IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jjrfmx/v14y2021i3p140-d522691.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

On the Moderating Effects of Country Governance on the Relationships between Corporate Governance and Firm Performance

Author

Listed:
  • Chiu-Hui Wu

    (Department of Finance, Shih Hsin University, Taipei City 116, Taiwan)

Abstract

This study further empirically examines the influence of board independence on financial performance by using the world’s top 1000 firms. CEO duality and the percentage of independent directors are used as the indicators of board independence. Moreover, this study re-addresses the findings in the literature by giving supplement in theory and conducting tests for the influence of board independence on firm performance as well as the moderating effects of country governance, focusing on regulatory quality and rule of law, with multi-level modeling, a more sophisticated statistical approach. Four hypotheses, based on agency theory and compensation theory, were developed. The results indicated that CEO duality and the percentage of independent directors exerted, respectively, negative and positive influence on Return on Assets (ROA), a firm performance indicator. Furthermore, regulatory quality and the rule of law positively moderated the negative effects of the former and negatively moderated the positive effects of the latter. Some practical implications were discussed based on the results obtained.

Suggested Citation

  • Chiu-Hui Wu, 2021. "On the Moderating Effects of Country Governance on the Relationships between Corporate Governance and Firm Performance," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-13, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jjrfmx:v:14:y:2021:i:3:p:140-:d:522691
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1911-8074/14/3/140/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1911-8074/14/3/140/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Basiru Salisu Kallamu, 2016. "Ownership structure, independent directors and firm performance," E3 Journal of Business Management and Economics., E3 Journals, vol. 7(1), pages 019-028.
    2. Michael L. Lemmon & Karl V. Lins, 2003. "Ownership Structure, Corporate Governance, and Firm Value: Evidence from the East Asian Financial Crisis," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 58(4), pages 1445-1468, August.
    3. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997. "A Survey of Corporate Governance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 737-783, June.
    4. Sabri Boubaker & Imen Derouiche & Duc Nguyen, 2015. "Does the board of directors affect cash holdings? A study of French listed firms," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 19(2), pages 341-370, May.
    5. Kojima Koji & Bishnu Kumar Adhikary & Le Tram, 2020. "Corporate Governance and Firm Performance: A Comparative Analysis between Listed Family and Non-Family Firms in Japan," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-20, September.
    6. Ngobo, Paul Valentin & Fouda, Maurice, 2012. "Is ‘Good’ governance good for business? A cross-national analysis of firms in African countries," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 435-449.
    7. Huang, Chi-Jui, 2010. "Corporate governance, corporate social responsibility and corporate performance," Journal of Management & Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 16(5), pages 641-655, November.
    8. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 1998. "Law and Finance," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(6), pages 1113-1155, December.
    9. Yermack, David, 1996. "Higher market valuation of companies with a small board of directors," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(2), pages 185-211, February.
    10. Hermalin, Benjamin E & Weisbach, Michael S, 1998. "Endogenously Chosen Boards of Directors and Their Monitoring of the CEO," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(1), pages 96-118, March.
    11. Bruno, Valentina & Claessens, Stijn, 2010. "Corporate governance and regulation: Can there be too much of a good thing?," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 461-482, October.
    12. Bonn, Ingrid, 2004. "Board Structure and Firm Performance: Evidence from Australia," Journal of Management & Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 10(1), pages 14-24, January.
    13. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez‐De‐Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert Vishny, 2002. "Investor Protection and Corporate Valuation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(3), pages 1147-1170, June.
    14. Doidge, Craig & Andrew Karolyi, G. & Stulz, Rene M., 2007. "Why do countries matter so much for corporate governance?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(1), pages 1-39, October.
    15. Basiru Salisu KALLAMU, 2016. "Ownership Structure, independent directors and firm performance," Journal of Social and Administrative Sciences, KSP Journals, vol. 3(1), pages 17-30, March.
    16. Calomiris, Charles W. & Carlson, Mark, 2016. "Corporate governance and risk management at unprotected banks: National banks in the 1890s," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 119(3), pages 512-532.
    17. Duru, Augustine & Iyengar, Raghavan J. & Zampelli, Ernest M., 2016. "The dynamic relationship between CEO duality and firm performance: The moderating role of board independence," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(10), pages 4269-4277.
    18. Mike W. Peng, 2004. "Outside directors and firm performance during institutional transitions," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(5), pages 453-471, May.
