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PurposeThis study analyzed the moderating effect of bank size on the relationship between financial soundness and financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya.Design/methodology/approachThe study employed data from 39 commercial banks for ten years from 2009 to 2018. Panel data regression model was used to analyze data.FindingsThe study results established a negative moderating effect of bank size on the relationship between commercial banks' financial soundness and net interest margin (NIM) and return on assets (ROA) with the results indicating a correlation coefficient of −0.1699 and −0.218, respectively. However, an absence of moderating effect was established when return on equity (ROE) was used as a measure of financial performance.Practical implicationsThe paper finding recommends that banks' management and other policy makers should consider the effect of bank size while devising financial soundness policies to ensure optimal level of banks' financial soundness aimed at improving banks' financial performance. In addition, bankers associations should come up with policies to standardize asset quality management practices to ensure continuous positive performance of the banking sector.Originality/valueThe study shows the contribution and applicability of the theory of production in the banking sector.

Purpose This study aims to review the degree to which fraud and other unethical practices especially in the digital space have affected the Nigerian banking industry both in the past and present, and how it will be a growing concern in the imminent future. The objective of the study was to examine the impact of electronic fraud on the quality of assets and return on assets of Nigerian deposit money banks. Design/methodology/approach The research used secondary data for the periods 2006 till 2018, which were collected from the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation annual reports. Descriptive analysis and the ordinary least square method of regression analysis were used for data analysis. Findings Findings revealed that electronic fraud cases increased progressively over most of the years of study, which can be attributed to the increased bank products that are electronic-based. Originality/value Many of the reviewed literature examined electronic fraud and its impact on bank profitability but this study examined the cause of electronic fraud and what can be done to curtail it.

PurposeThis study investigates the relationship between the level of sustainability reporting and Food Industry Performance (operational, financial and market).Design/methodology/approachUsing data culled from 1426 observations from 31 different countries for ten years (2008–2017), an independent variable derived from environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) score is regressed against dependent manufacture performance indicator variables [return on assets (ROA), Return on Equity (ROE) and Tobin’s Q (TQ)]. Two types of control variables complete the regression analysis in this study: firm-specific and macroeconomic.FindingsThe findings elicited from the empirical results demonstrate that there is a significant relationship between ESG and financial performance (ROE). However, there is no significant relationship between ESG and operational performance (ROA) and market performance (TQ).Originality/valueThis paper presents a new framework that considers sustainability reporting as an innovation tool, examining innovation in terms of its positive or negative impact on financial performance. It contributes to research on the innovation paradigm and knowledge management by highlighting the significance of sustainability reporting as a tool of innovation in enhancing the financial performance.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the influence of audit committee characteristics and external audit quality on the performance of non-financial public limited companies listed on the National Stock Exchange 100. Design/methodology/approach One-way random effect panel data regression was applied to 74 non-financial firms in the Nifty 100 from 2014 until 2019. The overall audit committee index and external audit index were built based on the new Indian Companies Act, 2013 and on a review of the literature to capture the impact of the new Act on firm financial performance. Findings The outcome of the study revealed that there is lack of evidence to show that audit committee characteristics improve the performance of top Indian non-financial listed firms. However, external audit quality was found to have a significant positive impact on the financial performance of firms as measured by Tobin’s Q, while firm size and leverage were found to have a significant impact on the financial performance of firms as measured by return on assets and return on equity. Practical implications This paper will be greatly beneficial for financial practitioners and policymakers because it provides practical suggestions and recommendations about the types of external audit that are indispensable for the overall effectiveness and performance of firms. The study findings may also aid strategic policy formulation and execution for better corporate governance practices for the purpose of profit and wealth maximisation. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, to date, no previous research has evaluated the effects of audit committee features and external audit quality on the financial performance of firms in India after the implementation of the new Companies Act, 2013. Hence, this study fills this void in the present literature by examining the overall features of the audit committee and external audit and their impact on firm performance in the setting of India.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of basel accord on the Bangladeshi bank performance including Islamic banks and the role of subordinated debt (sub-debt) as basel regulatory capital (BRC). Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted the empirical investigation by adopting a quantitative approach and using the secondary data available in the annual reports of the sample banks between 2009 and 2018. This paper develops an econometric model to compare and analyze the regression result under two states of capital-to-risk adjusted assets ratio (CRAR) with sub-debt and CRAR without sub-debt. This paper analyzes the impact of sub-debt in the largest Islamic bank for the year 2007 as a case study for endorsing the findings. Findings This paper finds that CRAR has positive alignments with return on equity (ROE) and cash dividend when sub-debt is considered as Tier 2 capital. This paper observes that the huge bad loan write-off supports to downsize the asset size thus temporarily enhance the return on assets (ROA). In a nutshell, sub-debt gives banks an ill incentive to disburse steady cash dividends instead of injecting genuine equity capital, encouraging them to take more credit risk. In fact, more private commercial banks (PCBs) issued huge sub-debts between 2009 and 2018 under a unique arrangement, which the authors termed as the “sub-debt trap.” Research limitations/implications This paper draws policy implications for the banking regulator to identify and rectify a systemic problem of the “sub-debt trap” which hinders the regulatory purpose from the implementation of basel accord II and III. A limitation of this study is the authors shed analytical light on Bangladeshi banks, i.e. it a single country analysis which may not be generalized to other developing countries except matching with a similar context. Originality/value The paper contributes to accumulating empirical studies on the effectiveness of basel accord implementation in developing countries. In most of the developing countries, where institutional loopholes are a major concern, the research provides evidence that how weak institutional settings are largely responsible for harvesting the potential benefit from micro-prudential regulation such as the basel accord. To shed analytical light on developing country context, the study document that sub-debt has been instrumentalized to maintain minimum capital ratio and banks managers tends more focus on improving ROE instead of ROA. The findings of the study are supportive to other developing countries where sub-debt considered as BRC and issued through private placement. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, it is the first attempt to cast doubt on the impact of sub-debt as a BRC, given the uniqueness of the Bangladeshi banking industry, on the PCBs including Islamic banks.

PurposeThe objective of this study is to ascertain whether financial sector sustainability had any correlation with financial sector performance in Nigeria and recommend appropriate policy directions.Design/methodology/approachThe study selected four major Nigerian banks namely Zenith Bank Guaranty Bank United Bank for Africa and First Bank of Nigeria as its sample and covered 2010 to 2019. Secondary panel data were obtained from the published financial Statements of the banks and subjected to analytical techniques of panel unit root tests descriptive statistics panel least square and Co-integration statistical techniques at the 5% level of significance.FindingsThe findings revealed that the exogenous variables (SUST) have significant Impact on the endogenous variable (ROA, ROE) in the short-run but insignificant in the long run.Research limitations/implicationsThe period covered was limited to 10 years and has an African development focus with emphasis on West Africa, Nigeria. However, the implication could be general to most or all economic and financial landscape. It shows that there is a correlation between financial sector sustainability and return on assets and returns on equity.Practical implicationsMonetary authorities should develop applicable annual performance sustainability framework for all banks; and set performance targets, that will be measured and monitored by appropriate regulatory unit periodically.Social implicationsThe financial sector survival is directly related to its contribution towards the survival and development of its host community and operating environment.Originality/valueThis approach is novel in the sense that its approach is practical and measurable, which most research work have not focused on.

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate whether being sustainable is also profitable for agri-food companies in the short-term.Design/methodology/approachThe study analysed the impacts of sustainability multiple issues on one-year lagged return on assets, developing a longitudinal analysis focused on best and worst companies' samples for a timeframe of ten years. Notably, we performed OLS regressions on unbalanced panels data collecting overall 1,760 annual observations from 318 companies. Moreover, we examined the moderating effects of slack resources on the relationship between sustainability and the short-term firms' profitability.FindingsThe results show that the best sustainable companies usually improve future profitability. Conversely, the worst ones should prioritize efforts in specific initiatives (i.e. responsible products, eco-innovation, management and governance commitment to sustainability), which positively affect their profitability and compensate possible short-term financial losses due to CSR strategy execution and sustainable production/supply chain management. Finally, the study found mixed results regarding the moderating effects of slack resources on the scrutinized relationships.Practical implicationsThe paper highlights the key environmental, social and governance aspects to be addressed for consolidating and enhancing the virtuous relationship between non-financial and financial performance, distinguishing between best and worst sustainability performers.Originality/valueThis study is among the first that decomposed sustainability in multiple micro aspects (i.e. sustainable strategy, products and processes) investigating the effects of each of them on the short-term agri-food firms' profitability.

