IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/riibaf/v77y2025ipbs0275531925002375.html

Overconfident male CEOs and corporate outcomes: The moderating role of female CFOs

Author

Listed:
  • Abdul Wahab, Effiezal Aswadi
  • How, Janice
  • Ismail, Ismaanzira

Abstract

This paper investigates the moderating role of female CFOs on overconfident male CEOs’ behaviors, focusing on cash holdings, investment efficiency, and analysts’ forecast optimism. Analyzing a sample of Malaysian firms from 2016 to 2020, we find that overconfident male CEOs are associated with lower cash holdings, higher investment efficiency, and more optimistic analyst forecasts. Female CFOs moderate overinvestment tendencies, leading to more disciplined capital allocation, but their influence on cash holdings and forecast optimism is limited, likely due to organizational power dynamics and career constraints. Institutional factors further shape these dynamics — Bumiputera-dominated boards promote financial conservatism with higher cash reserves and forecast optimism but may limit female CFOs’ authority, while family firms exhibit reduced investment efficiency under overconfident leadership, reflecting a governance-control misalignment. These findings, robust to endogeneity concerns, highlight how leadership diversity and institutional structures interact to influence corporate financial outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Abdul Wahab, Effiezal Aswadi & How, Janice & Ismail, Ismaanzira, 2025. "Overconfident male CEOs and corporate outcomes: The moderating role of female CFOs," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 77(PB).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:riibaf:v:77:y:2025:i:pb:s0275531925002375
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ribaf.2025.102981
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0275531925002375
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ribaf.2025.102981?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Xu, Yuehua & Shi, Wei & Qin, Xin & Zhang, Junsheng & Tang, Xiaojian, 2022. "Is Identification All the Same? The Differential Effects of CEO and CFO Organizational Identification on Corporate Philanthropy," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 18(1), pages 73-107, February.
    2. Biddle, Gary C. & Hilary, Gilles & Verdi, Rodrigo S., 2009. "How does financial reporting quality relate to investment efficiency?," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(2-3), pages 112-131, December.
    3. Irene Wei Kiong Ting & Hooi Hooi Lean & Qian Long Kweh & Noor Azlinna Azizan, 2016. "Managerial overconfidence, government intervention and corporate financing decision," International Journal of Managerial Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 12(1), pages 4-24, February.
    4. Ulrike Malmendier & Geoffrey Tate, 2005. "CEO Overconfidence and Corporate Investment," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 60(6), pages 2661-2700, December.
    5. Ferris, Stephen P. & Jayaraman, Narayanan & Sabherwal, Sanjiv, 2013. "CEO Overconfidence and International Merger and Acquisition Activity," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 48(1), pages 137-164, February.
    6. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997. "A Survey of Corporate Governance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 737-783, June.
    7. Vincent L. Barker , III & George C. Mueller, 2002. "CEO Characteristics and Firm R&D Spending," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 48(6), pages 782-801, June.
    8. Beyer, Anne & Cohen, Daniel A. & Lys, Thomas Z. & Walther, Beverly R., 2010. "The financial reporting environment: Review of the recent literature," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(2-3), pages 296-343, December.
    9. Ferdinand A. Gul, 2006. "Auditors' Response to Political Connections and Cronyism in Malaysia," Journal of Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 44(5), pages 931-963, December.
    10. Itzhak Ben-David & John R. Graham, 2013. "Managerial Miscalibration," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 128(4), pages 1547-1584.
    11. Dittmar, Amy & Mahrt-Smith, Jan, 2007. "Corporate governance and the value of cash holdings," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(3), pages 599-634, March.
    12. Pinghsun Huang & Yi-Chieh Wen & Yan Zhang, 2020. "Does the monitoring effect of Big 4 audit firms really prevail? Evidence from managerial expropriation of cash assets," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 55(2), pages 739-768, August.
    13. Onali, Enrico & Galiakhmetova, Ramilya & Molyneux, Philip & Torluccio, Giuseppe, 2016. "CEO power, government monitoring, and bank dividends," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 89-117.
    14. He, Ying & Chen, Cindy & Hu, Yue, 2019. "Managerial overconfidence, internal financing, and investment efficiency: Evidence from China," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 501-510.
    15. Munif Z. F. Nordin* & Nor Fariza Mohd Nor, 2018. "Lexical Characteristic in Malaysian Inter-Religious Discourse," The Journal of Social Sciences Research, Academic Research Publishing Group, pages 64-68:6.
