本研究檢視CEO盡責性在債權人定價中的作用。與傳統越盡責、風險越低的推論相反，本文發現在控制公司規模、財務績效與產業固定效果後，CEO盡責性與企業借款成本呈顯著正相關。亦即，由高盡責性CEO管理的公司須支付更高利差。進一步以營運與財務不確定性進行橫斷面分析，結果顯示在現金流量較穩定或破產風險較低的企業中，盡責性對利差的正向效果更為明顯；反之，在高不確定之情境下，此關係不顯著。整體證據隱含，債權人可能將盡責解讀為企業成長潛力受限，因而要求額外溢酬以補償機會成本。本文結果顯示CEO人格特質對外部融資條件的影響，並為債權人在授信定價中納入管理者特質提供新證據，也提醒企業在高階主管甄選與融資策略上需同時權衡穩健與成長兩種市場觀感。

This study investigates the role of CEO conscientiousness in creditors’ pricing decisions. Contrary to the conventional view that higher conscientiousness signals lower risk, we find that—after controlling for firm size, financial performance, and industry fixed effects—CEO conscientiousness is positively and significantly associated with borrowing costs. In other words, firms led by highly conscientious CEOs pay higher loan spreads. Cross-sectional tests based on operating and financial uncertainty show that this positive effect is strongest among firms with more stable cash flows or lower bankruptcy risk, whereas the relation becomes insignificant in high-uncertainty settings. Taken together, the evidence suggests that lenders may interpret strong conscientiousness as a sign of limited growth potential and therefore demand an additional risk premium to compensate for foregone opportunities. Our findings highlight the influence of CEO personality traits on external financing terms, provide new evidence for incorporating managerial attributes into credit pricing, and remind firms to balance perceptions of prudence and growth when selecting top executives and formulating financing strategies.

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