PurposeThis study aims at investigating the impact of the disclosure and the Shariah governance on the financial performance in MENASA (Middle East, North Africa and Southeast Asia) Islamic banks.Design/methodology/approachWe use the Generalized Least Squares (GLS) regression models to check the interdependence relationship between the disclosure, the Shariah governance and the financial performance of 47 Islamic banks (IBs) from ten countries operating in MENASA region. The sample period is from 2012 to 2019. In these regressions models, Return on Assets (ROA) and Return on Equity (ROE) are the dependent variables. The disclosure and the Shariah governance indicators are the independent factors. To measure the Shariah governance, we use the three sub-indices, which are the Board of Directors (BOD), the Audit Committee (AC) and the Shariah Supervisory Board (SSB). Size, Leverage and Age of the bank are used as control variables. We also used The Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) and the three-stage least squares (3SLS) estimations for robustness check.FindingsResult shows a negative relationship between the disclosure and the two performance measures in IBs. Furthermore, as far as the governance indicators are concerned, we found that the BOD and AC, as well as the BOD and SSB, have a positive and significant impact on the ROA and ROE, respectively. This reveals that good governance had a significant association with higher performance in MENASA IBs.Originality/valueThe paper considers both IBs that adopt mandatory as well as voluntary AAOIFI standards and the GLS method to investigate the impact of the AAOIFI disclosure and the Shariah governance on ROA and ROE. Also, it uses the GMM and the 3SLS estimations for robustness check. It is relevant for researchers, policymakers and stakeholders concerned with IBs' performance.

PurposeThis study aims to examine the significance of the non-linear relationship of board size and board independence on the financial performance of listed non-financial firms in India.Design/methodology/approachThe study draws the sample of the listed non-financial firm in the Indian market from the year 2011–2018 and applied panel least squares regression with and without industry fixed effects on the model with quadratic equation. Quantile regression is also used to test the robustness of the results. The financial performance is measured through one accounting measure (i.e. return on assets [ROA]) and one market-based measure (i.e. Tobin’s Q). The empirical model also controls firm-specific variables which are expected to have an impact on financial performance.FindingsThe study found that the relationship of board size and board independence with the financial performance of a firm is in a non-linear inverted U-shape. The results are qualitatively similar for both ROA and Tobin’s Q after controlling industry fixed effects.Originality/valueThis is the first study in India which tests the non-linear relationship of board size and board independence with the financial performance of the firm. The study contributes to the limited literature on the implications of board characteristics on the performance of the firms in India.

Purpose This study aims to investigate the direct effect of directors’ age diversity, and its interaction effect with the effectiveness of TMT meetings on bank performance. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative data were extracted from the bank’s annual reports for the six years 2011–2016. Age diversity was calculated using the coefficient of variation, and the bank’s performance was measured as return on assets and return on equity. The frequency of directors’ meetings was used as a proxy for the effectiveness of TMT meetings. Findings Based on the hierarchical regression analysis, the results do not support the hypothesis that there is a negative influence between age diversity on performance. However, the results support the hypothesis that age diversity has a positive effect on performance because of the high effectiveness of TMT meetings. Research limitations/implications The limitations of the study include the use of only samples of the banks registered with Bank Indonesia. The subsequent research could use cross-country bank samples. In addition, the research uses age-related diversity variables only. Therefore, further research could consider other types of diversity such as education, functional or tenure. Furthermore, this study is limited to the effectiveness of the director (TMT) meetings as the only moderating variable. Further research could improve on this by including other moderating variables. Practical implications The findings of this study indicate that the existence of age diversity in TMT will aid bank governance if it is accompanied by effective meetings among groups of directors of varying ages. This age composition of directors will make meetings more effective as rich information for strategic decisions will be generated from different points of view because of the wide spectrum of age categories, and hence, there will be a positive impact on bank performance. Social implications This study indicates that effective meetings of TMT groups of different ages will minimize the rise of “self-esteem”. Therefore, they will benefit the creation of a better quality relationship among TMT individuals. Accordingly, TMT within a company will have more opportunities to discuss in providing bright ideas for the company on how to innovate and create a new strategy to improve its performance. Originality/value This study, being the first to explore the effectiveness of TMT meetings to bank performance in the contexts of directors’ age diversity, contributes to the literature in this area, and especially to the body of knowledge about companies implementing a two-tier governance system.

PurposeDrawing on three theoretical frameworks, this paper aims to examine the effects of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and the interaction between SOEs and prior acquisition experience of Chinese domestic and cross-border acquirers.Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of 4,116 firms consisting of 3,939 domestic mergers and acquisitions (M&As) and 177 cross-border M&As over the period 2004–2017, this study adopts both accounting- and market-based performance measures, namely, return on assets, return on equity and buy-and-hold abnormal return to analyse the effects of SOEs and the interaction between SOEs and prior acquisition experience on acquirers’ performance.FindingsFirst, this paper finds SOEs to exert a positive influence on acquirer performance, contrary to agency theory but in line with the resource-based view. However, the positive relationship between SOEs and performance appears more pronounced for domestic M&A compared to cross-border M&As. Second, this study also finds prior acquisition experience and the combined effect of SOE and prior acquisition experience to have a positive and significant bearing on performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of this study is the lack of cross-border M&A data with all the relevant information compared to domestic M&A. Thus, the cross-border M&A sample appears lower compared to the domestic M&A sample.Practical implicationsThe results imply that the moderating role of prior acquisition experience on the relationship between SOEs and performance appears to be crucial for cross-border M&A performance compared to domestic M&A.Originality/valueThe findings of this study show SOEs increase performance, contrary to the widely held view based on agency theory that SOEs are inefficient.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to apply various data mining techniques for predicting the financial performance of Islamic banking in Indonesia through the main exogenous determinants of profitability by choosing the best data mining technique based on the criteria of the highest accuracy score of testing and training. Design/methodology/approach This paper used data mining techniques to predict the financial performance of Islamic banking by applying all of LASSO regression, random forest (RF), artificial neural networks and k-nearest neighbor (KNN) over monthly data sets of all the full-fledged Islamic banks working in Indonesia from January 2011 until March 2020. This study used return on assets as a real measurement of financial performance, whereas the capital adequacy ratio, asset quality and liquidity management were used as exogenous determinants of financial performance. Findings The experimental results showed that the optimal task for predicting the financial performance of Islamic banking in Indonesia is the KNN technique, which affords the best-predicting accuracy, and gives the optimal knowledge from the financial performance of Islamic banking determinants in Indonesia. As well, the RF provides closer values to the optimal accuracy of the KNN, which makes it another robust technique in predicting the financial performance of Islamic banking. Research limitations/implications This paper restricted modeling the financial performance of Islamic banking to profitability through the main determinants of return of assets in Indonesia. Future research could consider enlarging the modeling of financial performance using other models such as CAMELS and Z-Score to predict the financial performance of Islamic banking under data mining techniques. Practical implications Owing to the lack of using data mining techniques in the Islamic banking sector, this paper would fill the literature gap by providing new effective techniques for predicting financial performance in the Islamic banking sector using data mining approaches, which can be efficient tools in business and management modeling for financial researchers and decision-makers in the Islamic banking sector. Originality/value According to the author’s knowledge, this paper is the first that provides data mining techniques for predicting the financial performance of the Islamic banking sector in Indonesia.

