Financial soundness of Islamic banks: does the structure of the board of directors matter?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Afef Khalil ◽  
Imen Ben Slimene
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Z Score ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Additional Hypothesis ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
Financial Soundness ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the Board of Directors’ characteristics and their impact on the financial soundness of Islamic banks. Design/methodology/approach Regression analysis is applied to test the impact of the Board of Directors’ characteristics on the financial soundness of Islamic banks, using a panel data set of 67 Islamic banks covering 20 countries from 2005 to 2018. The Z-score indicator is used to evaluate the Islamic banks’ soundness. To check the robustness of the results, this paper uses other dependent variables (CAMEL) than the Z-score. Findings The main results show that the presence of an independent non-executive director negatively impacts the financial soundness of Islamic banks, while the chief executive officer duality practice has a positive effect on it. Other characteristics of the Board of Directors do not significantly impact the financial soundness of Islamic banks (foreign director, institutional director, chairman with a Shari’ah degree, interlocked chairman and the Board of Directors’ size). Practical implications This study aims to fill the gaps in the literature that discuss the Board of Directors’ role in corporate governance and its impact on the financial soundness of Islamic banks. In other words, it shows the role played by the Board of Directors and improves the knowledge of the corporate governance-financial soundness relationship. Plus, managers, investors and regulators may gain evocative insights, particularly those looking to improve their Islamic banks’ soundness by restructuring their boards’ composition. Originality/value This study sheds new light on the literature on Islamic banking by clarifying the relationship between the Board of Directors and the financial soundness of Islamic banks. Contrary to previous research, this paper uses an additional hypothesis stating that a chairman with a Shari’ah degree (Fiqh Muamalt) has a positive impact on the financial soundness of Islamic banks.

The impact of the board of directors and the Shariah board on the financial soundness of Islamic banks

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Afef Khalil
Keyword(s):  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Capital Adequacy ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Z Score ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
Financial Soundness ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of the study is to examine the relationship between the board of directors (BODs) and the Shariah board (SB) and assess its impact on the financial soundness of Islamic banks (IBs). Design/methodology/approach The authors use a regression model to test the effects of the relationship between the BOD and the SB on the financial soundness of IBs by applying a panel data set of 61 IBs, covering 18 countries from 2008 to 2014. The dependent variable is the Z-score indicator. To test the robustness of the results, the authors use dependent variables other than the Z-score [A rating of Capital adequacy (C), Asset quality (A), Management (M), Earnings (E), Liquidity (L), and Sensitivity (S) (CAMELS)] for 2018. Findings The results show that meetings between directors and SB members significantly reduce the financial soundness of IBs. The relationship between the BOD and the SB increases conflicts of interest and agency costs. However, a representation of the SB at the BOD meetings and vice versa does not affect financial soundness. The Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions and the Islamic Financial Services Board corporate governance standards do not require the presence of the SB representative at the BOD meetings or vice versa, which justifies the results. Practical implications This study attempts to fill gaps in the literature by investigating the impact of meetings between the SB and the BOD on the financial soundness of IBs across the world. The results suggest that the BOD’s frequent interference in the affairs of the SB can have adverse effects on IBs and should be avoided. Originality/value The authors depart from the previous literature by using three new characteristics that link the BOD to the SB. Methodologically, the authors use three new measures to evaluate this relationship and its effect on the financial soundness of IBs. This study is unique because it explores the comparative impacts of the presence of a SB representative at the BOD meetings and a director at the SB meetings and meetings between the two governing boards of IBs.

Gender diversity, board of director’s size and Islamic banks performance

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Entissar Elgadi ◽  
Wafa Ghardallou
Keyword(s):  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Career Commitment ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Bank Managers ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to empirically assess the impact of gender diversity and board of directors’ size on Islamic banks’ performance. Design/methodology/approach Hand-collected data set including 27 banks from 2005 to 2013 is used to investigate the effect of the above mechanisms on banks’ performance as measured by return on equities and return on assets. The study uses pooling regression, which requires estimating a single equation on different cross-sectional data. Specifically, ordinary least squares is used to estimate the model. Findings Obtained results suggest that the presence of women on the board of directors does not have a significant influence on banks’ performance. However, gender diversity in the management department is found to have a negative and significant impact. Besides, the findings prove that the board of directors’ size adversely affects banks’ performance. Research limitations/implications Findings of this study will enhance a better understanding of the interrelationships between performance measures and determinants, which can improve estimations of key inputs in the decision-making process. Such deeper understanding should provide policy and decision makers with an important part of the framework needed to provide quality outcomes. In addition, the results of this study provide some beneficial insights on performance determinants to the policymakers, industry leaders and bank managers. Accordingly, those parties could enhance the profitability of Sudanese Islamic banks by improving capitalisation and assets utilisation and by improving banks operation efficiency, leverage and by reducing the size of the board of directors. Industry leaders and bank managers could also benefit from the findings on bank age, which suggest that they can learn from the experience of newly established banks, as the latter are shown to be able to use their resources to generate more profits. Practical implications Results suggest that in the future, Islamic banks should focus on how to weaken the negative performance effect of female executives’ participation. Besides, banks should work to decrease labour market discrimination and increase long-term career commitment amongst women. Originality/value After reviewing the literature, the research objective was not accounted for by the existing empirical works. Indeed, the role of gender diversity and board of directors’ size on a bank’s performance was not examined in the case of Sudanese Islamic banks.

