2022/03/24 by Luca Verginer, Massimo Riccaboni, Verginer, Luca +1 · 1 voice
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Medicine · #Biotechnology and Related Fields #FOS: Economics and business #General Economics (econ.GN) #Innovation Policy and R&D #econ.GN
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2203.12968
openalex publication_date 2022/03/24 · arxiv published 2022/03/24 · openalex created_date 2022/04/03 · arxiv updated 2025/07/30 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
This study examines the effects of acquisitions on the retention and R&D productivity of inventors in the biotech sector, using data from 15,318 inventors involved in 1,375 acquisitions between 1990 and 2010. We employ a staggered difference-in-differences approach and find that acquisitions lead to a 13.5% decrease in inventor retention and a 35% drop in citation-weighted patent productivity post-acquisition. The productivity decline is more severe for inventors who remain with the acquiring firm, particularly for those whose expertise is closely tied to the target company. However, older inventors and those whose expertise aligns with the acquiring company's existing R&D portfolio tend to retain higher productivity levels after the acquisition.