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The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance (MCCG) on the performance of the listed companies in Malaysia.

Panel data estimation techniques were used to run the regression in this study, following Baltagi (1995). The authors have selected 116 listed companies to Bursa Malaysia during the period 1996-2014, to study the effect of corporate governance on firm performance. Listed companies in Malaysia are mandatory to comply with MCCG rules and regulations.

It was found that there was a significant improvement in the performance of listed companies after Malaysian Government’s implementation of MCCG (2000) which means that MCCG matters for firm performance in Malaysia. It was also found that there was no significance difference in the overall impact of implementation of MCCG on performance level between government-linked companies (GLCs) and private companies (PCs).

The authors have selected only 116 listed companies to Bursa Malaysia during the period 1996-2014, to study the effect of corporate governance on firm performance. The selection of the data was based on the availability of data in Thomson data stream.

The findings had contributed to the understanding that the MCCG has improved significantly the performance of listed companies in Malaysia.

The purpose of this paper is to conduct an investigation into the relationship between a firm’s corporate governance mechanisms (audit committee composition and operation, block shareholder, CEO duality, financial state, ownership dominance, political connection, share price, and family control) and auditor quality selection in Malaysia, for periods before and after the introduction of Malaysian Code of Corporate Governance in 2007 (MCCG 2007).

300 companies listed on the Malaysian Stock Exchange from 2006 to 2008 were selected. A Binary regression method was used to analyse the data collected from both annual reports and financial databases.

The study has found that in general, MCCG 2007 influenced auditor selection through restructuring of corporate governance tools, such as audit committees and internal audit functions.

Results have provided evidence that the restructuring of corporate governance may contribute and drive company to enhance the quality of the audit performed by selecting better quality auditor and/or improvising the audit related functions within the company such as formalising internal audit function. This study, however, employed an archival method of study and only used three years (2006, 2007 and 2008) of data analysis. Future research should analyse data from a longer period and utilize a field survey to understand reasons for auditor selection from the company perspective.

Building on previous studies, this study contributes to the current body of knowledge as it also considers the objective from the perspective of the revised MCCG 2007. It examines whether the introduction of new or revised corporate governance guidelines may immediately impact company auditor selection. Therefore, it compares the auditor quality of the company from pre-MCCG 2007 (2006) and post-MCCG 2007 (2008).

The purpose of this study is to ascertain the control role of independent non-executive directors (INEDs) in Malaysian public listed companies (PLCs), as prescribed in the Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance (MCCG).The MCCG (2000) requires substantive involvement of INEDs on the audit, nomination and remuneration board sub-committees. The study also examines the effectiveness of INEDs in discharging their monitoring roles in these sub-committees.

A qualitative research design consisting of a series of interviews with board members of Malaysian-owned PLCs on the board of Bursa Malaysia was used.

Interviews with 27 company directors reveal that, due to their independence, INEDs are crucial in safeguarding the interests of smaller investors if situations arise in which shareholders’ interests may be threatened. The interviews also disclose that the audit committee possesses the most authority among the sub-committees, as it derives its power not only from the Listing Requirements but also from statute, as well as being involved in areas of the company not traditionally associated with the committee. The study also reveals the differences in opinion between executive directors and INEDs with regard to the extent of INEDs’ effectiveness.

This research utilises interviews. Generalisation may be an issue when interviews are used as the method of inquiry. In addition, the sample is not random, as access to many directors is dependent on recommendations. In addition, the respondents have been consciously selected to cover various board positions, including independent and non-independent directors.

The findings from this research suggest that INEDs are able to discharge their responsibilities in overseeing the conduct of executives and protecting the interests of investors. In addition, the interviews disclose that the effectiveness of INEDs depends on how non-executive directors view INEDs being on the board. Rather than focusing solely on their control role, INEDS are expected to have a more proactive and progressive role in ensuring sustainable growth and the expansion of the business entity.

There are limited studies using qualitative research design in investigating the effectiveness of INEDs in the control role of the board in developing countries. Prior studies were predominantly based upon the experience of Western economies.

