Financing Firm Growth

Organized by the Private Sector Development Research Network

Hosted by the International Finance Corporation (IFC)

Moderated by Arti Grover, Principal Economist, Economic Policy and Market Research Department, (IFC)

Friday,  28 March 2025 from 9-10am EST 

LINK TO REGISTER WILL BE AVAILABLE HERE SOON

ABOUT THE SEMINAR

This seminar will present comprehensive research on firm participation in capital markets across Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs). The study leverages a detailed transaction-level dataset covering over 700,000 bond and stock issuances worldwide from 1990-2020 to examine the evolution of capital market financing. The presentation will analyze how firms utilize funds raised from capital markets, exploring both growth applications (tangible/intangible asset investment) and non-growth uses (cash holdings, debt-to-equity ratios). It will also assess the impact on firm performance through key metrics including sales, profits, employment, and productivity measures such as Total Factor Productivity and Marginal Revenue Product of Capital. The findings provide insights into the changing dynamics of corporate financing in emerging economies and their implications for firm-level and aggregate economic performance.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Cesaire Assah Meh

Manager of Macro and Market Risk, Economic Policy and Market Research Department of the International Finance Corporation (IFC)

Cesaire A. Meh manages Macro and Market Risk at IFC, leading macro-financial analysis for investments, advisory services, and private capital mobilization. His team focuses on global economic trends, country risk, capital flows, and climate finance in emerging markets. Previously, he spent 20+ years at the Bank of Canada in senior roles, including Managing Director of International Economic Analysis and Senior Research Officer focusing on macroprudential policy. He represented Canada in G20 and Financial Stability Board groups, and chaired BIS committees. He received Bank of Canada Awards for promoting diversity and inclusion (2020, 2022).

His research covers macro-finance, monetary policy, inequality, and fintech. He was a visiting scholar at Princeton and professor at African School of Economics. Born in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast, he holds a PhD in economics (Western University), Master’s (Université Laval), and computer science diploma from Institut National Polytechnique Houphouet-Boigny.

Details of Dr. Assah Meh’s work can be found here.