IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijfss/v12y2024i1p13-d1330425.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Board Structure, CEO Equity-Based Compensation, and Financial Performance: Evidence from MENA Countries

Author

Listed:
  • Abdullah A. Aljughaiman

    (Finance Department, School of Business, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa 31982, Saudi Arabia)

  • Abdulateif A. Almulhim

    (Finance Department, School of Business, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa 31982, Saudi Arabia)

  • Abdulaziz S. Al Naim

    (Accounting Department, School of Business, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa 31982, Saudi Arabia)

Abstract

This paper investigates the association between board of director (BOD) structures and CEO equity-based compensation (long-term incentive) for commercial banks (conventional and Islamic banks) in MENA countries. Specifically, we take board size and board independence to measure the board structure. Furthermore, we investigate the influence of board structure on the association between CEO equity-based compensation and financial performance. Moreover, we compare conventional and Islamic banks in testing these relationships. Using a sample of 65 banks in MENA countries for the period between 2009 and 2020, we show a significant positive association between board size and CEO compensation. However, we find the same association between these variables for IBs, but the effect of board size on CEO compensation is less. We also show that board independence is negatively correlated with CEO compensation. Nevertheless, the relationship between board independence and CEO ownership is positive for IBs. For the moderating test, we find that effective board structure provides more incentives to the CEO, leading them to achieve higher financial performance. The Islamic bank’s business model (based on Shari’ah principles) contributes to the different influences of board structure on CEO compensation. Our results provide the insight that a strong and effective board is important for managing the executive’s compensation system. The findings of this study have implications for financial firms, policymakers, and regulators. Specifically, the study may help in understanding the benefits of different compensation structures relative to different types of financial firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Abdullah A. Aljughaiman & Abdulateif A. Almulhim & Abdulaziz S. Al Naim, 2024. "Board Structure, CEO Equity-Based Compensation, and Financial Performance: Evidence from MENA Countries," IJFS, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-17, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijfss:v:12:y:2024:i:1:p:13-:d:1330425
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7072/12/1/13/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7072/12/1/13/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pascal Nguyen & Nahid Rahman & Alex Tong & Ruoyun Zhao, 2016. "Board size and firm value: evidence from Australia," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 20(4), pages 851-873, December.
    2. Fahlenbrach, Rüdiger & Stulz, René M., 2011. "Bank CEO incentives and the credit crisis," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(1), pages 11-26, January.
    3. Safiullah, Md & Shamsuddin, Abul, 2018. "Risk in Islamic banking and corporate governance," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 129-149.
    4. 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.
    5. Renée B. Adams & Daniel Ferreira, 2007. "A Theory of Friendly Boards," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 62(1), pages 217-250, February.
    6. Kose John & Lubomir Litov & Bernard Yeung, 2008. "Corporate Governance and Risk‐Taking," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 63(4), pages 1679-1728, August.
    7. Zoltan Matolcsy & Anna Wright, 2011. "CEO compensation structure and firm performance," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 51(3), pages 745-763, September.
    8. Katherine Guthrie & Jan Sokolowsky & Kam‐Ming Wan, 2012. "CEO Compensation and Board Structure Revisited," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 67(3), pages 1149-1168, June.
    9. Khan, Raihan & Dharwadkar, Ravi & Brandes, Pamela, 2005. "Institutional ownership and CEO compensation: a longitudinal examination," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 58(8), pages 1078-1088, August.
    10. Paul C. Tetlock, 2007. "Giving Content to Investor Sentiment: The Role of Media in the Stock Market," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 62(3), pages 1139-1168, June.
    11. Manika Kohli, 2018. "Impact of Ownership Type and Board Characteristics on the Pay–Performance Relationship: Evidence from India," Indian Journal of Corporate Governance, , vol. 11(1), pages 1-34, June.