    16. Ulrike Malmendier & Geoffrey Tate, 2015. "Behavioral CEOs: The Role of Managerial Overconfidence," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 29(4), pages 37-60, Fall.
    17. Irene Wei Kiong Ting & Hooi Hooi Lean & Qian Long Kweh & Noor Azlinna Azizan, 2016. "Managerial overconfidence, government intervention and corporate financing decision," International Journal of Managerial Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 12(1), pages 4-24, February.
    18. Sean Valentine & Terri Rittenburg, 2007. "The Ethical Decision Making of Men and Women Executives in International Business Situations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 71(2), pages 125-134, March.
    19. Brown, Rayna & Sarma, Neal, 2007. "CEO overconfidence, CEO dominance and corporate acquisitions," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 59(5), pages 358-379.
    20. Mara Faccio, 2006. "Politically Connected Firms," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(1), pages 369-386, March.
    21. repec:bla:jfinan:v:58:y:2003:i:3:p:1301-1327 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. Alberto Galasso & Timothy S. Simcoe, 2011. "CEO Overconfidence and Innovation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 57(8), pages 1469-1484, August.
    23. Claessens, Stijn & Djankov, Simeon & Lang, Larry H. P., 2000. "The separation of ownership and control in East Asian Corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 81-112.
    24. Ismaanzira Ismail & Effiezal Aswadi Abdul Wahab, 2024. "Do female chief financial officers and female directors cooperate? Evidence from investment efficiency," Meditari Accountancy Research, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 32(4), pages 1229-1257, January.
    25. Huang, Jiekun & Kisgen, Darren J., 2013. "Gender and corporate finance: Are male executives overconfident relative to female executives?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(3), pages 822-839.
    26. Gurdgiev, Constantin & Ni, Qiuxin, 2023. "Board diversity: Moderating effects of CEO overconfidence on firm financing decisions," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    27. George Batta & Ricardo Sucre Heredia & Marc Weidenmier, 2014. "Political Connections and Accounting Quality under High Expropriation Risk," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(4), pages 485-517, December.
    28. Hyun Ah Kim & Seung Uk Choi & Wooseok Choi, 2022. "Managerial overconfidence and firm profitability," Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting & Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 129-153, January.
    29. Croci, Ettore & Petmezas, Dimitris & Vagenas-Nanos, Evangelos, 2010. "Managerial overconfidence in high and low valuation markets and gains to acquisitions," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 19(5), pages 368-378, December.
    30. Bill Francis & Iftekhar Hasan & Jong Chool Park & Qiang Wu, 2015. "Gender Differences in Financial Reporting Decision Making: Evidence from Accounting Conservatism," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 32(3), pages 1285-1318, September.
    31. Kramer, Lisa A. & Liao, Chi M., 2016. "The spillover effects of management overconfidence on analyst forecasts," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 12(C), pages 79-92.
    32. Liu, Yin & Neely, Pamela & Karim, Khondkar, 2022. "The impact of CFO gender on corporate overinvestment," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 57(C).
    33. Gounopoulos, Dimitrios & Loukopoulos, Georgios & Loukopoulos, Panagiotis & Zhang, Yu, 2024. "Do CFO career concerns matter? Evidence from IPO financial reporting outcomes," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    34. David Hirshleifer & Angie Low & Siew Hong Teoh, 2012. "Are Overconfident CEOs Better Innovators?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 67(4), pages 1457-1498, August.
    35. Alzayed, Noora & Batiz-Lazo, Bernardo & Eskandari, Rasol, 2024. "Does board diversity mitigate risk? The effect of homophily and social ties on risk-taking in financial institutions," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 70(PA).
    36. Siew-Boey Yeoh & Chee-Wooi Hooy, 2022. "CEO age and risk-taking of family business in Malaysia: The inverse S-curve relationship," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 39(1), pages 273-293, March.
    37. R. Glenn Hubbard, 1998. "Capital-Market Imperfections and Investment," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 36(1), pages 193-225, March.
    38. (Xuefeng) Jiang, John & Petroni, Kathy R. & Yanyan Wang, Isabel, 2010. "CFOs and CEOs: Who have the most influence on earnings management?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(3), pages 513-526, June.
    39. Wong, Wai-Yan & Hooy, Chee-Wooi, 2018. "Do types of political connection affect firm performance differently?," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 297-317.