Following the introduction of the revised Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance in 2012 (MCCG 2012), this study aims to investigate the influence of corporate governance structure on the quality of sustainability reporting from the perspectives of agency theory and resource dependence theory.

Based on an analysis of 126 firms’ annual reports for the year ended 2010 and 2014, this study analyses sustainability reporting quality before the introduction of MCCG, 2012 (year ended 2010) and after (year ended 2014).

The findings of the study show that there was a significant increase in the quality of sustainability reporting from 2010 to 2014. Results from multiple regression analyses indicate that the number of sustainability-related training attended by the board of directors and the percentage of directors with sustainability-related experience have a significant impact on the quality of sustainability reporting.

Observations from the study provide useful insights into the importance of the appointment of directors with sustainability-related experience as part of the criteria for directors’ appointment. Moreover, the board of directors is encouraged to attend sustainability-related training to help firms improve sustainability practices and reporting.

The increase in the quality of sustainability reporting indicates that companies are committed in ensuring that environmental degradation is put at the minimum level if not eliminated. It appears that companies are embracing the concept of sustainability reporting, and hence, contributing to improving and enhancing social well-being.

This study contributes to the discussion of both internal mechanisms (board independence and board capital) and external mechanisms (compliance to the code on corporate governance) of corporate governance structure on the quality of sustainability reporting. The findings can be used to identify necessary mechanisms that should be enhanced to strengthen the practice of sustainability reporting.

The aim of this paper is to examine the relative influence of regulatory enhancements relating to corporate governance and attributes of business traits on performance of Malaysian listed companies.

Regression analysis was performed on all 742 non-financial main board companies listed on Bursa Malaysia using data from 2013 annual reports.

The results show that the number of board meetings held during the year, role separation and board size have a significant impact on corporate performance. By contrast, independent directors, government ownership and director ownership do not influence corporate performance.

The study investigated non-financial companies for the financial year 2013. Hence, the results may not apply to financial companies and other years. Future research can perhaps include all types of listed companies and carry out a longitudinal study to gain more comprehensive results and understanding on the relationship between corporate governance and corporate performance. Additionally, future research could also consider employing a different methodology to further unveil factors influencing corporate performance.

The above findings provide new evidence of the effectiveness of the Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance in improving company performance. The significance of board meetings, role separation and board size shows the importance of internal governance in shaping company processes and hence performance.

The result suggests that although the Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance follows the corporate governance code of developed countries, the applicability of the recommendations to a developing country is evidenced. Companies in Malaysia are predominantly government-owned or closely held, but it appears that role separation matters even in these types of companies in achieving better performance.

The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance (MCCG, 2007 and 2012) on the performance of the listed companies in Malaysia. The agency theory and resource dependency theories indicate that the firms with strong corporate governance outperform firms with weaker governance. This paper explores this relationship in a developing country like Malaysia having different institutional environment compared to western countries.

The study used a sample of 113 listed companies in Malaysia. The study incorporates the endogenous relationship between corporate governance, firm performance and leverage.

The study analyzes how the corporate governance framework affected firm performance in Malaysia with the help of self-developed corporate governance index (MCGI). The authors’ findings show that the performance of the firm is positively and significantly related with corporate governance measured by MCGI. Secondly, corporate governance of sample firms shows marked improvements after implementation of MCCG 2012 as compared to MCCG 2007.

The findings of this paper support the agency and the resource dependency theories. The study contributes to the understanding of the relationship between the corporate governance and firm performance in emerging economy and builds a case for enforcement of strong corporate governance code by government agencies.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the characteristics of the audit committee (AC) chair affect audit report timeliness. In particular, the direct association between AC chair accounting expertise and audit report delay, and the moderating effect of other characteristics of AC chair on this association are examined.

To achieve the purpose of this study, the characteristics examined by this study are AC chair expertise, shareholding, tenure and multiple directorships. Furthermore, a sample of Malaysian companies during the period 2005–2011 and the fixed effects panel data method are utilized.

