Abstract/Summary

Drawing on an integrative lens of the institutional theory and resource-based view, we investigate the effect of institutional distance, institutional quality, and government involvement on the duration of cross-border M&A deals in Brazil between 2000 and 2015. The larger institutional distance does not extend the duration of M&A deals for emerging home country (Brazil) and developed host country pairs. However, the larger institutional distance between emerging home (Brazil) and emerging host country pairs leads to longer M&A deal durations. We show a positive association between institutional quality and M&A deal duration in developed host countries but not emerging host countries. While no association between government involvement and M&A deal durations is reported for developed host country settings, we find that government involvement extends the deals' duration in emerging host countries. Thus, government involvement does not contribute as a firm-level asset in helping Brazilian acquirers shorten their M&A deal durations. We explain our findings with the importance of institutional quality and complex or sluggish bureaucratic structure, politics, or corruption that might emerge as transaction costs in emerging country contexts.