PurposeThis paper aims to determine the specific financial ratio's effects on market value and return of assets for Turkish real estate investment trusts (REITs) traded at Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE). The paper intends to define liquidity ratios, financial structure ratios, return ratios and stock performance ratios related to market value and return of asset.Design/methodology/approachThe study includes 17 REITs traded in ISE. The period of study is specified as the year from 2009 to 2018. Panel data analysis is applied in this study. Dependent variables are current market value and return of assets, independent variables are 12 financial ratios, which are considered to explain the model significantly. These ratios will be calculated from audited year-end balance sheets for specific periods throughout at least ten years as time series. Two different models and hypotheses have been established to identify the financial ratios that affect the market value and return of assets for REITs.FindingsAccording to the results, long-term financial loans/total assets, return of equity and working capital ratio are negatively correlated with market value, while market value/book value and total assets are correlated positively. On the other hand, market value/book value ratio, price/earning ratio, long-term financial loans/total assets and earnings per share are correlated with return of assets. REITs have high levels of financial leverage, especially in foreign currency. The striking point is that REITs hardly ever do not use financial derivatives to hedge their position again currency and interest rate risk. This approach makes the financial structures of REITs vulnerable and fragile against market volatility.Originality/valueIn Turkey, as an example of an emerging market, financial borrowing does not increase the return rates and market value for REITs due to market's idiosyncratic properties. This finding provides substantial insight into how the debt and equity allocation of Turkish REITs should be structured. Also, it has been observed that forward-looking expectations are considered more than the current situation in the market.

PurposeThis study investigates the impact of sustainability reporting on agriculture industries’ performance (operational, financial and market).Design/methodology/approachUsing data culled from 1426 observations from 31 different countries for ten years (2008–2017), an independent variable derived from the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) score is regressed against dependent manufacture performance indicator variables [return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE) and Tobin'sQ(TQ)]. Two types of control variables complete the regression analysis in this study: firm-specific and macroeconomic.FindingsThe findings elicited from the empirical results demonstrate that there is no significant relationship between ESG and operational performance (ROA), financial performance (ROE) and market performance (TQ). Surprisingly, when each component of ESG is regressed separately against the performance, the results reveal that governance disclosure has a positive impact on market performance.Research limitations/implicationsThis study captures only quantity rather than the quality of ESG disclosure. Therefore, the results of this study may not necessarily give the “true” motivation for firms to disclose sustainability activities.Originality/valueThis study highlights the agriculture industry management lacunae manifesting in terms of the weak nexus between each component of ESG and agriculture industries’ performance.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to critically evaluate how conventional and Islamic banks trade off risk, efficiency and financial performance in their business models, to investigate how patterns of risk and efficiency vary between conventional and Islamic banks and to critically evaluate how the profitability of conventional and Islamic banks varies following the financial crisis. Design/methodology/approach This study uses univariate and multivariate statistical techniques by investigating 12 Islamic banks and 34 conventional banks operating in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region has been studied over the period 2011–2018. Findings The results suggest that Islamic and conventional banks differ not in the levels of efficiency, risk and profitability, but rather in how risk and efficiency influence banks’ financial performance. Islamic banks are found to be less influenced by the adverse effects of credit risk, which is consistent with the risk-sharing nature of Islamic financing. However, the results only hold for return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) while the net interest margin is observed to be negatively influenced by credit risk. Lower cost-income efficiency is also found to boost ROA and ROE of Islamic banks which could be attributed to a larger share of non-interest revenues due to Sharīʿah-compliance. Research limitations/implications From a theoretical point of view, this study helps to understand the risk, efficiency and financial performance of Islamic banks in comparison with conventional banks. Practical implications The results of this study can serve bank managers, regulators and shareholders. Policymakers should encourage a more risk-sharing structure of Islamic financing as it brings less adverse effects of credit risk and increases income sustainability for Islamic banks. The present study may help bank managers to improve the financial performance of their firms by controlling risk and efficiency. The study results also have implications for shareholders and depositors of Islamic and conventional banks as they should have a predetermined position about the level of credit risk and efficiency in each banking system. Originality/value The foremost contribution is that this is one of the few studies to compare risk, efficiency and financial performance of Islamic and conventional banks in the GCC region. By using the latest data, this paper hopes that the findings will be more relevant than previous studies to the current situation of the banking industry in the region.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to focus on examining whether third-party assurance (TPA) and mandatory corporate social responsibility reporting (MCSR) matter in the association between philanthropic giving (PHG) and listed firms’ financial performance. Design/methodology/approach Using the Indian stock market as a testing ground, the study used interactive regression and panel regression to analyse 80 sustainability-reporting firms with 800 firm-year observations between 2010 and 2019. Findings The first findings show a positive association between PHG and financial performance (return on assets, ROA and stock price returns, SPR). Also, the study shows that the interactive variable of MCSR and PHG has a mixed association with financial performance. The second findings show a positive and statistically significant association between TPA and SPR. Also, the interactive effect of TPA and PHG has a negative association with return on equity (ROE) and a positive association with SPR. The third findings show a negative association between MCSR and financial performance (ROA and ROE) and a positive association with SPR. However, when a firm combines MCSR and TPA, the outcome is a negative association with ROE. The fourth findings show that MCSR has a positive association with TPA. The study control for any form of heteroscedasticity, serial correlation and endogeneity effects. Practical implications Managers, if given a choice, must opt for TPA over MCSR because the βcoefficient is higher in TPA than MCSR in PHG-financial performance nexus. Originality/value The study addresses the information asymmetry problem from the application of TPA and MCSR, which is new to an emerging economy context.

PurposeThis study aims to examine the effect of ownership concentration and foreign ownership on tunneling activities in Indonesia.Design/methodology/approachThe population in this study were manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange from 2014 to 2018. The total observations used in this study were 557 observations. This study used three measurements to assess tunneling activities in a company, namely, related party receivables (TUL1), related party payables (TUL2) and related party receivables-payables (TUL3).FindingsThe results of this study indicated that ownership concentration and foreign ownership had a negative effect on tunneling activity of TUL1. Meanwhile, the effect of ownership concentration and foreign ownership on TUL2 and TUL3 showed a positive effect. This indicated that manufacturing companies in Indonesia preferred to carry out tunneling activities through related party payables compared with related party receivables. Foreign ownership was also effective in controlling the company’s tunneling activities when the company conducted tunneling transactions of related party receivables. Small companies and companies with positive return on assets were more susceptible to tunneling activities carried out by the companies.Practical implicationsThe results of this study can be used as a consideration for investors in making decisions by looking at tunneling activities carried out by companies in Indonesia.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous study in the tunneling literature has compared the results of the effect of the concentration of foreign ownership and ownership on tunneling using three measurements at once. This is useful to see the company’s behavior of tunneling activities from a different perspective.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediating role of financial performance (FP) in modelling the relationship between green innovation (GI) and firm value (FV), using ASEAN countries as sample with panel analysis.Design/methodology/approachA panel data was collected from 374 publicly traded companies in six ASEAN countries, and was analysed using feasible general least squares (FGLS) to control heteroscedasticity and serial correlation.FindingsThe findings suggest that financial performance, namely return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE), has a significant value in mediating the relationship between GI and FV. This illustrates that investors in the ASEAN region's capital market are more interested in the economic motivation for companies implementing GI. Other findings also provide evidence that ROA and ROE have positive and significant effects on FV. This indicates that the profitability resulting from a firm's ability to continuously innovate has a positive impact on the creation of value by manufacturing companies in the ASEAN region.Research limitations/implicationsThe number of observations is still relatively limited, from manufacturing companies listed on stock exchanges in the ASEAN countries. The total number of samples used in this study was 374 companies with 22.30% of the total population.Originality/valueThis study combines the different types of secondary data to provide panel evidence on the mediating effect of financial performance using ROA and ROE in the relationship between green innovation and firm value, using ASEAN countries as the sample.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of environmental performance on the capital structure and financial performance of Turkish listed firms. Design/methodology/approach This study used data of 49 firms listed on Istanbul Stock Exchange during the period between 2014 and 2019, resulting in 205 firm-year observations. The environmental performance data were drawn from the carbon disclosure project Turkey climate change reports. Ordinary least squares and binary logistic regression models were used to examine whether environmental performance impacts the capital structure and financial performance. Findings The findings of this research revealed that environmental performance significantly positively affects the firm leverage. Findings also showed that environmental performance has a significantly positive impact on return on assets, operating profitability and return on equity, but no significant impact on stock returns. Practical implications Given the increased borrowing costs for Turkish firms after the 2018 currency crisis in Turkey, the findings of this study are very important as they enable managers of Turkish firms to make better decisions related to capital structure and to understand the role of environmental performance in reducing the cost of debt and enhancing financial performance. Originality/value To the author’s knowledge, this research is the first to investigate the effect of environmental performance on capital structure in the Turkish context, and is one of few that explained how environmental performance affects the financial performance of Turkish firms.

