Held at Monash University in Melbourne on 9 July 2026, the Joint School Conference brought together professors from SMU School of Accountancy and Monash University to present their research papers, share their expertise, and exchange insights - fostering a spirit of collaboration between both institutions. SMU School of Accountancy was represented by Associate Dean (Research) of School of Accountancy, Associate Professor Yun Lou and Assistant Professor Jungbae Kim.
Innovation Information Frictions and Capital Markets: Evidence from the USPTO’s Patent Public Search
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Yun Lou, Associate Professor of Accounting, SMU School of Accountancy, presented her paper co-authored with Xuanbo Li and Wanrong Xu, which examined how innovation information frictions affect market outcomes and firm activities. Using the launch of the USPTO’s Patent Public Search (PPS) as an exogenous reduction in investors’ costs of processing complex patent information, they find that lower processing costs reduce information asymmetry about firms’ innovation activities, reflected in improved stock liquidity around patent grant dates. The effect is stronger when investors face tighter information-processing constraints. Consistent with more informed trading, they find stronger price reactions to patent grants and stronger associations between grant-window returns and firms’ future profitability after the PPS launch. Next, they show that PPS lowers the processing costs for analysts, leading to more timely forecasts and recommendations, lower forecast dispersion, and improved forecast accuracy. Finally, firms respond to reduced processing costs by increasing R&D investment and expanding R&D-related disclosures. Overall, their findings highlight the importance of non-financial information processing friction in shaping capital markets.
Rewriting the Resume: How Corporate Misconduct Reshapes Employee Self-Presentation
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Jungbae Kim, Assistant Professor of Accounting, SMU School of Accountancy, presented his paper co-authored with Rencheng Wang, Associate Professor of Accounting, SMU School of Accountancy, which examined whether individuals adjust their online professional profiles in response to corporate misconduct linked to their work histories. Following adverse corporate ESG-related events, they show that individuals affiliated with misconduct firms are more likely to revise their profiles and that their revisions contain more substantive changes. The responses are stronger when the underlying misconduct is more severe and more novel, which is consistent with stronger reactions to higher reputational spillover risk. In addition, individuals tend to revise positions at non-misconduct firms and place greater emphasis on their own roles and specific details. Lastly, their findings are not driven by current employees of misconduct firms, suggesting a broader reputational signaling rather than the job search incentive. Overall, their study contributes to research on disclosure and reputation repair by documenting individuals’ strategic self-presentation following corporate misconduct.
The following papers were presented at the conference by faculty members from Monash University:
“Do Insider Trading Profits Result from the Superior Processing of Public Information? Evidence from Subtle Peer Firms’ Earnings Announcements” – presented by Dr Jacob Raleigh
“Accounting for Lease Commitments and Interfirm Investment: Evidence from ASC 8421” – presented by Dr Xiaoxiao Yu
Since 2014, the Joint School Conference was held at various established universities in the Asia-Pacific region and Europe including Beijing, Seoul, Sydney, Taipei, Shanghai, Tilburg, and Xiamen. Visit https://accountancy.smu.edu.sg/research/academic-research/seminars-and-conferences/joint-school-conference-overseas to read more about the Joint School Conference.
