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Ant Colony Optimization and Particle Swarm Optimization represent two widely used Swarm Intelligence (SI) optimization techniques. Information processing using Multiple-Valued Logic (MVL) is carried out using more than two discrete logic levels. In this paper, we compare two the SI-based algorithms in synthesizing MVL functions. A benchmark consisting of 50,000 randomly generated 2-variable 4-valued functions is used for assessing the performance of the algorithms using the benchmark. Simulation results show that the PSO outperforms the ACO technique in terms of the average number of product terms (PTs) needed. We also compare the results obtained using both ACO-MVL and PSO-MVL with those obtained using Espresso-MV logic minimizer. It is shown that on average, both of the SI-based techniques produced better results compared to those produced by Espresso-MV. We show that the SI-based techniques outperform the conventional direct-cover (DC) techniques in terms of the average number of product terms required.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of zakat (the Islamic tax) in alleviating poverty and inequality in Pakistan using a newly developed index, namely, the Basic Needs Deficiency Index (BNDI).

The study formulates an index (BNDI) to measure the deficiency and effectiveness of zakat as one of the different items of government expenditure/spending to alleviate poverty. In this paper, Pakistan is chosen as a case study for two reasons: the availability and accessibility of data required for computing BNDI; and, in the past, no index such as this had been used to measure poverty in Pakistan.

The results obtained from the computation of the BNDI have been able to explain the effectiveness of zakat in alleviating poverty and inequality in Pakistan.

The findings of the study can be used by policymakers to measure and improve the effectiveness of zakat in reducing poverty and inequality.

As the ultimate beneficiaries of zakat are the poor people, the outcome of this study may help improve their quality of life.

The paper develops a new methodology to measure poverty alleviation in Pakistan, focusing on the poor households’ consumption/expenditure on basic needs, government spending in terms of zakat and the number of zakat recipients as the three main determinants. The index developed in the present study can be applied to measure the performance of all Muslim countries whose provision of zakat is embedded in the national agenda to alleviate poverty.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of banking sector concentration, banking sector development and equity market development in corporate financial flexibility (FF).

The study used annual data for the period from 1991 to 2014 to examine the relationship between banking sector concentration, banking sector development, equity market development and corporate FF; hypotheses were tested using an unbalanced panel logistic regression model.

The paper provides empirical insights into the relationships between macroeconomic factors and corporate FF. The results suggest a substantial change in FF across firms; banking sector concentration discourages firms from borrowing, leading to the reduction of corporate borrowing, consequently an increase in FF can be observed. Banking sector development facilitates debt financing, hence reducing FF. Equity market development also has a positive impact on FF, as it is a substitute for debt financing.

The banking sector is an important provider of capital to business entities. A concentrated banking system discourages the provision of capital to firms; hence regulators have to take appropriate measures to resolve the problem of a reduced supply of capital. Banking sector development facilitates the provision of capital; further development may reduce bank lending rates to firms. Equity market development positively affects FF; hence, firm managers can use equity financing to resume FF. By following pecking order theory, managers use internal sources to finance value-maximizing investment projects, debt and issue shares as the last choice to get financing. When borrowing capacity is depleted, managers can obtain further funds by issuing stocks.

FF is an emergent area of research in advanced countries, while in developing economies, it is in the initial stages. Little work is available in this area to find the impact of banking sector concentration, banking sector development and equity market development, therefore, this study fills this gap in the existing literature.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of macroeconomic factors and the institutional environment on corporate financial flexibility (FF). Most studies focus on well-developed financial markets and very little is known about corporate FF in less developed financial markets and emerging markets (Buvanendra et al., 2016). The present study contributes to filling this gap in the literature and provides a more practical and functional framework to assess the FF of firms located in emerging economies.

The study used annual data for the period from 1991 to 2018. To examine the relationship between macroeconomic indicators, institutional environment and corporate FF, hypotheses were tested using an unbalanced panel logistic regression model.

The paper provides empirical insights into the relationships between macroeconomic factors, institutional environment and corporate FF. The results suggest a substantial change in FF across firms. Inflation, institutional quality and banking sector development negatively affect FF, while equity market development has a significant positive impact. Gross domestic product growth was found to be an insignificant predictor of FF.

This study has practical implications for corporate finance managers, regulators and investors, who must consider the significant factors of this study when making economic decisions. Finance managers can thus make appropriate decisions regarding capital structure and FF. Regulators of the banking sector can take appropriate measures to enhance competition and increase the development of the banking sector. Further, regulators of the equity market can enhance the development of the market to enhance the supply of capital.

This study adds to the literature showing that not only firm-specific factors affect corporate FF, but country-specific macroeconomic and institutional factors also have a significant effect. It also adds to the literature in the area of corporate FF; this field is in its initial stage, even in developed countries, while, in developing countries, little work has been done.

The existing literature asserted that the Islamic banking industry progress significantly, but it has increasingly found asset deficient which assaulted the performance of Islamic banks (IBs). The aim of this study to examine the mediating role of intellectual capital (IC) on the relationship between corporate governance (CG) mechanisms and IBs performance is examined (ATO, NPM).

A panel sample of 129 IBs is drawn from the 29 organisation of Islamic cooperation (OIC) countries from 2008 to 2017. Two-step system generalized method of moments (2SYS-GMM) was used to account for the unobserved endogeneity and heteroscedasticity problem.

The empirical findings demonstrate that there is a significant impact of the CG mechanism on IC. Moreover, the empirical findings indicate that CG has a direct influence on banking performance but it affects indirectly through IC. IC also appears to have a mediation role in the relationship between the CG mechanism and the performance of IBs.