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the impact of women directors on corporate performance (CP) and the mediating role of board monitoring in their relationship.Design/methodology/approachThe ordinary least squares with panel corrected standard errors are used as a primary estimator along with three other estimators to check the robustness of the estimations and address the potential endogeneity in a stratified random sample of 320 non-financial Malaysian companies listed on Bursa Malaysia (Stock Exchange) between 2010 and 2014.FindingsIt is found that women directors on the board not only improve firms’ return on assets but also reduce the volatility of their stocks. However, these findings are more applicable in small firms as compared to large firms. Besides, it is also noted the board monitoring significantly mediates the relationship between women directors and CP.Practical implicationsAs the monitoring role of women directors improves CP, substantial efforts may be put in to increase their meritorious representation on the boards. The regulators could pay equal attention to the small firms. Additionally, the number of board meetings may also be increased for strengthening the monitoring abilities of the board to improve CP.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the existing literature, as little attention has been paid to the mediation of board monitoring in the nexus of women directors and CP in the past.

PurposeThis study investigates the impact of derivatives as risk management strategy on the value of Malaysian firms. This study also examines the interaction effect between derivatives and managerial ownership on firm value.Design/methodology/approachThe study examines 200 nonfinancial firms engaged in derivatives for the period 2012–2017 using the generalized method of moments (GMM) to establish the influence of derivatives and managerial ownership on firm value. The study refers to two related theories (hedging theory and managerial aversion theory) to explain its findings. Firm value is measured using Tobin's Q with return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) as robustness checks.FindingsThe study found evidence on the positive influence of derivatives on firm value as proposed by the hedging theory. However, the study concludes that managers less hedge when they owned more shares based on the negative interaction between derivatives and managerial ownership on firm value. Hedging decision among managers in Malaysian firms therefore does not subscribe to the managerial aversion theory.Research limitations/implicationsThis study focuses on the derivatives (foreign currency derivatives, interest rate derivatives and commodity derivatives) and managerial ownership that is deemed relevant and important to the Malaysian firms. Other forms of ownership such as state-/foreign owned and institutional ownership are not covered in this study.Practical implicationsThis study has important implications to managers and investors. First is on the importance of risk management using derivatives to increase firm value, second, the influence of derivatives and managerial ownership on firm value and finally, the quality reporting on derivatives exposure by firms in line with the required accounting standard.Originality/valueThere is limited empirical evidence on the impact of derivatives on firm value as well as the influence of managerial ownership on hedging decisions of Malaysian firms. This study analyzes the influence of derivatives on firm value during the period in which reporting on derivatives in financial reports is made mandatory by the Malaysian regulator, hence avoiding data inaccuracy unlike the previous studies on Malaysia. This study therefore fills the gap in the literature in relation to the risk management strategies using derivatives in Malaysia.

Purpose This study aims to intend to check if female board representation affects performance and risk and to analyse the evolution of the demographic aspects of the presence of women on boards in Brazil. Design/methodology/approach The authors used a sample of 150 Brazilian publicly traded companies from 2010–2018, with different measures of firm performance, firm risk and women’s presence on the board. The study approach is based on a set of ordinary least squares, quantile and panel data regressions. Findings The presence of women on the board has a positive effect on all of our accounting and market performance measures. However, the result of the impact on risk is not conclusive. The study also found that the number of females on the board has a more significant effect at the lower levels of firm performance measured by return on equity, but at the higher levels when measured by Tobin’s Q. Regarding return on assets, the more significant effect happened on the extremes of the performance distribution. The study findings point that market investors place more value in female presence on the board than in director positions. Originality/value By estimating the impact of women’s presence on the boards of directors in firm performance and risk, this study aimed to verify this impact in different aspects of the company. In addition, the authors did so in a sample with many years, making it possible to evaluate the historical evolution of the feminine presence in the boards of administration as well as in the groups of directors, assisting Brazilian legislators with new evidence about the possible impacts of Draft Law 7179/2017.

PurposeThis study provides a systematic review on performance measurement of supply chains from a financial perspective.Design/methodology/approachThis study systematically reviews the financial performance measures of supply chains. More specifically, this research reviews a total of 100 papers published in more than 50 peer-reviewed journals. The reviewed papers are categorized into three major areas of engineering, business and management. Additionally, the papers are investigated based on country, journal frequency, applied methods, publication date and research type (application or developmental).FindingsAccording to the obtained results, cost, return on assets (ROA), sales, asset turnover, return on investment (ROI), market share, inventory turnover, profit margin, revenue growth, economic value added (EVA) and cash-to-cash cycle are the most common metrics of financial performance measurement. Next, a framework is developed based on different categories of performance measurement and decision levels of the supply chain. Finally, some research directions are suggested to be further investigated by other scholars.Originality/valueAlthough available studies on supply chain performance measurement are very vast and comprehensive, the majority of the studies have neglected to highlight the importance of financial measures. In other words, with the advent of nonfinancial measures, however, the majority of supply chain managers still prefer to consider financial issues in their performance assessment process.

PurposeThe readability of annual reports is an important feature that determines the quality of communication between a firm and its stakeholders. Extant literature has demonstrated that readability characteristics of annual reports are crucial in facilitating the investor's ability to process and analyze information, resulting in higher firm performance and lower agency costs. This study examines the relationship between annual report readability, agency costs and the firm performance of listed financial sector companies in Oman.Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of 150 firm-year observations of listed financial sector companies on the Muscat Securities Market (MSM) over the period 2014 to 2018, a panel regression analysis is used, along with the system generalized method of moments (GMM) estimation to address endogeneity concerns. The readability of annual reports is proxied by the length of the annual report, the Flesch reading ease and the Flesch–Kincaid index.FindingsThe ordinary least squares (OLS) results suggest that readability proxied by the length of the annual report has no significant relationship with agency cost, return on assets (ROA) or stock returns. The OLS results are confirmed through the system GMM estimation model for agency costs, Tobin's Q and stock returns. Easier-to-read annual reports measured by the Flesch reading ease demonstrate high asset utilization ratio and Tobin's Q. These results emphasize Flesch reading ease measure in explaining the economic significance of agency cost and Tobin's Q. In contrast, difficult-to-read annual reports are observed for firms with high ROA.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited to the financial sector. Its generalizability could be extended to a similar sector or countries with features similar to Oman. Future studies on readability could be extended to other sectors of Oman, and financial firms with easier-to-read annual reports show a high Tobin's Q, which reflects the confidence of investors in the stock market. These findings may encourage policymakers to regulate the readability features of annual reports and influence the reporting quality of financials and disclosures also including cross-country comparisons.Practical implicationsFinancial firms with easier-to-read annual reports show a high Tobin's Q, which reflects the confidence of investors in the stock market. These findings may encourage policymakers to regulate the readability features of annual reports and influence the reporting quality of financials and disclosures.Originality/valueWhile the study extends prior literature on readability, agency costs and firm performance, it is also one of the first to examine the financial sector of an emerging country, namely, Oman. The study supports the obfuscation hypothesis through the association of readability measure with agency cost. Unlike prior research that has focused on common computational linguistic literature, this study uses three proxies for readability to assess information quality.

