic of tonal sounds. The burst pulse, fundamental frequency, and harmonic were separated during post-processing. The detection results can be used to analyze the frequency distribution and modulation of the tonal sounds. Following individual contour extractions, the tonal sounds were classified to examine the repertoire composition through duration and frequency normalization. An evident nighttime occurrence was identified for both the burst pulse and tonal sound. The mode frequency of tonal sound did not show a significant difference, but the percentage of overlapping tonal sounds, Shannon entropy of frequency distribution, and repertoire complexity varied significantly among diurnal cycles. The current framework of quantification on tonal sound modulation and repertoire complexity provides intuitive parameters for the variability of cetacean behavior, which can be used to examine the temporal variations of cetacean habitat use. The precision in distinguishing different species and behaviors may be increased by comparing the repertoire established through automatic classification.

Various theories have documented that momentum is followed by reversal in the long run. This pape... more Various theories have documented that momentum is followed by reversal in the long run. This paper constructs a new momentum-reversal strategy by avoiding the stocks which are more likely to approach reversals in the winner and loser groups. The results show that the risk-adjusted returns of the new strategy are significantly higher than those of the traditional momentum strategy documented in JT (1993) and Carhart (1997). Such a finding is robust in different time periods and size quintiles. Moreover, the risk-adjusted returns of the new strategy cannot be fully explained by Carhart’s four-factor model and the corresponding timing activities.

Prior research debates focus on whether investors are smart enough to invest funds that subsequen... more Prior research debates focus on whether investors are smart enough to invest funds that subsequently outperform. This paper documents a robust smart money effect among small fund investors who invest in the top performing funds, even after controlling for the momentum factor argued by Sapp and Tiwari (2004). I further explore the reason for the smart money effect and find that such outperformance comes from market timing ability of smart investors. The market timing ability distinguishes smart investors from investors who naively chase the winners.

JEL classification: G11; G20
Keywords: Smart money effect; Fund cash flow; Fund performance; Timing ability

This paper examines the relationship between the level of political connection of a board and the... more This paper examines the relationship between the level of political connection of a board and the level of CEO equity-based compensation. Using data from a sample of Taiwanese firms from 2001 to 2004, this paper provides evidence that the level of political connection of a board is negatively related to the ratio of equity-based compensation granted to CEOs. Overall, politically connected boards grant a lower ratio of equity-based compensation to CEOs, thereby reducing the alignment between the interests of the CEO and those of shareholders. The evidence from Taiwan offers insights to policy makers in emerging economies that have political intervention. A government’s reluctance to relinquish its control of publicly listed firms can have significantly negative consequences on the alignment between the interests of CEOs and those of shareholders.

This paper investigates the interaction of government and financial institutions in the operation... more This paper investigates the interaction of government and financial institutions in the operation of a company through the relationship of the main bank system and the system of amakudari (appointing retired bureaucrats to the board of public companies). The empirical results suggest that governments and financial institutions tend to appoint representatives to the board in order to help troubled companies. However, a negative relationship is established between the presence of amakudari and subsequent firm performance. Thus, while the system of amakudari may use its power in an attempt to save troubled companies, the monitoring ability of the board may be jeopardised to the detriment of firm performance.

We study the effect of government transition on firm performance and the board composition of gov... more We study the effect of government transition on firm performance and the board composition of government-linked companies (GLCs) and explore the motivation for board restructuring of GLCs. Specifically, we examine two questions: (1) what the motivation is for board restructuring, and (2) whether the change in board composition affects subsequent firm performance. The empirical results indicate that the policy factor is the key determinant in board re-election of GLCs. The motivation of board restructuring after a powershift is mainly for control purposes rather than performance enhancement, which may explain why the market reacts negatively in the beginning to board restructuring announcements in GLCs. Furthermore, board restructuring after a powershift does not enhance subsequent firm performance. The evidence provided supports the argument that the government should relinquish its control in publicly-listed firms.

Teaching Documents by Hsin-Yi Yu

This thesis examines issues associated with the interaction of government and financial instituti... more This thesis examines issues associated with the interaction of government and financial institutions in the operation of a company through the board of directors in Japan and Taiwan. Specially, it highlights the relationships between a company, the main bank system, and the system of amakudari (appointing retired bureaucrats to the board of public companies). The focus is on why government and financial institutions intervene in the operation of a company, and whether the intervention of government and financial institutions is related to the subsequent operation of a company through the board of directors. The empirical results suggest that governments and financial institutions tend to appoint representatives to the board in order to help troubled companies. On the other hand, a negative relationship is established between the presence of retired bureaucrats (amakudari) and subsequent firm performance and the degree of internationalisation. Thus, while the system of amakudari may use its power in an attempt to save troubled companies, the argument that monitoring ability of the board may be jeopardised to the detriment of firm performance and the degree of internationalisation is supported. The empirical results also demonstrate that intervention of governments and financial institutions is an integral part of the operation a company in Japan and Taiwan.

