Two Dimensions of the Internationalization of Firms*

The paper argues that there are two dimensions of internationalization: one which refers to the production activities of firms abroad and one which focuses on the corporate governance dimension of firms. While the first one is well known in the literature on internationalization, the financial dimension has not yet been addressed empirically. At the same time there are indicators that financial internationalization is gaining importance. Using a sample of the 100 largest German companies it shows that both dimensions, the real and the financial dimension, do not co‐vary and therefore cannot be combined into one index.