The results suggest that an AC chair with accounting expertise is associated with a reduction in audit delay. The reduction is more obvious when the chair holds shares in the company, but is weakened by longer tenure and multiple directorships. These results are robust after conducting several robust tests. Using mediating analysis, the authors also document that an AC chair with accounting expertise can enhance the timeliness of audit reports even when the quality of financial reporting is lower. The reported result is supported by additional analysis that finds that AC chairs with accounting expertise and AC chairs with accounting expertise and shareholding are significantly associated with shorter abnormal audit delay.

This study provides comprehensive analysis concerning the association between AC chair and audit report timeliness using a unique setting. It is among the limited evidence that reports the moderating effect of AC chair characteristics on the role of such chair on audit report timeliness.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of the characteristics of audit committee chairman (ACC) (tenure, age, gender, ethnicity, accounting expertise and directorship) on earnings management (EM) practices.

The Jones model and modified Jones model by Dechow et al. (1995) were used to determine the discretionary accruals (DA) of 288 Malaysian listed firms with lowest positive earnings for the years 2013‒2015.

The results of the ordinary least squares regression indicate that only tenure, gender and ethnicity of the ACC are associated with DA. A further test was conducted by dividing firms into two groups: firms whose boards are chaired by a family member and firms whose boards are chaired by a non-family member. The results reveal that it is possible for firms whose boards are chaired by family members to cause the corporate governance (CG) mechanisms, particularly the audit committee, to lose their effectiveness in overcoming the EM problem. In addition, robustness tests were conducted by using panel data regression, where the results were found to be similar to the original regression results.

This study alerts policymakers, firms and their stakeholders, as well as researchers, regarding the importance of having an independent board chairman, who has no relationship with any directors or major shareholders, as this may hinder the effectiveness of CG mechanisms in curbing EM, especially in emerging countries, such as Malaysia, where it is very difficult to stop members of the family from becoming board directors.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between political connections and corporate tax aggressiveness in Malaysia. In addition, this paper investigates the relationship between corporate governance variables and corporate tax aggressiveness. Next, the study investigates the mitigating role of corporate governance in the relationship between political connections and corporate tax aggressiveness.

The sample of this study is based on 2,538 firm-year observations during the 2000-2009 periods. This study employs a panel least square regression with both period and industry fixed effects. The study retrieved the corporate governance variables from the downloaded annual reports, whilst the remaining data were collected from Compustat Global.

This study finds that politically connected firms are more tax aggressive than non-connected firms. Furthermore, the study finds that large board size decreases the likelihood of tax aggressiveness and a non-linear relationship exists between institutional ownership and tax aggressiveness suggesting increase in monitoring as the ownership increases. However, the study finds no evidence to suggest that corporate governance mitigates the influence of political connections in promoting tax aggressiveness behavior. The findings suggest that the impact of political connections could outweigh the benefits of changes in corporate governance in Malaysia.

The data are not recent, but it reflects a rather longitudinal research period.

This paper extends the literature of tax research in Malaysia which is in its’ infancy stage. Furthermore, it investigates the role of political connections in tax-planning research.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between audit committees’ characteristics and firms’ risk in Malaysian manufacturing firms.

The effect of audit committees on firms’ risk is investigated by 930 firm-year observations between the fiscal years of 2004 and 2009 of Bursa Malaysia listed firms during the global financial crisis. Panel data regression analysis is used to analyze the relationship.

The findings of this study indicate that audit committee’s independence reduces firms’ risk. Nonetheless, across various analysis, the authors fail to associate audit committee’s qualification and membership in professional bodies with firms’ risk. Consistently, the authors find that family ownership is negatively associated with IDIOSYNCRATIC risks, supporting previous studies claim that family firms are more risk averse than non-family firms.

The analysis is confined to Malaysian family manufacturing sectors during global financial crisis 2007–2008.

This study offers insights into the importance of audit committees’ qualification and knowledge in Malaysian family manufacturing firms in reducing firms’ risk and providing stability to investors investment.