State-Owned Enterprises Catalysts for public value creation?

SOEs are an influential and growing force globally. For instance, the proportion of SOEs among the Fortune Global 500 has grown from 9% in 2005 to 23% in 20142, driven particularly by the growth of Chinese SOEs. Although there are many different drivers and motivations, where state ownership is the favoured option, SOEs should not be purely evaluated only on the basis of financial results (the profit and loss account), but more widely on how they contribute to societal value creation, taking an integrated and holistic view of their impact.