Furthermore, with the latest reform of corporate governance in Taiwan, the thesis also introduces the institutional background of incentive payments and sub-committees and examines whether the level and the structure of top executives’ compensation and incentive payments are related to firm performance and the corporate governance mechanism. The empirical results indicate that the alignment between executives’ and shareholders’ interests is not less efficient in government-linked companies (GLCs) compared to non-government-linked companies (non-GLCs). Additionally, although the Taiwanese authorities have started to reform corporate governance in Taiwan, the grants of incentive payments to top executives are not necessarily related to performance or the corporate governance mechanism, such as the ratio of outside directors.

Zoological Studies, 2009

Hin-Kiu Mok1,2,*, Hsin-Yi Yu1, Jinn-Pyng Ueng3, and Ruey-Chang Wei4 1Institute of Marine Biology,... more Hin-Kiu Mok1,2,*, Hsin-Yi Yu1, Jinn-Pyng Ueng3, and Ruey-Chang Wei4 1Institute of Marine Biology, National Sun Yat-sen University, 70 Lienhai Road, Kaohsiung 804, Taiwan 2Kuroshio Research Group, Asia-Pacific Ocean Research Center, National Sun Yat-sen University, ...

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research), 2014

The short-fi nned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus) is a mid-sized toothed whale, widely d... more The short-fi nned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus) is a mid-sized toothed whale, widely distributed throughout warm-temperate to tropical regions of the Atlantic, Pacifi c, and Indian oceans. There is suggestive evidence that the taxonomy within the species is unresolved: a "Southern form" in southern Japanese waters is considered distinctive in its morphological, ecological, and genetic characteristics to a "Northern form" found in northern Japanese waters, and each might represent different subspecies or species. Short-fi nned pilot whales in the tropical west Pacifi c are poorly studied and their taxonomic status remains uncertain. The aim of this study was to determine the phenotype(s) and genotype(s) of pilot whales sighted or sampled from Taiwanese waters and compare them with whales found in adjacent Northeast and Southeast Asian waters. We examined 892 photographs taken from 14 groups of whales at sea around Taiwan, as well as the body length and photographic records of 19 whales stranded on the Taiwanese coast including genetic data (derived from a 689-bp mitochondrial DNA control region fragment) from eight of these. We also examined a group of short-fi nned pilot whales in a video clip fi lmed in the South China Sea, as well as a 593-bp mitochondrial DNA control region fragment sampled from two whales in Philippine waters. Our results revealed morphological and genetic similarities to available data from the more northerly located "Southern form" short-fi nned pilot whales from Japan, and indicate that the Southern form whales are indeed distributed more southward into the tropical west Pacifi c: viz, in the waters around Taiwan, in the South China Sea, and in the Philippines. The extent of the southern boundary for the range of the Southern form of short-fi nned pilot whales in the tropical west Pacifi c Ocean could be better defi ned with further observational and genetic studies.

PLOS ONE, 2015

The developments of marine observatories and automatic sound detection algorithms have facilitate... more The developments of marine observatories and automatic sound detection algorithms have facilitated the long-term monitoring of multiple species of odontocetes. Although classification remains difficult, information on tonal sound in odontocetes (i.e., toothed whales, including dolphins and porpoises) can provide insights into the species composition and group behavior of these species. However, the approach to measure whistle contour parameters for detecting the variability of odontocete vocal behavior may be biased when the signal-tonoise ratio is low. Thus, methods for analyzing the whistle usage of an entire group are necessary. In this study, a local-max detector was used to detect burst pulses and representative frequencies of whistles within 4.5-48 kHz. Whistle contours were extracted and classified using an unsupervised method. Whistle characteristics and usage pattern were quantified based on the distribution of representative frequencies and the composition of whistle repertoires. Based on the one year recordings collected from the Marine Cable Hosted Observatory off northeastern Taiwan, odontocete burst pulses and whistles were primarily detected during the nighttime, especially after sunset. Whistle usage during the nighttime was more complex, and whistles with higher frequency were mainly detected during summer and fall. According to the multivariate analysis, the diurnal variation of whistle usage was primarily related to the change of mode frequency, diversity of representative frequency, and sequence complexity. The seasonal variation of whistle usage involved the previous three parameters, in addition to the diversity of whistle clusters. Our results indicated that the species and behavioral composition of the local odontocete community may vary among seasonal and diurnal cycles. The current monitoring platform facilitates the evaluation of whistle usage based on group behavior and provides feature vectors for species and behavioral classification in future studies.