    19. Sun, Sunny Li & Peng, Mike W. & Lee, Ruby P. & Tan, Weiqiang, 2015. "Institutional open access at home and outward internationalization," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 50(1), pages 234-246.
    20. Beltratti, Andrea & Stulz, René M., 2012. "The credit crisis around the globe: Why did some banks perform better?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(1), pages 1-17.
    21. Gorton, Gary & Rosen, Richard, 1995. "Corporate Control, Portfolio Choice, and the Decline of Banking," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 50(5), pages 1377-1420, December.
    22. Hallock, Kevin F., 1997. "Reciprocally Interlocking Boards of Directors and Executive Compensation," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 32(3), pages 331-344, September.
    23. Belkhir, Mohamed & Boubaker, Sabri & Derouiche, Imen, 2014. "Control–ownership wedge, board of directors, and the value of excess cash," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 110-122.
    24. Ferris, Stephen P. & Yan, Xuemin (Sterling), 2007. "Do independent directors and chairmen matter? The role of boards of directors in mutual fund governance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 13(2-3), pages 392-420, June.
    25. Black, Bernard S. & Jang, Hasung & Kim, Woochan, 2006. "Predicting firms' corporate governance choices: Evidence from Korea," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 12(3), pages 660-691, June.
    26. Fama, Eugene F, 1980. "Agency Problems and the Theory of the Firm," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 88(2), pages 288-307, April.
    27. Benjamin E. Hermalin & Michael S. Weisbach, 2003. "Boards of directors as an endogenously determined institution: a survey of the economic literature," Economic Policy Review, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, vol. 9(Apr), pages 7-26.
    28. Bhagat, Sanjai & Bolton, Brian, 2008. "Corporate governance and firm performance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 257-273, June.
    29. Crifo, Patricia & Forget, Vanina D. & Teyssier, Sabrina, 2015. "The price of environmental, social and governance practice disclosure: An experiment with professional private equity investors," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 168-194.
    30. Art Durnev & E. Han Kim, 2005. "To Steal or Not to Steal: Firm Attributes, Legal Environment, and Valuation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 60(3), pages 1461-1493, June.
    31. Choi, Jongmoo Jay & Park, Sae Woon & Yoo, Sean Sehyun, 2007. "The Value of Outside Directors: Evidence from Corporate Governance Reform in Korea," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 42(4), pages 941-962, December.
    32. La Porta, Rafael & Lopez-de-Silanes, Florencio & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert, 2000. "Investor protection and corporate governance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 3-27.
    33. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    34. Jarrad Harford & Sattar A. Mansi & William F. Maxwell, 2012. "Corporate Governance and Firm Cash Holdings in the U.S," Springer Books, in: Sabri Boubaker & Bang Dang Nguyen & Duc Khuong Nguyen (ed.), Corporate Governance, edition 127, pages 107-138, Springer.
    35. Brickley, James A. & Coles, Jeffrey L. & Jarrell, Gregg, 1997. "Leadership structure: Separating the CEO and Chairman of the Board," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 3(3), pages 189-220, June.
    36. Baysinger, Barry D & Butler, Henry N, 1985. "Corporate Governance and the Board of Directors: Performance Effects of Changes in Board Composition," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 1(1), pages 101-124, Spring.
    37. Bhagat, Sanjai & Bolton, Brian, 2013. "Director Ownership, Governance, and Performance," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 48(1), pages 105-135, February.
    38. Morey, Matthew & Gottesman, Aron & Baker, Edward & Godridge, Ben, 2009. "Does better corporate governance result in higher valuations in emerging markets? Another examination using a new data set," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 254-262, February.
    39. Zagorchev, Andrey & Gao, Lei, 2015. "Corporate governance and performance of financial institutions," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 17-41.
    40. Liu, Yu & Wei, Zuobao & Xie, Feixue, 2014. "Do women directors improve firm performance in China?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 169-184.
    41. Kasipillai, Jeyapalan & Mahenthiran, Sakthi, 2013. "Deferred taxes, earnings management, and corporate governance: Malaysian evidence," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 1-18.
    42. Masulis, Ronald W. & Mobbs, Shawn, 2014. "Independent director incentives: Where do talented directors spend their limited time and energy?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(2), pages 406-429.
    43. Chin‐Jung Luan & Ming‐Je Tang, 2007. "Where is Independent Director Efficacy?," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(4), pages 636-643, July.
    44. Claessens, Stijn & Yurtoglu, B. Burcin, 2013. "Corporate governance in emerging markets: A survey," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 15(C), pages 1-33.
    45. Fama, Eugene F & Jensen, Michael C, 1983. "Separation of Ownership and Control," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 26(2), pages 301-325, June.
    46. repec:elg:eebook:14347 is not listed on IDEAS