Purpose This study aims to examine the determinants of bank stability based on three measures of bank stability while accounting for key bank-specific, macro-finance and structural variables. The aim is to underscore key indicators of stability that can be tracked by analysts, bank managers and regulators, especially in small economies such as Fiji. Design/methodology/approach The sample comprises a balanced panel of seven banking and financial institutions over the period 2000-2018. For consistency of data and similar functions in terms of deposit and loans, this paper considers five commercial banks and two credit institutions in Fiji. A fixed-effect method of regression is applied, to control for bank heterogeneity. The dependent variable is bank stability, which is based on three measures – the Z-score, the risk-adjusted return on assets and the risk-adjusted equity to assets ratio. Findings It is noted that bank size, funding risk, credit risk and Herfindahl-Hirschman index are positively associated with bank stability. In the extended model, both inflation and economic growth are positively associated with bank stability, although only inflation is statistically significant. Moreover, factors having a negative association with bank stability are the liquidity risk, the net interest margin and the remittances inflow. Additionally, the domestically generated political crises of the years 2000 and 2006 and the global financial crisis of 2007–2008 are negatively associated with bank stability. Originality/value This study empirically examines the determinants of bank stability in Fiji’s banking sector. Unlike previous studies, this study considers three measures of stability, with z-score as the dominant measure and as explanatory variables, bank-specific, macro-finance and structural variables. The bank-specific data used in the study were hand-picked from the disclosure statements of banks and macro-finance data were extracted from the World Bank Indicators. The study underscores pertinent factors associated with bank stability in the small island economy of Fiji, which can be of interest to analysts, bankers, regulators and researchers in this domain.

Purpose This paper examines the role of corporate governance on the financial performance of life insurers in South Africa. Specifically, the paper tests two competing hypotheses on the role of boards as effective monitors of opportunistic behaviour of executives, as prescribed by the agency theory or as an effective resource, as advocated by the resource dependency view. Design/methodology/approach The paper estimates both static and dynamic panel data of 68 insurers from 2007 to 2014 using random effects, panel corrected standard error ordinary least squares and generalized method of moment’s estimation techniques. Board size, audit committee size, board independence and audit committee independence are used as the governance indicators while profitability is measured as returns on assets and equity. Findings The findings support both the resource dependency and agency theoretic views of boards. Specifically, the results indicate that large board and audit committees improve financial performance which supports the view of boards as effective resources for insurers. In addition, the role of non-executive directors in addressing agency conflict is reflected in the positive effect of board independence on financial performance. However, the long-run causal positive effect is only reported for audit committee size on return on assets. In addition, the paper also finds evidence of profitability persistence in the life insurance market. Finally, reinsurance usage, insurer size and market concentration were found to have a negative effect on financial performance. Practical implications The findings re-enforce the important role of boards in their oversight responsibilities and as effective resources in the operations of highly specialized insurance businesses. Originality/value As far as the authors are concerned, this empirical analysis documents the first evidence of the linkages between governance mechanisms and financial performance of an insurance market in Africa.

PurposeGiven the mixed evidence on the relationship between internationalisation and firm performance, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of internationalisation on the financial performance in the setting of a matured and stagnant market, the global automotive industry.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses 37 automotive manufacturers covering from 2000 to 2015. Panel regression analyses were used to estimate the relationship between four financial performance variables (return on equity [ROE], return on asset [ROA], return on capital [ROC] and return on sales [ROS]) and three main independent variables (foreign assets to total assets [FATA], research and development intensity [RNDi], advertising intensity [ADVi]), controlling for product diversification, firm size, age and risk.FindingsThe findings reveal that automotive firms with a lower FATA ratio, lower RNDi and higher ADVi tend to achieve higher financial performance. However, the intensity of product diversification does not influence the financial performance of global automakers. Ceteris paribus, larger firms in terms of market capitalisation and new entrants into the market tend to have higher financial performance relative to smaller and older firms.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the literature first by examining the relationship between internationalisation and firm performance in the setting of a matured market, i.e. the automotive industry. Secondly, the paper uses a multinational sample at a global level; and third, it analyses financial performance on a comprehensive basis via four measures, namely, ROA, ROE, ROC and ROS, as the dependent variables.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate family management, financial performance and gender diversity of listed firms. Design/methodology/approach Using the India stock market as a testing ground, this paper used descriptive statistics and panel regression with random effect assumptions in the analysis of 800 firm-year observations between 2010 and 2019. Findings The findings show that an improvement in stock price returns leads to a corresponding increase in women employment. Also, the study shows that an increase in family-managed firms leads to a decrease in the number of women employed in listed firms. This paper speculates using the social role theory that family involvement may see women as the weaker vessel and with a role to concentrate on raising children and handling house affairs. The consequence is a decrease in women employment. The study also shows that the interactive variable of financial performance (return on assets and return on equity) × family-managed firms still causes a decrease in women employment. This paper perceives that managers in family-managed firms see women as weaker vessels and home managers which is consistent with the Indian culture. The results are robust after controlling for endogeneity. Research limitations/implications The research study is limited to large firms on the Indian stock market that submit sustainability reports and also used a single country data that can potentially limit the generalisation of the study. Originality/value No studies have combined social role theory in examining the effect of family management on gender diversity in the emerging markets.

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the relationship between a CEO's ability and authority with firm performance. The authors used a sample of 127 Iranian listed firms for over seven years, from 2011 to 2017.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used data envelopment analysis (DEA) to evaluate managers' abilities, and the authors used business strategies to gauge authorities. Also, the methods of Fama–French and Herfindal–Hirschman were used for 889 firm-year observations.FindingsThe results show that managers' ability based on return on assets can affect firm performance, and skilled managers can improve performance.Originality/valueIn Iran, managers' abilities and other variables can impact it has been studied. Still, no study has been conducted on managers' strength and their level of authority with the presence of supervision on them.

Purpose This paper aims to examine the significance and performance analysis of the Malaysian Real Estate Investment Trust (M-REIT) from 2014 to 2018. Design/methodology/approach Performance analysis is done through operating ratio (current ratio), leverage ratio (debt ratio) and efficiency ratio (return on asset and return on equity). Findings M-REIT has been ranked 27th globally and 7th in Asia Pacific REIT market, implying the significance of the market. The trend of market capitalisation of M-REIT had flourished from 2014 to 2017 but declined in 2018. The total assets of M-REIT have been seen thriving over the years with both Islamic REIT market capitalisation and total assets showing improvements throughout the year. From the viewpoint of efficiency ratios of ROA and ROE, Islamic REIT is deemed more favourable to investors than conventional REITs, implying the high receptive of Islamic REITs. Research limitations/implications In terms of efficiency of operation, it is evident that several sectors of REITs may be at risk of liquidity due to the decline in current ratio from 2014 to 2018, as current ratio of less than 1 is considered a red flag. Originality/value Performance analysis on the performance of each sector as the outcome of the research could ease investors’ decision-making as whether it can be considered as one of the viable investments available in the market.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the role of intellectual capital and knowledge management in the entrepreneurial success of firms through a research model which is subsequently tested empirically.Design/methodology/approachThe paper utilises the knowledge-based perspective to formulate three sets of hypotheses which the authors subsequently test in the empirical analysis on data derived from the Orbis database, which includes over 1-million data points from approximately 240,000 firms across 174 geographic subdivisions of economic regions in 14 European countries, from 2010 to 2013. The analysis utilises probit model regressions on the likelihood of becoming a high-growth firms (HGF), in the presence of a number of control factors including firm age, firm size, tangible assets, foreign ownership, competitiveness (via Herfindahl index), return on assets, industry sector and country location.FindingsFindings from our analysis suggest that investments in intangible assets and generating patents from research and development (R&D) efforts is positively related to the likelihood of becoming a HGF. In addition, cluster membership seems to be a positive influence on becoming a HGF, however the moderating impact of intangible investments and patents is less clear in clusters.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors highlight the mixed effects from cluster membership and the beneficial impact from intellectual capital and knowledge management in achieving high growth firm status.Originality/valueThe authors derive and test our research model, which outlines the interrelationship of the various factors leading to firms becoming high-growth firms. The results suggest that there may be further fruitful ground for future investigation in the intersections of knowledge management and intellectual capital concepts within entrepreneurial contexts.