The impact of the Shariah Board’s characteristics on the financial soundness of Islamic banks

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1807-1825 ◽  
Author(s):  
Afef Khalil ◽  
Neila Boulila Taktak
Keyword(s):  
Board Members ◽  
Islamic Banking ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Additional Hypothesis ◽  
Financial Soundness ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between corporate governance and financial soundness of Islamic banks. Precisely, this study examines the Shariah Board’s characteristics and empirically diagnoses its impact on the financial soundness of Islamic banks. Design/methodology/approach In this case, the level of bank soundness is individually measured using the z-score indicator. Regression analyses are applied to test the impact of the Shariah Board’s characteristics on the financial soundness of Islamic banks, using a panel data set of 67 Islamic banks – covering 20 countries during the period 2005–2014. Findings The model shows that the size of the Shariah Board has a negative and significant impact on the financial soundness of Islamic banks. However, the Shariah scholar with knowledge in finance/accounting, the presence of Mufti, the interlocked Shariah scholar and the foreign Shariah scholar do not have any significant impact on the financial soundness of Islamic banks. Practical implications This study contributes to fill the gaps in the literature that discussed the Shariah Boards’ role in the governance of Islamic banks. In addition, it provides practical implications to the Shariah Boards’ members in the Islamic banks and calls for setting a sufficient number of scholars for each Shariah Board. Originality/value With this paper, the authors aim to clarify the relationship between Shariah Board and financial soundness of the Islamic banking, and provide additional insights to the emerging literature of Islamic banking. Contrary to previous research studies, the authors use an additional hypothesis, i.e. the presence of Mufti that has a positive and significant effect on the financial soundness of Islamic Banks. Methodologically, the authors incorporate a new measure to evaluate empirically the impact of Shariah Board members with knowledge of finance and accounting on the financial soundness of Islamic banks.

scholarly journals Momentum investment strategies, corporate governance and firm performance: an analysis of Islamic banks

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 192-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tasawar Nawaz
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Human Capital ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Dominant Role ◽  
Market Value ◽  
Investment Strategies ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the effect of investments in organisational resources and corporate governance features on market-based performance of Islamic banks (IBs). Design/methodology/approach The required data to calculate different constituents of banks’ investment strategies and governance mechanism were hand collected from 268 annual reports. Different regression models were used to determine the impact of investment in human and structural capital and corporate governance features on market performance of IBs. Findings The paper finds that investments in knowledge resources (human capital, in particular) have a significantly positive impact on the market value of IBs. The results further reveal that IBs’ strategy to rely on long-term human capital accumulation can be seen as idiosyncratic problem-solving knowledge capital. Based on market measure, the paper finds role duality to have a significant positive impact and the size of the advisory board to have the opposite effect on market value. Research limitations/implications This study includes IBs only and ignores other Islamic financial services providers such as Takaful (insurance) companies. The study leaves this chasm to be filled by future researchers. Practical implications The findings may serve as a useful input for both Islamic bankers and regulators to apply knowledge management in their institutions. Furthermore, the dominant role of human capital also provides insight to managers with respect to business performance levers. Originality/value The main contribution of this paper is to provide insight into the Islamic banking business model using a unique hand-collected data set, to identify the effect of investments in organisational resources and bank governance on market value in before, during and after financial crisis.

