Search results

The purpose of this study is to understand and evaluate the roles and functions of the Sharīʿah committee (SC) of Islamic banks (IBs) in Malaysia and to recommend a resetting of the scope of responsibilities to enable the SC to effectively respond to current market needs.

A Likert-type survey questionnaire was developed and distributed to all available SC members through e-mails and online surveys as well as self-administered questionnaires. At the end of the survey, 87 useable questionnaires were collected from 161 SC members, representing a 54% response rate.

This study finds that most SC members have the necessary Sharīʿah qualification, and they are mostly academics with doctoral degrees. However, there is a noticeable lack of diversity in the composition of experts in the committees. Respondents indicate that their main functions are to ensure Sharīʿah compliance of bank operations and product offerings. This is of course consistent with their stated functions as outlined in the Bank Negara Malaysia's Sharīʿah Governance Policy Document (BNM, 2019). The study finds that SCs are not involved in product development, nor responsible for financial performance. Respondents indicate three ways to enhance the role of SCs: improving banking knowledge of the members, more engagement with the board of directors (BoDs) and broadening the functions of SCs.

This study highlights two policy implications. First, there is a strategic need for IBs to consider having a diversity of expertise in the SCs while maintaining the Sharīʿah experts as core members. Second, this study recommends a reset of the scope of duties of the SC to include three new areas: risk management, product development and financial performance.

This study evaluates the current functions of the SC of IBs in Malaysia and provides suggestions for improvement in the composition of the committee and in the scope of duties of SCs based on contemporary needs.

This study aims to gain the perception of Selangor’s disadvantaged women on the Sharīʿah (Islamic law) rules on two micro-equity financing instruments, namely, muḍārabah (profit sharing) and mushārakah (profit-and-loss sharing) (M&M).

A survey was carried out in the rural area of Selangor district in Malaysia by administering a self-generated structured questionnaire. A total of 330 completed questionnaires were retrieved from the members of an Islamic microfinance institution (IsMFI), namely, Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM). The data were analysed by using structural equation modelling.

The female borrowers of AIM perceive the Sharīʿah rules of M&M requiring high moral and ethical values and diligent repayment performance. They are aware of some other underlying provisions such as business liquidation, share transfer, information discloser and business termination. The overall findings of this study suggest that the perceived Sharīʿah rules are akin to those that are commonly used in general partnership businesses between Muslims. It also indicates that disadvantaged entrepreneurs would accept the rules that are easy to comprehend as well as favourable to their interests. It further suggests that respondents’ experiences of microfinance and business operation do not have a significant influence on their perception of M&M instruments.

This study was limited to Selangor. So, the perception of Muslim women surveyed may not represent the views of all women in Malaysia. However, it can offer a primary understanding of the said issue.

The findings of this study can help IsMIFs take initiatives to offer M&M as micro-equity finance to poor women entrepreneurs.

So far, limited studies have been carried out on M&M-based microfinancing. This paper offers new insights presenting disadvantaged women entrepreneurs’ perception of these financing instruments.

This paper aims to explore the role of digital financial inclusion (DFI) in stabilizing the Islamic banking sector amidst the current COVID-19 pandemic.

This study has used the Panel-Corrected Standard Errors (PCSE), Two-Stage Panel Least Squares-Instrumental Variables (2SLS-IV) and Two-Step System Generalized Method of Moments (2SGMM) dynamic panel estimation method to investigate the DFI-Islamic banking stability nexus using an unbalanced panel data of 65 Islamic banks from six countries over the period 2011–2020.

The result suggests that greater implementation of DFI promotes Islamic banking stability, which reduces the default risk of the banks in the studied region. Consequently, incorporating DFI into the Islamic banking sector encourages inclusive economic growth that can keep the financial sector sustainable even in a crisis period like the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Unlike previous studies, the authors have focused mainly on DFI and the Islamic banking sector. This is one of the first to explore how DFI contribute to the stability and productivity of the Islamic banking sector during the pandemic. Also, this study provides fresh evidence on how the supply and demand side of DFI impact Islamic banking stability.

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship of the board and risk committee in respect of risk-taking in conventional and Islamic banks in Malaysia.

This study uses unbalanced panel data for 15 conventional and 14 Islamic banks over the period 2007–2016. The generalised least squares random effects technique is applied.

The evidence shows that independent directors and frequency of board meetings reduce risk-taking but that the number of directors with finance and banking experience and those with multiple directorships tend to increase risk-taking. The findings also indicate that the size of the risk committee, the number of directors on the risk committee and the appointment of a designated risk officer tends to reduce risk-taking in banks. By comparing conventional and Islamic banks, the findings show that Islamic banks have lower exposure to portfolio risk but higher insolvency risk.

The findings in this study suggest that the board and risk committee have an impact on bank risk-taking. The implications for management include having more independent directors, fewer directors with multiple board memberships and having an efficient risk committee in order to reduce risks. Regulators should look into the issue of multiple directorships as this is positively related to risk-taking. Islamic banks should expand their operations as our findings indicate that bigger banks are better able to manage risk.

This study covers bank governance and risk committee, which are crucial in influencing the risk-taking behaviour of conventional and Islamic banks.

This study aims to examine the dynamics between exchange rate and equities contextualizing the current liberal currency regime in China. This investigation also extends the analysis to explore the potential important factors influencing the interactions between these two markets. After exchange rate reforms, currency issue has emerged as a new dimension in portfolio decisions and diversification strategies in Chinese equity markets.