    40. Itzhak Ben-David & John R. Graham & Campbell R. Harvey, 2007. "Managerial Overconfidence and Corporate Policies," NBER Working Papers 13711, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    41. Cheryl A. Howe & Riley J. Corrigan & Fernanda Rocha de Faria & Zoe Johanni & Paul Chase & Angela R. Hillman, 2021. "Impact of COVID-19 Stay-at-Home Restrictions on Employment Status, Physical Activity, and Sedentary Behavior," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(22), pages 1-13, November.
    42. Alexander Guzmán & Belén Villalonga & María-Andrea Trujillo & Raphael Amit, 2015. "Governance of Family Firms," Annual Review of Financial Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 7(1), pages 635-654, December.
    43. Paul Hribar & Holly Yang, 2016. "CEO Overconfidence and Management Forecasting," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 33(1), pages 204-227, March.
    44. MARA FACCIO & RONALD W. MASULIS & JOHN J. McCONNELL, 2006. "Political Connections and Corporate Bailouts," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 61(6), pages 2597-2635, December.
    45. Liu, Chelsea, 2021. "CEO gender and employee relations: Evidence from labor lawsuits," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    46. Mohamad-Yusof, Nor Zalina & Wickramasinghe, Danture & Zaman, Mahbub, 2018. "Corporate governance, critical junctures and ethnic politics: Ownership and boards in Malaysia," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 33-52.
    47. Ampofo, Akwasi A. & Barkhi, Reza, 2024. "The impact of CEO power and ethical corporate citizenship on firms’ outcomes," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(PA).
    48. ., 1999. "Approaching the Political Economy of Pension Reform," Chapters, in: The Political Economy of Pension Reform in Central–Eastern Europe, chapter 3, pages 37-59, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    49. Professor F. Douglas Foster and Professor Petko S. Kalev & Irene Wei Kiong Ting & Hooi Hooi Lean & Qian Long Kweh & Noor Azlinna Azizan, 2016. "Managerial overconfidence, government intervention and corporate financing decision," International Journal of Managerial Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 12(1), pages 4-24, February.
    50. Chen, Jie & Leung, Woon Sau & Song, Wei & Goergen, Marc, 2019. "Why female board representation matters: The role of female directors in reducing male CEO overconfidence," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 70-90.
    51. Gilles Hilary & Gary C. Biddle, 2006. "Accounting Quality and Firm-Level Capital Investment," Post-Print hal-00481720, HAL.
    52. Dina El Mahdy & Fatima Alali, 2023. "Female CFOs and managerial opportunism," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 60(3), pages 1161-1207, April.
    53. Sunden, Annika E & Surette, Brian J, 1998. "Gender Differences in the Allocation of Assets in Retirement Savings Plans," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(2), pages 207-211, May.
    54. Johnson, Simon & Mitton, Todd, 2003. "Cronyism and capital controls: evidence from Malaysia," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(2), pages 351-382, February.
    55. Saeed, Abubakr & Baloch, Muhammad Saad & Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele & Rajwani, Tazeeb, 2024. "Board gender diversity, nonmarket strategy and firm performance: Evidence from emerging markets MNCs," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    56. Abdul Wahab, Effiezal Aswadi & How, Janice & Park, Jason & Verhoeven, Peter, 2018. "Political patronage and analysts’ forecast precision," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 307-320.
    57. Chen, Yenn-Ru & Ho, Keng-Yu & Yeh, Chia-Wei, 2020. "CEO overconfidence and corporate cash holdings," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    58. Ronald C. Anderson & David M. Reeb, 2003. "Founding‐Family Ownership and Firm Performance: Evidence from the S&P 500," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 58(3), pages 1301-1328, June.
    59. Raymond Fisman, 2001. "Estimating the Value of Political Connections," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 91(4), pages 1095-1102, September.
    60. Simon, Mark & Houghton, Susan M. & Aquino, Karl, 2000. "Cognitive biases, risk perception, and venture formation: How individuals decide to start companies," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 15(2), pages 113-134, March.
    61. Gul, Ferdinand A. & Fung, Simon Yu Kit & Jaggi, Bikki, 2009. "Earnings quality: Some evidence on the role of auditor tenure and auditors' industry expertise," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 265-287, June.
    62. Ulrike Malmendier & Geoffrey Tate & Jon Yan, 2011. "Overconfidence and Early‐Life Experiences: The Effect of Managerial Traits on Corporate Financial Policies," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 66(5), pages 1687-1733, October.
    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. Ding, Zhiguo & Liu, Xinmiao & Ding, Yuyang, 2025. "How information structure shapes insider valuation bias: Evidence from insider selling in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 85(PD).

