Does Corporate Transparency Matter? Evidence from Uganda

Last registered on April 26, 2024
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Does Corporate Transparency Matter? Evidence from Uganda
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0013407
Initial registration date
April 19, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
April 26, 2024, 11:15 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
Uganda
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Emanuele Colonnelli
Affiliation
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Thomas Rauter
PI Affiliation
University of Chicago Booth School of Business
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2022-10-31
End date
2025-06-30
Keywords
Finance & Microfinance, Firms & Productivity
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
This experiment aims to understand the causal effects of corporate transparency and accounting (CTA) practices on the growth and access to finance of medium-sized firms in Uganda. We provide consulting to companies in a randomized controlled trial setting. For each treated firm, we assign a financial consultant to introduce digital accounting software and adopt best accounting and financial reporting practices. We evaluate the causal impact of this intervention on both CTA practices and various firm-level outcomes, such as access to finance and firm performance.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Colonnelli, Emanuele and Thomas Rauter. 2024. "Does Corporate Transparency Matter? Evidence from Uganda." AEA RCT Registry. April 26. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.13407-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
This experiment aims to understand the causal effects of corporate transparency and accounting (CTA) practices on the growth and access to finance of medium-sized firms in Uganda. We provide consulting to companies in a randomized controlled trial setting. For each treated firm, we assign a financial consultant to introduce digital accounting software and adopt best accounting and financial reporting practices. We evaluate the causal impact of this intervention on both CTA practices and various firm-level outcomes, such as access to finance and firm performance.
Intervention Start Date
2023-08-01
Intervention End Date
2024-07-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
1. Corporate transparency and accounting (CTA) practices
2. Access to finance
3. Firm size and growth
3. Firm practices
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
See Pre-Analysis Plan (attached pdf) for more details.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
See Pre-Analysis Plan (attached pdf) for more details.
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
See Pre-Analysis Plan (attached pdf) for more details.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
We split the sample of invite firms into a treatment and a control group. We stratify on size, CTA practices, and access to finance.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization done in office by a computer.
Randomization Unit
We randomize at the firm level.
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
400 firms
Sample size: planned number of observations
400 firms, surveyed at baseline and with multiple follow-up surveys.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
200 treated firms and 200 control firms
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Social & Behavioral Sciences IRB Office - University of Chicago
IRB Approval Date
2022-09-29
IRB Approval Number
IRB21-1682
Analysis Plan

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