How different types and motives of cross-border acquisitions influence transaction duration? Evidence from Chinese firms

This study investigates how different types of cross-border acquisitions (CBAs) by Chinese firms influence transaction duration, with a particular focus on the moderating role of strategic motives such as technology-seeking and resource-seeking. Based on a dataset of 2326 firm-year observations from Chinese firms between 1986 and 2022, we employe a panel data regression model to analyze the relationship. Our findings indicate that intra-industry acquisitions tend to have a shorter transaction duration compared to cross-industry acquisitions, and this effect is significantly moderated by an acquiring firm’s strategic motives. Specifically, when acquiring firms are motivated by pursuing technology or resource, intra-industry acquisitions further facilitate faster completion than cross-industry acquisitions. By creatively incorporating cross-border acquisition (CBA) motives into an analytical model, this study generates important implications for Chinese firms in their CBA activities. In particular, our findings offer both theoretical and practical contributions for Chinese enterprises in terms of how to enhance the efficiency of CBAs.