The State As Controlling Shareholder in Chinese State-Owned Enterprises: The China Unicom's Mixed-Ownership Reform and the Possibility for the Emergence of a ‘Consultative Corporate Governance’ Model

Abstract

This short paper discusses the recently promoted mixed-ownership reform (MOR) in light of the increasingly strengthened "Party-building" work in SOEs. It first briefly introduces the state of SOEs in China as well as the legal and political structures of corporate governance in SOEs. It then proceeds to examine the MOR and its implications, focusing on the recent controversial case of China Unicom’s MOR. From this MOR case the paper advances the possibility for the emergence of a 'Consultative Corporate Governance' model in Chinese SOEs with mixed-ownership. The paper ends with questions and directions for future research.

Keywords: State-Owned Enterprises (SOE); State Enterprises; China; Mixed-Ownership Reform; SOE Privatisation; Corporate Governance

JEL Classification: K22; L21