Purpose This study aims to analyse the following: first, the financial performance of General Insurance Re (GIC Re) using performance ratios (PRs); second, the uniformity of different financial performance indicators of GIC Re; third, the internal growth capacity of GIC Re; and finally, the likelihood of GIC Re going into financial distress. Design/methodology/approach As a sample, GIC Re, the lion shareholder in Indian Reinsurance Industry has been considered in the present study. All the necessary data have been extracted from the secondary sources over a time period of 16 years. The financial performance of GIC Re is assessed using five standard ratios, and the uniformity of different financial performance indicators of GIC Re has been examined using Kendall’s Coefficient of Concordance (W). To assess the internal growth capacity of GIC Re internal growth rate has been used, and the likelihood of GIC Re going into financial distress is analysed using multivariate discriminant approach, namely, modified Altman’s Z-score model and logit analysis technique, namely, Ohlson’s O-score model. Findings The results exhibit that financial performance of GIC Re is somewhat satisfactory over a few considerable areas. However, no notable degree of uniformity has been observed amongst the varied financial performance indicators, namely, performance ratio, expense ratio, return on assets, risk retention ratio and combined ratio of GIC Re. The results also reveal GIC Re is lacking ability of growing internally. Moreover, there remains a significant possibility of GIC Re going into financial distress in the near future and so. Originality/value This study is one of the first empirical research studies in India that examines the financial performance of GIC Re from different perspectives.

PurposeThis study aims to clarify how companies should manage exploration and exploitation in the long term, and particularly whether companies should dynamically change their resource allocation related to exploration and exploitation activities.Design/methodology/approachTo demonstrate the effect of shifts in focus between exploration and exploitation on financial performance and market evaluation, an empirical examination was conducted using secondary panel data for Japanese manufacturers from 2000 to 2014, which was analyzed by fixed-effect estimation with a control function approach considering the problem of endogeneity.FindingsThe empirical results suggest that companies should change their resource allocation related to exploration and exploitation in the long term. Long-term focus shifts between exploration and exploitation activities enhance not only future financial performance (return on assets and return on sales), but also future market evaluations (Tobin’s Q).Research limitations/implicationsThis paper showed a pathway connecting technological knowledge searches to the company’s future performance. With reference to the discussion of existing research, it remains unclear what kind of management is required for company activities related to exploration and exploitation. This study showed that companies can improve their profitability and market evaluations by changing their resource allocation for exploration and exploitation activities over time.Originality/valueWhile most research on exploration and exploitation is from a static perspective, this study simultaneously incorporated focus balance and focus shifts into the empirical model and thereby examined exploration and exploitation from a dynamic perspective. Even when considering the effects of balancing exploration and exploitation, this study confirmed that organizational vacillation will improve financial performance and market evaluation.

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the possible non-linear effect of net working capital (NWC) level on profitability for Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region listed companies. Furthermore, the study tests the possible interactive effect of cash levels on the relationship between NWC and profitability. Design/methodology/approach NWC level is the independent variable and profitability is the dependent variable using two proxies, return on assets (ROA) and returns on equity (ROE). Control variables are size, leverage, gross domestic product growth and sales revenue growth. The generalized method of moments was used to analyze the data of 134 consumer-goods listed firms in 12 MENA countries for the period 2013–2019. Findings The results demonstrate that NWC levels had a non-linear effect on profitability using ROA as a profitability proxy while results were insignificant using ROE as a profitability proxy. Furthermore, results show the absence of interactive effects between NWC, cash levels and both profitability proxies. Originality/value The study fills a gap in the working capital management (WCM) literature by providing new evidence on WCM’s non-linear effect of corporate performance in the MENA region emerging markets using the consumer-goods industry sample. The study contributes to the financial managers’ working capital optimization efforts in the MENA region by providing evidence on the usefulness of WC optimization efforts in the region from a financial performance point of view. According to the researchers’ knowledge, a few studies attempted to investigate this non-linear relationship for neither MENA region countries nor the consumer-goods industry.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to represent an attempt to empirically capture the impact of disinvestment on the financial and operating performance of 26 Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) listed central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) in India which got divested through stock market mechanism during the time period of 2000–2014.Design/methodology/approachThrough ratio analysis different ratios such as return on assets, return on equity, net income efficiency, debt equity, dividend payout and employment levels have been computed. Pre- and post disinvestment performance of these firms is examined through Wilcoxon signed-rank test. The present research endeavors to examine the impact of disinvestment through random effect panel data models in order to control the effect of other firm specific variables.FindingsThe overall results of the study indicate statistically significant fall in profitability ratios. The empirical results have not witnessed positive effect of disinvestment on the profitability of the CPSEs; rather, this effect has found to be negative. The possible reasons behind these negative results could be poor pre disinvestment financial health of CPSEs, negative rate of return on capital employed by PSEs and inefficiency which need to be tested empirically by future researchers.Originality/valueThe fact that government-owned firms are typically less proficient or at least less gainful than private-owned firms is widely hypothesized. Therefore, the disinvestment policy aims at dropping the participation of the public sector in the economic actions of the country in order to support the private sector. The present study is a first of its kind to study the impact of disinvestment on the profitability of the firms, which got divested through stock market mechanism since the year 2000 by applying both univariate and multivariate analysis.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to empirically examine the effect of board multiple directorships and chief executive officer (CEO) characteristics on firm performance among nonfinancial firms listed on the Palestine Security Exchange (PSE) during the period from 2009 to 2016.Design/methodology/approachBased on 200 observations, this study utilizes panel data to examine the effect of the predictors on firm performance measured by return on assets. The analysis is repeated using the return on equity and two regression methods to evaluate the robustness of the main analysis (pooled regression, and backward stepwise regression analysis).FindingsThe results show that the “busyness” of a CEO reduces their effectiveness and is associated with losses in the companies where they are in charge. On the other hand, the results show that CEO tenure, CEO experience and CEO political connections have a positive effect on corporate performance.Originality/valueThis study is timely given that the practice of multiple directorships is widely common among firms in developing countries. Prior research in Palestine has not investigated the role of multiple directorships and the CEO characteristics on corporate outcomes. This study provides a picture of the potential benefits to firms, policymakers and professional bodies from considering CEO variables. The findings of such an examination can help them to set up suitable policies and enhance the role and the quality of the CEO in firms.

PurposeThe contribution of the banking industry to the financial crisis of 2007/8 has raised public concerns about the financial soundness of banks around the world with many countries still suffering the backlogs of this crisis. The continuous emergence of such crises at both national and international levels increases governments', bank regulators' and financial market participants' need for reliable tools to assess the financial soundness of banks. In this context, this study investigates the financial soundness of the Kazakh banking sector, which is ranked by the World Bank as the first in the world in terms of the percentage of nonperforming loans (NPL) to total gross loans in 2012.Design/methodology/approachUsing data about all Kazakh banks over the period January 01, 2008 to January 01, 2014, the study identifies a number of accounting indicators that influence the financial soundness of banks using principal component analysis (PCA). Then, it uses the outcomes of the PCA in a cluster analysis and groups the Kazakh banks into sound, risky and unsound banks at two points in time: January 01, 2008 and January 01, 2014. This methodology was further tested against a ranking system of banks and proved to be more reliable in detecting risky banks.FindingsFifteen financial ratios were initially selected as accounting indicators for the assessment of bank financial soundness. Using PCA, twelve indicators were isolated, which explain five principal components of capital adequacy, return on assets, profitability, asset quality, liquidity and leverage. Then using the “k-means” method, the results suggest a structure of the Kazakh banking sector on January 01, 2008 that includes two groups of banks: sound and risky banks. On January 01, 2014, this structure of the banking system has changed to include three groups of banks: sound, risky and unsound banks. Thus, in 2014 a new group of banks has emerged, i.e. financially unsound banks.Practical implicationsThe proposed cluster-based methodology has proven to be a reliable tool to detect the financial soundness of Kazakh banks, which makes us advocate its employability for bank monitoring and supervision purposes.Originality/valueThis study is the first to employ a cluster-based methodology to assess the financial soundness of a banking sector. This methodology can be used at a micro-level to determine the structure of a banking sector. Also, it can be used to monitor any changes in the structure of a banking sector and provide early warning signals about the financial health of banks.

