XIAO JIA

5 Allée des Platanes 95000 Cergy, France

+33(0)782732456, xiao.jia@essec.edu
Website: xiao-jia.weebly.com

EDUCATION

ESSEC Business School (Paris, France)

PhD Candidate in Finance 2016-2019
M.Sc. in Business Administration Research 2014-2016

Duisenberg School of Finance (Amsterdam, Netherlands) 2012-2013

Currently the Duisenberg Honors Program at University of Amsterdam
M.Sc. in Corporate Finance and Banking

Huazhong University of Science and Technology (Wuhan, China) 2008-2012

B.Sc. in Economics

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions, Innovation, Corporate Governance, Emerging Market, Stock Analysts

WORKING PAPERS

“Knowledge Transfer and Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions”

Job Market Paper, submitted to conferences
Abstract: This paper investigates the role of innovation characteristics and cultural distance in cross- border
mergers and acquisitions. Using a unique patent-merger dataset for international firms, I show that technology
overlap and knowledge complementarity between firm pairs positively affects the incidence of cross-border
deals. This relationship diminishes with the increase of the cultural distance between the two firms’ countries.
Furthermore, I show that cross-border deals with more technology overlap and smaller cultural distance
generate higher merger synergies and post-merger patent output.

“How Do Emerging-Market Acquirers Create Value in Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions?”

Presented at 2018 IFABS, 2018 EFMA, 2018 CEA-UK, 2018 ACDD, 2017 IPAG
Abstract: As new emerging-market multinationals have large customer bases in the primary markets and the
need to upgrade productivity, they set their globalization strategy accordingly. I find that the average stock market
reaction to the announcement of a cross-border deal made by an emerging-market acquirer is 0.93% over three-
day window. Three channels are explored. Firstly, deals that facilitate knowledge transfer generate higher acquirer
returns, in particular, by targeting at firms with R&D record, retaining target CEO, and utilizing the acquirers’

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primary market. Secondly, the acquirer returns are unaffected by transfer in managerial decentralization. Lastly,
the acquirer returns are lower for the deals aiming at natural resources.

“Global Leveraged Buyout Deal Performance: A Cross-Border Cross-Cultural Perspective”

With Maurice McCourt
CEIBS-Cathay Private Equity Research Award, scheduled to present at CEIBS-Cathay Private Equity Research
Symposium 2019
Abstract: Using a novel and comprehensive dataset, we examine the performance of leveraged buyout (“LBO”)
deals by private equity funds across 81 countries. We find that cross-border LBOs have larger deal size than
domestic LBOs, but the deal multiples are not significantly different. Next, we show that deal size and holding
period negatively associate with cross-border LBO performance, while PE sponsor experience positively
associates with deal performance. We also identify country-level characteristics, such as trust distance and
financial development, that affects the performance of cross-border deals.

WORK IN PROGRESS

“Analyst Reaction to Merger and Acquisition Rumors” with Romain Boulland and Sridhar Arcot
“Mergers and Political Capital: Evidence from Chinese State Owned Enterprises” with Ran Tao

CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

• CEIBS-Cathay Private Equity Research Symposium 2019 (Shanghai, China) Mar 2019
• International Finance and Banking Society 2018 Porto Conference (Porto, Portugal) Jul 2018
• 2018 “Merton Miller” Doctoral Seminar, European Financial Management Jun 2018
Association (Milan, Italy)
• 2018 Chinese Economic Association Conference (Edinburgh, UK) Jun 2018
• 30th Asian Finance Association Annual Meeting (Tokyo, Japan, accepted) Jun 2018
• 15th Augustin Cournot Doctoral Days (Strasbourg, France) May 2018
• 2017 IPAG Paris Financial Management Conference (Paris, France) Dec 2017
• 30th Australasian Finance and Banking Conference (Sydney, Australia, accepted) Dec 2017

Conference Participation
• 2018 Tsinghua University Research Summer Camp (Beijing, China) Jul 2018
• The American Finance Association 2018 Annual Meeting (Philadelphia, US) Jan 2018
• The 44th European Finance Association Annual Meeting (Mannheim, Germany) Aug 2017
• Adam Smith Workshop (Paris, France) Mar 2017

GRANTS AND QUALIFICATIONS

• ESSEC-Amundi Chair PhD scholarship 2018-2019

• CEIBS-Cathay Cross-Border Private Equity Research Fund (with Maurice McCourt) 2018
• Scholarship, ESSEC PhD Program 2014-2018

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 • AFA 2018 PhD Student Travel Grant 2017
• CFA Level I Certificate 2014
• Scholarship, Duisenberg School of Finance 2013
• Merit-based scholarship, Huazhong University of Science and Technology 2009-2011

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

• Finance Refresher, Masters Course in English, 30 hours, ESSEC Business Oct-Dec 2018
School (Paris, France)
• Financial Management, Bachelors Course in English, 30 hours, ESSEC Sept-Dec 2018
Business School (Paris, France)

NON-ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE

• Finance researcher, Duisenberg School of Finance (Amsterdam, Apr-Aug 2014

Netherlands)
• Intern, ABN AMRO (Rotterdam, Netherlands) Apr-Jul 2013
• Intern, Deloitte (Hong Kong) Sept-Oct 2011

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• Programming Skills: Stata, Python, SAS

• Languages: Chinese (native), English (fluent), French (basic)
• Personal interest: swimming, drawing, hiking and traveling

REFERENCES

Professor José-Miguel Gaspar Professor Romain Boulland

Professor of Finance Assistant Professor of Finance
Associate Dean for Research ESSEC Business School
ESSEC Business School boulland@essec.edu
gaspar@essec.edu

Professor Sridhar Arcot Professor Maurice McCourt

Associate Professor of Finance Assistant Professor of Finance
ESSEC Business School University of Melbourne
arcot@essec.edu maurice.mccourt@unimelb.edu.au

Professor Ran Tao

Professor of Economics
Renmin University of China
rantao1972@ruc.edu.cn

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