    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. Jennifer Kunz & Lara Sonnenholzner, 2023. "Managerial overconfidence: promoter of or obstacle to organizational resilience?," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 17(1), pages 67-128, January.
    2. Almaghrabi, Khadija S. & Slack, Richard & Tsalavoutas, Ioannis & Tsoligkas, Fanis, 2024. "Capitalised development costs and future cash flows: The effect of CEO overconfidence and board gender diversity," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(6).
    3. Thi Tuyet Dao, Nhung & Guney, Yilmaz & Hudson, Robert, 2023. "Managerial overconfidence and corporate cash holdings: Evidence from primary and secondary data," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    4. Tobias Heizer & Laura R. Rettig, 2020. "Top management team optimism and its influence on firms' financing and investment decisions," Review of Financial Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 38(4), pages 601-622, October.
    5. Adnan Safi & Xianrong Yi & Salman Wahab & Yingying Chen & Hassan Hassan, 2021. "CEO overconfidence, firm-specific factors, and systemic risk: evidence from China," Risk Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 23(1), pages 30-47, June.
    6. Guo, Junru & He, Jia & Liu, Sibo & Wang, Yonglin, 2025. "CEO relative age at school entry and corporate risk-taking," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    7. Jieqi Guan & Brian M. Lam & Ching Chi Lam & Ming Liu, 2022. "CEO overconfidence and the level of short-selling activity," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 58(2), pages 685-708, February.
    8. Ulrike Malmendier & Vincenzo Pezone & Hui Zheng, 2023. "Managerial Duties and Managerial Biases," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 69(6), pages 3174-3201, June.
    9. Toksoz, Tuba & Demirkan, Sebahattin & Demirkan, Irem & Mishra, Birendra K., 2025. "CEO overconfidence across the firm lifecycle: effects on accounting outcomes and stock market reactions," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(3).
    10. An, Suwei, 2023. "Essays on incentive contracts, M&As, and firm risk," Other publications TiSEM dd97d2f5-1c9d-47c5-ba62-f, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    11. Datta, Sudip & Doan, Trang & Toscano, Francesca, 2023. "Top executive gender, corporate culture, and the value of corporate cash holdings," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    12. Khoo, Joye & Cheung, Adrian (Wai Kong), 2025. "Subordinate executives’ confidence and labor investment efficiency," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    13. Tran, Tam & Wilson, Craig & Yang, Fan, 2025. "Executive overconfidence, corporate investment, and institutional ownership: Evidence from Vietnam," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    14. Chowdhury, Md Raihan Uddin & Alam, Md Asif Ul & Devos, Erik & Chy, Md Kamrul Hasan, 2024. "Women in C-suite: Does Top Management Team gender diversity matter? Evidence from firm investment efficiency," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 96(PA).
    15. Chen, Sheng-Syan & Lin, Chih-Yen & Tsai, Yun-Ching, 2018. "New product strategies and firm performance: CEO optimism," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 37-53.
    16. Hardeep Singh Mundi & Parmjit Kaur, 2022. "CEO Overconfidence and Capital Structure Decisions: Evidence from India," Vikalpa: The Journal for Decision Makers, , vol. 47(1), pages 19-37, March.
    17. Killins, Robert & Ngo, Thanh & Wang, Hongxia, 2021. "Goodwill impairment and CEO overconfidence," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(C).
    18. Chen, Li-Yu & Chen, Jing-Chi & Li, Chun-Ming, 2025. "Earnings informativeness, debt financing, and managerial characteristics," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    19. Lu Qiao & Emmanuel Adegbite & Tam Huy Nguyen, 2024. "CFO overconfidence and conditional accounting conservatism," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 62(1), pages 1-37, January.
    20. Lu, Jing & Ho, Keng-Yu & Ho, Po-Hsin & Ko, Kuan-Cheng, 2023. "CEO overconfidence, lottery preference and the cross-section of stock returns," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • G41 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making in Financial Markets
    • M41 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Accounting
    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions
    • G17 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Financial Forecasting and Simulation
    • G40 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:eee:riibaf:v:77:y:2025:i:pb:s0275531925002375. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ribaf .

    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.