The Role of the Capital Market in Determining Capital Structure: Evidence from Slovenian Public and Private Corporations

Abstract

This article tests the role the Slovenian capital market plays in determining corporate capital structure. It concludes that even though private corporations exhibit higher relative debt levels than their public counterparts, their dynamics are governed in similar ways. One potential reason for that is the country’s poorly developed primary capital market, which creates similar external barriers to raising capital. The article highlights factors that cause this situation and provides guidelines for capital market regulators in (post-)transition economies about related issues to address. This facilitates the design of financial systems and legal environments in a way that helps create a well-functioning primary capital market, i.e. a cost-efficient mechanism to raise new financial sources and to help achieve the efficient allocation of funds in the economy.

Keywords: capital structure, financing policy, capital market, trade-off theory, pecking-order hy- pothesis, Slovenia

JEL Classification: G32, G10