The impact of Shari’ah and corporate governance on Islamic banks performance: evidence from Asia

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 483-501
Author(s):  
Imran Khan ◽  
Syeda Nitasha Zahid
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Financial Performance ◽  
Good Governance ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Corporate Boards ◽  
Sampled Data ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Advisory Boards ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This study aims to investigate the impact of Shari’ah and corporate governance on Islamic banks performance in Asia. Design/methodology/approach The study uses hand collected data set on Shari’ah and corporate governance variables of 79 Islamic banks of 19 countries of Asia, for the period of 2011-2016. Augmented Mollah et al. (2017) composite corporate governance index into Islamic corporate governance (ICG) index by incorporate Shari’ah board’s (SBs) attributes. Two types of statistical analysis were performed; descriptive statistics, sample t-test and panel random effects regression. The analysis was further sub-sampled by considering the supervisory vs advisory, GCC vs non-GCC and large vs small effects of Shari’ah and corporate boards on Islamic banks performance. Findings The results of the baseline model reveal that Shari’ah governance-related variables are more influential in determining the financial performance of the Islamic banks. The sub-sampled data findings illustrated some interesting facts. Shari’ah supervisory vs advisory boards regression results show that the ICG index was found significant in both the models. However, when SBs are weak the general board dominates in determining the performance. GCC vs non-GCC results show a relatively good governance in non-GCC countries. While, in case of large vs small Islamic banks, banks having high total assets demonstrates sound governance characteristics. Research limitations/implications Independent, large and educated SB can play a significant role in removing the hurdles facing the Islamic banking industry and can also enhance stakeholders’ value. Originality/value This study enriches the understanding on Shari’ah governance, corporate governance and financial performance of Islamic banks in Asia.

Does shareholder-oriented corporate governance reduce firm risk? Evidence from listed European companies

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 295-311 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leopold Djoutsa Wamba ◽  
Eric Braune ◽  
Lubica Hikkerova
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Good Governance ◽  
Systematic Risk ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Firm Risk ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Synthetic Index ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of the mechanisms of corporate governance on the volatility of companies’ financial profitability. Design/methodology/approach For the period 2002-2014, the authors evaluate the relations linking various indices involved in corporate governance with the systematic risk supported by these companies for a sample of 355 firms domiciled in Europe. To empirically test these relationships, the authors calculated a synthetic index of corporate governance quality (QGI) based on the 53 items of assessment of the companies’ governance proposed by the database ASSET4. Following the method used by Boncori et al. (2016), the authors first reduced the number of dimensions of corporate governance by performing a principal component analysis of the sample, which resulted in the following five components: management’s shareholder commitment, shareholder rights, characteristics of the board of directors, transparency of the financial information and independence of the audit. Findings The results of the tests indicate that the synthetic index of governance that the authors have built is only significant at the 10 percent threshold. The impact of this variable on the systematic risk of the company is of the order of one-tenth of a point. The decomposition of this index into five variables shows that management’s commitment to shareholders and the effectiveness of the board of directors in carrying out its supervisory tasks are likely to reduce, but again to a limited extent, the risk borne by the company. Research limitations/implications This observation guides the future work in introducing variables that reflect the social responsibilities of the companies in the sample in order to distinguish the effects of social responsibility from those of purely shareholder-oriented governance on systematic risk. Practical implications This paper demonstrates the interest of good governance on the risk of firms and identifies certain characteristics upon which to act. Originality/value Although the relations between corporate governance mechanisms and profitability expectations have been the subject of numerous studies, few authors have examined the influence of governorship on the volatility of this profitability, particularly in Europe. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the rare work on this topic relates to only a limited number of countries.

Determinants of technical efficiency of Islamic banks in GCC countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-238
Author(s):  
Ezzeddine Ben Mohamed ◽  
Neama Meshabet ◽  
Bilel Jarraya
Keyword(s):  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Technical Efficiency ◽  
Panel Data Analysis ◽  
Positive Sign ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Gcc Countries ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Specific Education

Purpose This study aims to discuss the determinants of Islamic banks’ efficiency. It tries to explore the source of Islamic banks’ inefficiencies to propose solutions to guarantee an acceptable level of technical efficiency of such banks in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Design/methodology/approach To achieve this objective, the authors use a parametric approach, especially, the stochastic frontier approach, using production function and panel data analysis. The authors apply a package Frontier 4.1 for the estimation process, which is composed of two principal steps. In the first step, the authors estimate Islamic banks’ efficiency scores in different GCC countries based on an output distance function. In the second step, the analysis highlights the impact of managerial-specific education on Islamic accounting and finance, scarcity of Sharīʿah scholars, the board independence and chief executive officers’ (CEOs) duality on GCC Islamic banks’ efficiency. Findings This study’s results document that managerial-specific education on Islamic accounting and finance and the board of directors’ composition, especially, the board’s independence, can largely explain the technical efficiency scores of Islamic banks in GCC countries. Especially, the authors find evidence that managerial-specific education is negatively associated with the inefficiency term. The coefficient of the Sharīʿah scholar’s variable has a positive sign indicating that the more there are Sharīʿah experts, the more the bank is efficient. In addition, CEOs’ duality seems to have no significant effect on GCC Islamic banks’ efficiency. Practical implications GCC Islamic banks need to improve the presence of independent members on the board of directors. In addition, these banks are invited to count more on Sharīʿah auditors and educated staff characterized by a high level of competency in the domain of Islamic banking and finance. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that highlights the effect of managerial-specific education in Islamic accounting and finance and scarcity of Sharīʿah scholars on Islamic banks’ efficiency.