    47. Tang, Jianyun, 2017. "CEO duality and firm performance: The moderating roles of other executives and blockholding outside directors," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 362-372.
    48. Ray Donnelly & Mark Mulcahy, 2008. "Board Structure, Ownership, and Voluntary Disclosure in Ireland," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(5), pages 416-429, September.
    49. Riaqa Mubeen & Dongping Han & Jaffar Abbas & Iftikhar Hussain, 2020. "The Effects of Market Competition, Capital Structure, and CEO Duality on Firm Performance: A Mediation Analysis by Incorporating the GMM Model Technique," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-18, April.
    50. Kaufmann, Daniel & Kraay, Aart & Mastruzzi, Massimo, 2010. "The worldwide governance indicators : methodology and analytical issues," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5430, The World Bank.
    51. Aiyesha Dey, 2008. "Corporate Governance and Agency Conflicts," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(5), pages 1143-1181, December.
    52. Mitton, Todd, 2002. "A cross-firm analysis of the impact of corporate governance on the East Asian financial crisis," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(2), pages 215-241, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Irene M. Gordon & Karel Hrazdil & Johnny Jermias & Xin Li, 2021. "The Effect of Misalignment of CEO Personality and Corporate Governance Structures on Firm Performance," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-20, August.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Naeem Tabassum & Satwinder Singh, 2020. "Corporate Governance and Organisational Performance," Springer Books, Springer, number 978-3-030-48527-6, September.
    2. Polovina, Nereida & Peasnell, Ken, 2020. "Do minority acquisitions transfer better corporate governance practices? An analysis of UK's cross-border minority investments," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 52(3).
    3. Chi, Jianxin Daniel & Scott Lee, D., 2010. "The conditional nature of the value of corporate governance," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 350-361, February.
    4. Oded Cohen, 2020. "Measuring Corporate Governance Quality in Concentrated-Ownership Firms," Bank of Israel Working Papers 2020.06, Bank of Israel.
    5. Nguyen, Thi Tuyet Mai, 2017. "An examination of independent directors in Vietnam," OSF Preprints ay6dv, Center for Open Science.
    6. Eugenio Zubeltzu-Jaka & Eduardo Ortas & Igor Álvarez-Etxeberria, 2019. "Independent Directors and Organizational Performance: New Evidence from A Meta-Analytic Regression Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-25, December.
    7. Vagliasindi, Maria, 2008. "The effectiveness of boards of directors of state owned enterprises in developing countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4579, The World Bank.
    8. Mamdouh Abdulaziz Saleh Al-Faryan, 2021. "The effect of board composition and managerial pay on Saudi firm performance," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 57(2), pages 693-758, August.
    9. Sheeba Kapil & Rakesh K Mishra, 2019. "Corporate Governance structure and firm performance in Indian context: A Structural Equation Modelling Approach," Working Papers 1937, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.
    10. Ahmed Abousamak, 2016. "Principal-principal internal governance mechanisms and the firms' performance: evidence from an emerging market," International Journal of Economics and Business Research, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 11(2), pages 145-169.
    11. Guney, Yilmaz & Karpuz, Ahmet & Komba, Gabriel, 2020. "The effects of board structure on corporate performance: Evidence from East African frontier markets," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 53(C).
    12. Li, Ke & Lu, Lei & Mittoo, Usha R. & Zhang, Zhou, 2015. "Board independence, ownership concentration and corporate performance—Chinese evidence," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 162-175.
    13. Enikolopov, Ruben & Petrova, Maria & Stepanov, Sergey, 2014. "Firm value in crisis: Effects of firm-level transparency and country-level institutions," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 72-84.
    14. Volonté, Christophe, 2015. "Boards: Independent and committed directors?," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 25-37.
    15. Lee, Shih-Cheng & Lin, Chien-Ting, 2010. "An accounting-based valuation approach to valuing corporate governance in Taiwan," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 6(2), pages 47-60.
    16. Attiya Y. Javid & Robina Iqbal, 2010. "Corporate Governance in Pakistan : Corporate Valuation, Ownership and Financing," Governance Working Papers 22830, East Asian Bureau of Economic Research.
    17. Al-Faryan, Mamdouh Abdulaziz Saleh, 2017. "The relationship between corporate governance mechanisms and the performance of Saudi listed firms," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 14(2-2), pages 338-349.
    18. Premepeh, kwadwo Boateng & Odartei-Mills, Eugene, 2015. "Corporate governance structure and shareholder wealth maximisation," MPRA Paper 68087, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Ding, Wenzhi & Levine, Ross & Lin, Chen & Xie, Wensi, 2021. "Corporate immunity to the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 141(2), pages 802-830.
    20. Lee, Shih-Cheng & Lin, Chien-Ting & Chang, Pei-Ting, 2011. "An Ohlson valuation framework for valuing corporate governance: The case of Taiwan," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 420-434, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jjrfmx:v:14:y:2021:i:3:p:140-:d:522691. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.