Passive acoustic monitoring is effective for examining the temporal variation of cetacean occurre... more Passive acoustic monitoring is effective for examining the temporal variation of cetacean occurrences through continuous recording. However, the interpretation of behavior variability remains difficult. Cetacean tonal sounds are believed to play an important role in communication. Changes in tonal sound usage can be indicative of changes in cetacean behavior. In this study, we applied a generalized tonal sound detector on recordings from the marine cable hosted observatory (MACHO) off Northeastern Taiwan. The tonal sound detector is a modified local-max detector, which examines the prominence of tonality in 2 ms time intervals. Detections were confirmed based on the short-time transient characteristic of tonal sounds. The burst pulse, fundamental frequency, and harmonic were separated during post-processing. The detection results can be used to analyze the frequency distribution and modulation of the tonal sounds. Following individual contour extractions, the tonal sounds were classified to examine the repertoire composition through duration and frequency normalization. An evident nighttime occurrence was identified for both the burst pulse and tonal sound. The mode frequency of tonal sound did not show a significant difference, but the percentage of overlapping tonal sounds, Shannon entropy of frequency distribution, and repertoire complexity varied significantly among diurnal cycles. The current framework of quantification on tonal sound modulation and repertoire complexity provides intuitive parameters for the variability of cetacean behavior, which can be used to examine the temporal variations of cetacean habitat use. The precision in distinguishing different species and behaviors may be increased by comparing the repertoire established through automatic classification.

Various theories have documented that momentum is followed by reversal in the long run. This pape... more Various theories have documented that momentum is followed by reversal in the long run. This paper constructs a new momentum-reversal strategy by avoiding the stocks which are more likely to approach reversals in the winner and loser groups. The results show that the risk-adjusted returns of the new strategy are significantly higher than those of the traditional momentum strategy documented in JT (1993) and Carhart (1997). Such a finding is robust in different time periods and size quintiles. Moreover, the risk-adjusted returns of the new strategy cannot be fully explained by Carhart’s four-factor model and the corresponding timing activities.

Prior research debates focus on whether investors are smart enough to invest funds that subsequen... more Prior research debates focus on whether investors are smart enough to invest funds that subsequently outperform. This paper documents a robust smart money effect among small fund investors who invest in the top performing funds, even after controlling for the momentum factor argued by Sapp and Tiwari (2004). I further explore the reason for the smart money effect and find that such outperformance comes from market timing ability of smart investors. The market timing ability distinguishes smart investors from investors who naively chase the winners.

JEL classification: G11; G20
Keywords: Smart money effect; Fund cash flow; Fund performance; Timing ability

This paper examines the relationship between the level of political connection of a board and the... more This paper examines the relationship between the level of political connection of a board and the level of CEO equity-based compensation. Using data from a sample of Taiwanese firms from 2001 to 2004, this paper provides evidence that the level of political connection of a board is negatively related to the ratio of equity-based compensation granted to CEOs. Overall, politically connected boards grant a lower ratio of equity-based compensation to CEOs, thereby reducing the alignment between the interests of the CEO and those of shareholders. The evidence from Taiwan offers insights to policy makers in emerging economies that have political intervention. A government’s reluctance to relinquish its control of publicly listed firms can have significantly negative consequences on the alignment between the interests of CEOs and those of shareholders.

This paper investigates the interaction of government and financial institutions in the operation... more This paper investigates the interaction of government and financial institutions in the operation of a company through the relationship of the main bank system and the system of amakudari (appointing retired bureaucrats to the board of public companies). The empirical results suggest that governments and financial institutions tend to appoint representatives to the board in order to help troubled companies. However, a negative relationship is established between the presence of amakudari and subsequent firm performance. Thus, while the system of amakudari may use its power in an attempt to save troubled companies, the monitoring ability of the board may be jeopardised to the detriment of firm performance.

We study the effect of government transition on firm performance and the board composition of gov... more We study the effect of government transition on firm performance and the board composition of government-linked companies (GLCs) and explore the motivation for board restructuring of GLCs. Specifically, we examine two questions: (1) what the motivation is for board restructuring, and (2) whether the change in board composition affects subsequent firm performance. The empirical results indicate that the policy factor is the key determinant in board re-election of GLCs. The motivation of board restructuring after a powershift is mainly for control purposes rather than performance enhancement, which may explain why the market reacts negatively in the beginning to board restructuring announcements in GLCs. Furthermore, board restructuring after a powershift does not enhance subsequent firm performance. The evidence provided supports the argument that the government should relinquish its control in publicly-listed firms.