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the relationship between the dividend signaling hypothesis and a firm's life cycle.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use Dickinson's (2011) methodology to develop a proxy for the firm's stages in its life cycle and to examine the relationship between dividends and future earnings following a nonlinear setting.FindingsUsing a sample of US firms during the 2000–2014 period, the authors find that the signaling hypothesis can be dependent on firm-specific characteristics, such as life cycle stages. The authors report that the relationship between dividend changes and subsequent earnings changes is different for different life stages. They also find that changes in the amount of the dividend provide some information about future earnings, especially during the early (introductory and growth) stages. These results are consistent with the use of earnings or return on assets as the dependent variables in models of earnings expectations.Originality/valueThe authors believe that this is the first time that the dividend signaling hypothesis has been linked to the life cycle of the firm.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the effect of board characteristics on foreign equity ownership (FEO) in the listed public limited companies of Bangladesh.Design/methodology/approachThe study collected data from 418 annual reports of listed companies of Bangladesh for the years 2015, 2016 and 2017 to examine the effect of board characteristics on FEO. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Two-Stage Least Squares (2SLS) regression methods are used to test the hypotheses of the study.FindingsThe results show that board size has significant negative influence on FEO. Other board characteristics variables such as board independence and female directorship appear to have an insignificant influence on FEO. However, several firm characteristics variables such as return on assets, market-to-book ratio, firm size and firm age have a significant positive relationship with FEO. While presenting the regression results separately for manufacturing and non-manufacturing firms, the findings reveal a number of differences in the results between the two sectors.Research limitations/implicationsThe major limitation of the study is that it concentrates only on three years annual report data in analyzing the hypothesized relationships.Practical implicationsPolicy makers, regulators and top management can get meaningful insights with respect to optimal board structure and firm characteristics to attract foreign investors as the results revealed significant effects of several board and firm characteristics variables on FEO.Originality/valueThe present study includes the presence of female directors on the board to represent board characteristics. No other study has examined the relationship between FEO and female directors.

PurposeThe paper aims to investigate the effect of firm age and size on profitability and productivity of construction firms in India. It also attempts to understand the indirect effect of firm age and size on profitability mediated through firm's productivity.Design/methodology/approachData of 64 construction firms, for a period of 12 years (2006–2017), were collected. In order to measure the direct and indirect effect of size and age on profitability and productivity, a structural equation model was developed. In the structural models, productivity is a latent variable measured through proxies of material productivity (MP), labor productivity (LP) and equipment productivity (EP). The profitability is measured using three financial ratios: return on asset (ROA), return on capital employed (ROCE) and return on net worth (RONW). Then the direct and indirect effect of age and size is measured on ROA, ROCE, RONW and productivity.FindingsThe findings of the study suggest that age has a direct negative effect on profitability; however, it has an indirect positive effect on profitability, which is mediated by firm's productivity. This positive indirect effect compensates the direct negative effect and leads to an overall positive effect of firm age on profitability. However, firm size shows no effect on profitability and productivity.Originality/valueTo the best of authors’ knowledge, the study is the first attempt to measure the indirect effect of age and size on profitability, mediated through productivity. The study also examines the interrelationship among firms’ profitability and productivity and bridges an important research gap. The study proposes an integrated theoretical framework with a clear view of the interrelationships among age, size, profitability and productivity for construction firms in India, which can be further tested and validated for generalization.

PurposeThis study aims to evaluate cargo and eco-efficiency of global container shipping companies (CSCs) and explore the determinants of the CSCs' efficiencies. While the former is derived from the CSCs' operational perspective, the latter highlights environmental issue related to carbon emission reduction.Design/methodology/approachIn the first stage, a two-stage double bootstrap approach of data envelopment analysis (DEA) is applied to derive bias-corrected cargo and eco-efficiency of the top ten global CSCs under the variable returns to scale assumption. In the second stage, ordinary least squares and truncated regression are applied to examine determinants of the CSCs' efficiencies.FindingsThe DEA results reveal that the cargo efficiency of the CSCs is higher than their eco-efficiency by about 2.6% under variable returns to scale in DEA. However, the bias-corrected results show that the difference is 2.9%. The overall average efficiencies suggest that the CSCs can improve their cargo (eco) efficiency by 6.9% (10.8%). In the second stage, the regression results show that the numbers of ship, return on assets and asset turnover ratio are significantly related to both cargo and eco-efficiencies, whereas the total fleet capacity positively affects cargo efficiency.Research limitations/implicationsThe results of this study can help the inefficient CSCs make strategic decisions to improve their performance. For example, their business experience and capacity may be contributing to their efficiencies. However, this study only focuses on the container market among the three main markets, namely, dry bulk, wet bulk and container.Originality/valueThis study highlights an environmental issue in the shipping industry. While CSCs are operating their cargo efficiently in general, they should also put green initiatives into their business operations for the long-term sustainability.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to apply a grounded theory (GT) approach to develop a theory of resistance to change in the financial management of Laotian family firms. Design/methodology/approach The research adopts a GT approach, using a theoretical sampling procedure. Interviews were conducted with 36 Laotian family firms between April 2017 and May 2019. The in-depth interview transcriptions were analyed using open coding, axial coding and selective coding. Findings The interviewees identified that strategic planning, budgeting and management processes are factors influencing resistance to change. Research results show that accounting portfolios, investment decisions and return on assets are aspects of financial management that are particularly prone to change. The authors, therefore, suggest that Laotian family firms’ reduction in confidence and loss aversion may activate resistance to the adoption of more efficient financial management practices. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first research to attempt to use grounded data to emerge a theory of resistance to change in financial management in Laos.

PurposeThis study examines the effect of working capital management on profitability of listed manufacturing firms in Ghana.Design/methodology/approachThe study employs a quantitative research approach within the causal research design using a balance panel of 20 manufacturing listed firms from 2015 to 2019.FindingsThe study reveals that inventory management, account receivables, account payables, cash conversion cycle, current asset, current ratio and firm size have positive effects on return on assets (ROA) and return on return on equity(ROE) whilst leverage affects them negatively.Research limitations/implicationsThe study only covers 20 manufacturing firms generally due to data unavailability. However, the outcome has useful information for manufacturing firms.Practical implicationsThe study brings to light effective ways of improving the profitability of manufacturing firms through policies.Social implicationsThe findings are beneficial to manufacturing firms and countries for the purpose of improving performance of firms and welfare of the people through direct and indirect chain effects of increasing investments, remunerations and scales of production.Originality/valueThis study adds insights into the existing literature on working capital management namely methodology, effects of components on profitability of manufacturing firms and socioeconomic implications- evidence from Ghana.

PurposeSupply chain management (SCM) proficiency is generally associated with superior business performance. Yet, SCM research continues to focus predominantly on the performance of individual firms, rather than on the collective performance of multiple supply chain participants as espoused by the extended enterprise (EE) concept. In response to calls for quantitative studies that examine the collective performance of multiple supply chain participants, this research study compares the combined performance of triads comprising focal firms recognized for their relative SCM proficiency and their upstream (supplier) and downstream (customer) supply chain partners with that of their close industry competitors' triads.Design/methodology/approachThe triadic, longitudinal examination of multiple supply chain participants' collective performance utilized archival financial data of the period 2007–2017 from the Compustat database and the supply chain (SPLC) function of Bloomberg.FindingsFindings of this study indicated that supply chain triads that included focal firms recognized for their relative SCM proficiency experienced significantly lower sales and general administrative expenses and significantly higher productivity, return on assets and profitability over time than their close industry competitors' triads. However, contrary to expectations, the performance advantages identified did not extend to revenue growth.Research limitations/implicationsSupply chain triads cannot fully represent entire supply chains or EEs. However, this study’s triadic analysis can be viewed as a practically achievable proxy for further validating the EE concept. Moreover, based on assertions that triadic studies are suitable for SCM research and on empirical studies that consistently show individual firms recognized for their relative SCM proficiency outperform competitors, the authors contend that the study’s findings appropriately corroborate the value of the EE concept.Practical implicationsBecause such empirical evidence is so rare, the consistent, collective performance advantages identified in this study should be highly significant to managers.Originality/valueRobust, longitudinal evidence that supply chain triads which include focal firms recognized for relative SCM proficiency collectively outperform their close industry competitors' triads extends generally accepted associations between SCM proficiency and business performance, suggesting that the application of extended resource-based view (ERBV) in supply chain contexts warrants further examination and further substantiates the efficacy of the EE concept.

