Abstract:

In the Greek economy, family businesses hold an important position and play a crucial role in the development of entrepreneurship and private initiative. This study examines the relationship between the major shareholder’s ownership percentage and firm performance using 77 family-owned businesses and a combined sample of 110 firms, including both family-owned and non-family-owned enterprises. Utilizing fixed effects panel data analysis, this research represents the first investigation of its kind for publicly listed firms in Greece, exploring how ownership concentration influences performance metrics such as Return on Assets (ROA). Α non-linear relationship is identified in both the family-owned businesses and the overall sample. Specifically, increased ownership concentration initially negatively affects performance up to a certain threshold, beyond which a positive effect is observed. This study highlights the complexities of ownership dynamics and calls for further empirical research to deepen our understanding of these relationships in the Greek context.