This research uses the dynamic conditional correlation generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity model proposed by Engle (2002) to explore the dynamic interactions between the currency and stock markets. Further, the paper uses regression analysis to explore the explanatory channels of the correlation. The sample comprises 1,265 listed companies over the period 2005-2012 with daily, weekly and monthly observations. To make analysis robust, the study also considers different exchange rates and equities belonging to different industries.

The findings suggest that exchange rate and stock price are related negatively. This conduit increases during the financial crisis period. This association is more prominent at monthly frequency than that of daily and weekly frequencies, which may refer to the noise factor in the high-frequency data. For a portfolio diversification point of view, currency may be considered an alternative diversifier against equity in China. The results also suggest a weak influence of market forces on the association between the currency and stock markets.

Much of the related past research is based on co-integration approaches and limited to the relationship between currency and equity markets without exploring the determining channels of this important connection. This study uses a more suitable approach to examine the topic and also investigates the determinants. Besides, previous studies take index data which may be poor to depict the overall market outlook. This paper proceeds with firm-level data which are more appropriate to expose the overall market outlook and investor behavior. This research also draws valuable implications.

The purpose of the papers included in this issue is to cover a broad range of contemporary issues in Chinese corporate financial management and therefore provide the readers with important insights into Chinese financial markets as well as the social and economic consequences of firm behavior in the Chinese context.

The first part of this issue is a special section on “Corporate Finance and Corporate Social Responsibility”, which includes three papers that explore various aspects of corporate social responsibility (CSR) from a finance perspective – including the relationship between CSR and the cost of equity, the “insurance-like effect” of CSR and competition in corporate philanthropy. The remainder of the issue includes seven further papers that cover a wide range of finance-related topics, including currency and equity, monetary policy, cross-border mergers and acquisitions, earnings management, overseas investment, information disclosure, social capital and cosmopolitanism. All of the papers included in this issue are based on empirical research that draws on primary and secondary data from Chinese financial markets and from the information disclosures of Chinese enterprises.

The authors are confident that such in-depth discussions and analysis will help researchers and practitioners to develop a better understanding of the issues faced by Chinese managers in the context of China’s economic transformation. The findings reported in this issue will help inform and develop Chinese management theories based on a wide range of Chinese management practices.

Each paper in this issue reports on different aspects of finance, reporting and management in the Chinese context, discussing findings that have both relevance and significance beyond China.

Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) fruit is highly valued for its delicious edible arils and health benefits. In this study, a comparative study on elemental composition of seven pomegranate cultivars was determined in the fruit rind, mesocarp and arils.

The concentrations of major elements (N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S, Cl and Na) and trace elements (Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, B, Ni, Co, Cr, Pb, Cd, Se, Al, As, Li, Sr, Ti and V) were determined using an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP‐OES) calibrated with different concentrations of standard solutions of the minerals.

The highest amounts of N, P, S and Cl were found in Bhagwa cultivar, while Arakta, Ruby and Wonderful had the highest amount of Mg, Ca, and Na, respectively. P, Fe, Zn, Ti, V were more in quantity in the edible portion, while the other mineral elements were in larger proportions or in some cases were only found (Co, Al, As) in the non‐edible fractions of fruit. Among the major mineral elements investigated, P had the highest covering of the RDA, ranging from 6.78 to 8.53 per cent contribution to the RDA, followed by K (4.530‐4.95 per cent RDA), S (1.25‐1.54 per cent RDA), Ca (1.04‐1.54 per cent RDA), Mg (4.33‐5.26 per cent RDA), and Na (0.15‐0.17 per cent RDA).

Knowledge of the relative contributions of mineral elements in the edible fruit part (arils) to RDA will assist in nutrition planning against mineral deficiency.

Pomegranate fruit contains edible and non‐edible portions, and this study provided the first detailed report on the distribution of a wide range of trace and major mineral elements in the three parts of the fruit. This study also showed that the edible portion (arils) of pomegranate fruit is a good dietary source of essential nutrients such as K, Ca, Mg, and Se, while the non‐edible parts may provide valuable sources of minerals for other food and bioprocess industries.

Ruby Melody Agbola is a lecturer at Department of Management Studies, Central Business School, Ghana.

The purpose of this study was to characterize fruit properties of pomegranate cultivars grown in South Africa in order to provide information to assist in selecting cultivars for food and industrial purposes, as well as to optimize postharvest handling and processing.

The physical, textural and chemical properties as well as volatile profile and free radical scavenging capacity of eight cultivars (cvs “Acco”, “Arakta”, “Bhagwa”, “Ganesh”, “Herskawitz,” “Molla de Elche”, “Ruby”, and “Wonderful”) were quantified to demonstrate the diversity among the characters of the commercially grown cultivars.

Statistically significant differences were found between cultivars for most of the evaluated characters, primarily highlighting the genetic diversity among the cultivars. The classification of fruit cultivars based on quality traits (such as size, texture, colour, soluble solids, acidity, juiciness and phenolics) showed the great potential of the cultivars for processing and fresh market. The relationship among these quality traits was analysed by principal component analysis (PCA) resulting in the separation of the investigated cultivars into two groups (cluster 1=Ruby, Arakta and Ganesh; Class 2=Bhagwa, Acco and Herskawitz) and two ungrouped cultivars (Molla de Elche and Wonderful). Specific understanding about quality traits of each cultivar was established using the correlation coefficients obtained.

This study provides valuable fundamental information that can be useful for commercial and industrial purposes, as well as the development of optimal postharvest handling and processing parameters for the investigated South African grown pomegranate cultivars.