PurposeIn this study, the authors employ an intellectual-capital based view of the firm to examine the relationship between three bundles of human resource development (HRD) practices (i.e. developmental, constructive and collaborative HRD practices), three dimensions of intellectual capital (i.e. human capital, organizational capital and social capital), and organizational performance improvements. Specifically, the authors investigate the mediating role of intellectual capital in the relationship between HRD practices and changes in organizational performance.Design/methodology/approachThe authors randomly distributed questionnaires to 1,000 HR executives of Taiwanese firms to assess the firms' HRD practices and intellectual capital. Firm performance data in terms of return on assets (ROA) were obtained from the Taiwan Economic Journal (TEJ). To test the model, the authors used the longitudinal data over three years from 213 firms in Taiwan.FindingsThe results show that human capital and social capital mediate the relationship between HRD practices (i.e. developmental and collaborative HRD practices) and organizational performance improvements in terms of return-on-assets growth.Originality/valueThis study adds to the empirical evidence regarding whether or not investment in HRD practices can lead to positive changes in financial performance.

PurposeCorporate governance plays a significant role to overcome agency issues and develop the culture of transparency and openness. In this context, this paper aims to examine how corporate governance mechanisms affect the performance of Islamic banks (IBs).Design/methodology/approachStepwise, two-step system generalize method of moment estimation technique is used in the analysis in which control variables are added into the model sequentially. This study used data on 129 IBs from 29 Islamic countries (Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia) during the period of 2008 to 2017.FindingsThe findings suggest that the audit committee (AUDC) andShariahboard (SB) have positive impact on the performance of IBs (return on assets and return on equity). However, board size and risk management committee have negative and significant effect on the performance of IBs. CEO duality and non-executive directors have mixed relationship with the performance of IBs. These results support the argument that IBs need to improve their financial performance through appropriate governance mechanism.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings of the study added a new dimension to the governance research that could be a valuable source of knowledge for policymakers and regulators to improve the existing governance mechanism for better performance of IBs.Originality/valueThe study fills the gap in the literature by addressing the issue of corporate governance on performance of IBs across countries. Agency theory is discussed to explain the relationship between corporate governance mechanism and performance.

Purpose Capital structure decisions are important decisions for any business activity because they have considerable influence on the worth and cost of companies. Most previous studies in Ethiopia were primarily focused on identifying and measuring problems in banking sectors and other sectors and paying little attention to the construction sector. The purpose of this study is mainly to fill the gap by examining the effects of capital structure on the profitability of construction firms in Ethiopia. Design/methodology/approach To test hypotheses of the study, time series secondary data were gathered from the sample of 30 grade one construction companies in Ethiopia during the 2011–2015 period. To examine the correlation among capital structures and its determinants, random effect multiple regression models were used. Findings From the regression outcomes, the study indicates that capital structure measured by debt to equity and long-term debt to total assets has a significant positive correlation with return on equity (ROE) and return on assets (ROA) of sampled construction companies. However, the capital structure measured by debt to assets has a significant negative correlation with ROE and ROA of sampled construction companies in Ethiopia. Originality/value This paper is the author’s original work and assures that the paper was not undertaken anywhere and is also not published in any journal before.

Purpose In the Gulf Cooperative Council (GCC) countries, the integrated reporting (IR) concept has attracted considerable attention from banks. In as much as IR is not a legal requirement anywhere in the GCC, however, the incidence of disclosure by banks across the GCC varies considerably and asymmetries exist in the content of disclosure released by banks within, as well as across, these jurisdictions. This study aims to examine the relationship between IR disclosure and financial, operational and market performance in both Islamic and conventional banks. Design/methodology/approach This study examines five years (2012-2016) of IR from 59 banks in GCC countries with 295 observations. The integrated report index (IRI), as the independent variable, is regressed separately against three performance indicators [return on assets, return on equity and Tobin’s Q (TQ)] as dependent variables. In addition, the following two types of control variables are inserted in the regression equations in this study: macroeconomic (two indicators) and bank characteristics (three indicators). Findings The findings elicited from the empirical results demonstrate that, on the one hand, IR in conventional banks positively affects market performance, while negatively affecting operational and financial performance. On the other hand, the results for Islamic banks show that IR negatively affects market performance, with no discernible effect on neither financial nor operational performance. In the GCC banking sector, for the most, empirical results conflict with expectations implied by signaling theory and capital need theory. From this study, evidence suggests that GCC bank performance would not improve were IR disclosure rendered mandatory. However, that conclusion is stronger with respect to Islamic than with respect to conventional banks in the region. Originality/value The study provides insights into the effect of voluntary disclosure of IR as gauged by various measures of performance across Islamic and conventional banks located in a range of GCC countries. This study accordingly provides perspective on the extent to which IR can and does play a role in contributing to bank performance.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify the factors that affect the Canadian credit unions' financial performance which play an important role in providing financial services to the agriculture sector.Design/methodology/approachWe surveyed the literature to identify different performance metrics of credit unions and a set of possible factors that might affect their performance. We collected data related to different dependent and independent variables from financial statements and balance sheets of 189 credit unions and from general websites like Statistics Canada and Bank of Canada. Then, we imputed the missing data and developed fixed effect and random effect panel data regression models. First, we used return on asset as the main dependent variable. Afterwards, we used six performance metrics to check the robustness of our models.FindingsFrom an initial list of 16 possible factors that might affect the financial performance of a credit union, we were able to narrow the factors down to the nine most significant ones. It was observed that credit unions in the prairies were more likely to perform well financially as compared to other provinces. Membership size, the size of a credit union in terms of total assets, capital adequacy ratio, market penetration, diversification of income, inflation rate and provincial GDP and interest rates were significant. The cross-sectional analysis performed confirmed the findings of the fixed effect panel data models.Research limitations/implicationsThis study has a limitation concerning the number of years included into the time series analysis. Only ten years worth of data were available.Practical implicationsResults provide credit union management, service providers for credit unions and market analysts with a current understanding of how different internal and external factors might affect return on assets, return on equity, delinquency, cash ratio, efficiency ratio, asset growth and loan growth. Our models can be used to predict financial performance of credit unions based on the defined significant variables.Originality/valueAlthough there is a wide body of literature that studies performance of banks, not many studies focus on credit unions. Moreover, the existing studies are based on credit unions in United States or Europe, and literature on Canadian credit unions is scarce. The data collected covered 189 Canadian credit unions. To our knowledge this is the first study that looks at the various internal, external and regulatory factors together that affect the credit unions in various jurisdictions of Canada.

PurposeThe paper aims to find out the information content of performance measures from accounting and value-based measures that best explain the total shareholder return.Design/ methodology/ approachTo achieve this aim, static and dynamic panel data regression analysis is applied to the sample of 56 Indian companies taken from the Nifty Midcap 100 Index, between 2012 and 2019.FindingsIt is found that accounting-based measures have more relative information content in predicting total shareholder return as compared to value-based measures. Economic value added (EVA) and cash value added (CVA) do not add to the information content provided by accounting-based measures. A combination of accounting-based measures and value-added intellectual coefficient (VAIC) adds marginally to the information content provided by accounting-based measures in explaining the total shareholder return. Dynamic panel regression analysis shows that return on assets (ROA), return on capital employed (ROCE), return on equity (ROE) and EVA have a significant impact on total shareholder return.Originality/valueIn this study, along with EVA, other measures from value-based measures, i.e. CVA are empirically tested to explain the total shareholder return. Intellectual capital efficiency computed by VAIC is also empirically tested along with accounting-based measures, EVA, CVA and market value added (MVA). To bring robustness to findings, data are tested by using dynamic panel regression analysis.