Accounting conservatism and corporate governance: evidence from India

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Meena Sharma ◽  
Rajbir Kaur
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Audit Committee ◽  
Accounting Conservatism ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The paper aims to study the impact of corporate governance variables on the adoption of accounting conservatism by S&P BSE 500 index firms. Design/methodology/approach The period for the study is from 2010–2018. The data has been extracted from the BSE website, annual reports of the sample companies and the Prowess IQ database. Panel data methodology has been used to analyse the impact of the corporate governance variables on accounting conservatism. Accounting conservatism is the dependent variable, which has been measured by using the CONACCR (negative accruals) measure and the independent variables include the characteristics of the board of directors and the audit committee. Findings Overall, the relationship between accounting conservatism and corporate governance indicates a significant impact of corporate governance variables, namely, characteristics of the board of directors and the audit committee, on the accounting conservatism policy of the firm. Originality/value This research explores the benefits of conservatism in resolving agency conflict. Very few studies have captured the relationship of individual components of corporate governance with accounting conservatism. Moreover, this study contributes to the literature regarding the influence of corporate governance variables on the extent of conservatism used in accounting records.

scholarly journals Corporate governance and Shariah non-compliant risk in Islamic banks: evidence from Southeast Asia

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 240-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rohaida Basiruddin ◽  
Habib Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Governance Mechanism ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Country Level ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This study aims to investigate the relationship between corporate governance and Shariah non-compliant risk (SNCR) that is unique for Islamic banks. The study examines the roles of Shariah committee along with the board of directors in mitigating SNCR. Design/methodology/approach The paper empirically investigates the implications of characteristics of board of directors and Shariah committee on the SNCR by using a sample of 29 full-fledge Islamic banks from Malaysia and Indonesia over the period 2007-2017. All data is hand collected from the Islamic banks' annual reports with the exception of country-level data collected from the World Bank database. Findings The results show that banks with a smaller board size and higher proportion of independent board members are likely to have lower SNCR. The findings also indicate that the financial expertise and higher frequency of Shariah committee meetings reduces the SNCR. Collectively, the analysis shows that banks with strong corporate governance environments reduce SNCR. Practical implications The findings of the study shed light on the relationship between corporate governance practice, Shariah committee characteristics and SNCR. The results can be used by different stakeholders such as policymakers, boards of directors and senior management of Islamic banks to mitigate SNCR. Originality/value This study extends the literature on corporate governance and risk-taking by including additional dimensions of governance and risk type. The corporate governance mechanism at the board level is complemented by including the Shariah committee characteristics and SNCR which is relevant to Islamic financial institutions is examined.

The influence of board characteristics on corporate illegality

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gundeep Kaur Virk
Keyword(s):  
Board Of Directors ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Board Of Directors ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose In light of frequent corporate scams and frauds, this paper aims to investigate the relationship of corporate illegality with the board of directors’ characteristics in Indian manufacturing companies. Design/methodology/approach The board of director characteristics of sample companies charged with violation of the Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) regulations from 2008 to 2013 are matched to an equivalent-sized control data set. A cross-sectional logistic regression model is applied to test the hypothesized association. Findings The findings suggest that the SEBI violations are less likely to occur when a large fraction of the board of directors consists of independent directors and when the individual directors have multiple appointments on the boards of other companies. However, it is observed that the size of the board and its meetings have no observable association with violation of the SEBI regulations. Research limitations/implications This work is likely to aid future research in exploring the impact of governance mechanisms on the occurrence of illegality. In future, studies may be conducted to investigate the probability of illegal corporate events using a larger sample size and corporate governance variables which have not been examined in the present study. Practical implications The analysis provides corporate policy makers and investors an insight to evaluate the vulnerability of a company being engaged in illegality based on its board features. Originality/value The present study is distinct from previous reports as it makes a novel attempt to gauge the relationship between the board of directors’ characteristics and the occurrence of illegality in the Indian corporate section.

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