Dividend policy: a long term investigation.

In this project, I will describe the dividend policy of Belgian firms during the period 1832-2012. I will focus on firms listed on the Brussels Stock Exchange during this period. Data is available from the SCOB-database. In a first part, I investigate theevolution of dividend policy over the period 1832-2012, which was characterized by major institutional, regulatory and tax changes, such as the introduction of taxes on dividends, the abolishment of multiple voting shares, the split-up of universal banksetc. My long-term perspective allows investigating how such changes affect dividend policy. Next, I investigate the evolution of cross-sectional determinants of dividend policy.

Keywords:ECONOMIC HISTORY, DIVIDEND POLICY

Disciplines:Applied economics, Law