    12. Dima Jamali & Ramez Mirshak, 2007. "Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): Theory and Practice in a Developing Country Context," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 72(3), pages 243-262, May.
    13. 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.
    14. Beck, Thorsten & Demirgüç-Kunt, Asli & Merrouche, Ouarda, 2013. "Islamic vs. conventional banking: Business model, efficiency and stability," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 433-447.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Aman, Hiroyuki & Nguyen, Pascal, 2013. "Does good governance matter to debtholders? Evidence from the credit ratings of Japanese firms," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 14-34.
    2. Bill B. Francis & Iftekhar Hasan & Qiang Wu, 2012. "Do corporate boards matter during the current financial crisis?," Review of Financial Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 21(2), pages 39-52, April.
    3. Shkendije Himaj, 2014. "Corporate Governance in Banks and its Impact on Risk and Performance: Review of Literature on the Selected Governance Mechanisms," Journal of Central Banking Theory and Practice, Central bank of Montenegro, vol. 3(3), pages 53-85.
    4. Safiullah, Md, 2020. "Bank governance and crisis-period efficiency: A multinational study on Islamic and conventional banks," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    5. Safiullah, Md & Hassan, M. Kabir & Kabir, Md Nurul, 2022. "Corporate governance and liquidity creation nexus in Islamic banks—Is managerial ability a channel?," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    6. Carlini, Federico & Cucinelli, Doriana & Previtali, Daniele & Soana, Maria Gaia, 2020. "Don't talk too bad! stock market reactions to bank corporate governance news," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    7. Trinh, Vu Quang & Aljughaiman, Abdullah A. & Cao, Ngan Duong, 2020. "Fetching better deals from creditors: Board busyness, agency relationships and the bank cost of debt," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    8. Bird, Robert C. & Borochin, Paul A. & Knopf, John D., 2015. "The role of the chief legal officer in corporate governance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 1-22.
    9. Hoontaek Seo & Sangho Yi & William McCumber, 2024. "Friendly Boards and the Cost of Debt," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-17, July.
    10. Etienne Redor & Magnus Blomkvist, 2021. "Do all inside and affiliated directors hold the same value for shareholders?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 41(3), pages 882-895.
    11. King, Timothy & Srivastav, Abhishek & Williams, Jonathan, 2016. "What's in an education? Implications of CEO education for bank performance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 287-308.
    12. Manhwa Wu & Paoyu Huang & Yensen Ni, 2020. "The Impact of Institutional Shareholdings on Price Limits," Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, Springer;Japanese Association of Financial Economics and Engineering, vol. 27(3), pages 343-361, September.
    13. Neupane, Biwesh & Thapa, Chandra & Marshall, Andrew & Neupane, Suman & Shrestha, Chaman, 2024. "Do foreign institutional investors improve board monitoring?," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    14. Volonté, Christophe, 2015. "Boards: Independent and committed directors?," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 25-37.
    15. Sulu Zhu & Pengqun Gao & Zhen Tang & Ming Tian, 2022. "The Research Venation Analysis and Future Prospects of Organizational Slack," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-23, October.
    16. Lin, Zhijun & Song, Byron Y. & Tian, Zhimin, 2016. "Does director-level reputation matter? Evidence from bank loan contracting," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 160-176.
    17. Shan Xue & Yi Tang & Yuehua Xu & Chu-Ding Ling & Xiao-Yun Xie & Shenjiang Mo, 2024. "How boards’ factional faultlines affect corporate financial fraud," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 41(1), pages 351-376, March.
    18. Esther B. Brio & Rosa M. Hernández-Maestro & Toru Yoshikawa, 2018. "How does interpersonal justice affect outside directors’ governance behavior? A cross-cultural comparison," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 12(3), pages 683-709, July.
    19. 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.
    20. Francis, Bill & Hasan, Iftekhar & Liu, Liuling & Wu, Qiang & Zhao, Yijiang, 2021. "Financial analysts' career concerns and the cost of private debt," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).

    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:jijfss:v:12:y:2024:i:1:p:13-:d:1330425. 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.