Corporate Social Responsibility across Investment Landscapes: Financial and Governance Evidence from Bangladesh

Purpose: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reflects firms’ commitment to stakeholders and governance quality. This study provides a comparative dynamic analysis of CSR determinants under full sample, high, and low investment opportunity conditions.Design Methodology: The study employs a two-step GMM model to address endogeneity and unobserved heterogeneity, using panel data of listed firms. Three models are estimated: overall sample, high investment opportunities, and low investment opportunities.Findings: In the full sample, exports, institutional ownership, managerial ownership, directors’ ownership, and independent directors positively influence CSR, while free cash flow, foreign ownership, board meetings, and firm size reduce CSR. Under high investment opportunities, CSR is driven by directors’ ownership, independent directors, and board meetings, while exports, managerial ownership, and firm size negatively affect CSR. In low investment opportunities, exports, managerial ownership, directors’ ownership, and independent directors enhance CSR, whereas leverage, foreign ownership, and firm size significantly reduce CSR.Implications/Originality/Value: CSR engagement depends more on governance structure and investment context than financial capacity, highlighting the significance of effective ownership and board apparatuses in evolving markets.&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&