As the empirical research on IC from CG point of view in Islamic banking is generally new in the banking literature, the output of this research will contribute to the building up of empirical framework and practices regarding IC in the Islamic banking industry by using the resource-based theory as a leading theory and agency theory as a sub theory. It is anticipated that this study provided a superior comprehensive discussion of the IC in IBs across OIC countries which discovers the CG mechanism to influence the IC to improve banking performance.

This study offers useful insights to the regulators and practitioners to draw the rules and regulations in improving the CG mechanism and the effectiveness of internal controls by acknowledging the importance of IC in Islamic banking institutions. Particularly, the findings of this study may be of benefit to bankers to efficiently use the IC as a premise to design new and creative strategies to achieve a competitive advantage in the banking industry.

The study is unique in its nature because it presents a successful model for IBs to concentrate more on the role of IC in enhancing banking performance, which might be used by the banks to rearrange the roles within CG, to place their priorities regarding the internal governance system and financial plans for competency enhancement.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the mediating role of intellectual capital (IC) on the association between corporate governance mechanism (CGM) and the financial efficiency of Islamic banks (Z-score, net investment income and loan to deposit) and verify it through standard mediation in the panel based on interaction.

The data of this study draws from 125 full-fledged Islamic banks and windows from 26 Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) over the period of 2009 to 2019. A two-step system generalize method of moment estimation is used to test the hypotheses.

The results underwrite that the inclusion of IC as a mediating variable has influenced positively the corporate governance and financial efficiency of IBs. Besides, only CEO power and Shariah supervisory board positively affect the financial efficiency of IBs. While structural capital and relational capital positively affect the financial efficiency of IBs. Apart from that, results show that the CGM has a significant relationship with the IC value of IBs.

These findings are valuable for policymakers and regulators to set policies to improve CG structure and effective use of IC resources to improve banking efficiency. Additionally, findings might be helpful for the bankers to proficiently use the IC as a premise to plan new strategies to get an upper hand in financial performance.

This study extends and contributes to the current literature by analysing the role of IC along with CG to boost the financial efficiency of banks in OIC countries.

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of corporate governance (CG) on intellectual capital efficiency (ICE) in Islamic banks (IBs) of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) countries.

A sample of 129 IBs is drawn from the 29 OIC countries from 2008 to 2017. A two-step system of the generalised method of moments has been employed to account for the unobserved endogeneity and heteroscedasticity issue that arose due to time-variant and time-invariant variables.

The results revealed that CG measures, namely board size, non-executive directors do explain the extent and quality of ICE in the expected direction. In contrast, CEO duality, Shariah board and audit committee are negatively associated with the ICE. Moreover, the authors observed that male CEO in IBs has negative, but foreign ownership has a positive association with ICE in determining the extent of ICE in IBs. This study contributes specifically to the stakeholder theory and the literature of ICE and CG.

The findings of the study provide insight into how a larger board can overcome skill deficiency and how making more investment in ICE would help to enhance productivity. Hence, bank managers, regulators, policymakers and shareholders have strong interest in designing the appropriate CG structure to develop ICE in banks.

This is one of the few studies which provide empirical evidence of CG mechanism to boost the ICE in the perspective of IBs of the OIC countries.

Corporate governance plays a significant role to overcome agency issues and develop the culture of transparency and openness. In this context, this paper aims to examine how corporate governance mechanisms affect the performance of Islamic banks (IBs).

Stepwise, two-step system generalize method of moment estimation technique is used in the analysis in which control variables are added into the model sequentially. This study used data on 129 IBs from 29 Islamic countries (Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia) during the period of 2008 to 2017.

The findings suggest that the audit committee (AUDC) and Shariah board (SB) have positive impact on the performance of IBs (return on assets and return on equity). However, board size and risk management committee have negative and significant effect on the performance of IBs. CEO duality and non-executive directors have mixed relationship with the performance of IBs. These results support the argument that IBs need to improve their financial performance through appropriate governance mechanism.

The findings of the study added a new dimension to the governance research that could be a valuable source of knowledge for policymakers and regulators to improve the existing governance mechanism for better performance of IBs.

The study fills the gap in the literature by addressing the issue of corporate governance on performance of IBs across countries. Agency theory is discussed to explain the relationship between corporate governance mechanism and performance.

Given the relative importance of the Shari’ah supervisory boards (SSBs) in Islamic banks’ (IBs’) performance, this study aims to examine the impact of SSB diversity on IBs’ performance from the stakeholders’ perspective in the context of Pakistan.

Random-effects model and generalized method of moment are used to investigate the impact of SSB diversity on IBs’ performance across a panel data of 22 Islamic banks in Pakistan from 2005 to 2020 inclusive.

The findings of this study show that SSB size, SSB relevant educational background diversity, bank’s size and bank’s stability have a positive impact on IBs’ performance. In contrast, SSB age, nationality and cross-membership diversities have a negative impact on IBs’ performance. Moreover, SSB gender, tenure and general educational diversities have no significant impact on IBs’ performance.

SSB diversity and IBs practices are different across different jurisdictions. This study is conducted on IBs in Pakistan because of data constraints; thus, the results of this study may not be generalizable to other countries' IBs.

In structuring the SSBs’ framework, the regulatory authorities and policymakers should consider mandating an ideal SSB size and hiring relevant qualified members with low cross-membership to improve IBs' performance. Thus, the structure potentially attracts Muslim stakeholders, enhances their satisfaction and improves IBs' performance.

Having diversified members in the SSB, IBs equally benefit both individual and group stakeholders in society. Diversity in SSB members enhances IBs' performance and the social welfare of various stakeholders in society.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first empirical research that examines comprehensively the impact of SSB structural and demographic diversities on IBs' performance in the context of Pakistan. This paper contributes to the unique Shari’ah governance structure in the context of Pakistan. Additionally, this study may serve to assist IBs’ stakeholders in better comprehending the SSB practices of IBs in Pakistan.