Quality of Corporate Governance Risk Management in Dealing with Unanticipated Events: Evidence from Pakistan

Abstract

This study examines the effectiveness of the corporate governance structure when coping with any potentially unexpected events. For the purpose of this research, an event study has been conducted in order to investigate the market responses of various firms through the Cumulative Average Abnormal Return (CAAR) of the stocks listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX). The stocks data under consideration is that which was presented after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in 2007. The overall results indicate that firms that are governed conventionally do not perform well in the markets during a crisis situation. In our comparison of conventionally, and non-conventionally governed firms, the overall pooled results show that the former record a lower CAAR. This, in short, indicates that conventional corporate governance structures may not be equipped to take timely and dynamic actions that are deemed necessary in the face of a crisis. Moreover, our results suggest that firms which have less diversified ownership, and governance mechanisms are less vulnerable to such unanticipated events. There are two reasons that support our hypotheses: first, strict governance mechanisms, and a resultant cautious/conservative approach may not allow firms to take timely and proactive decisions during these situations and second, there is a lower chance of existing agency problems, as family owners would be working for the protection of their own wealth during these events. Therefore, our findings ultimately reveal that the conventional corporate governance structures that work during normal time period, may become ineffective during a crisis. This study, aims to fill a gap in the literature in order to provide fresh insights into the stock market dynamic, and corporate governance risk management. Furthermore, it also highlights the benefits of family owned structures, and unconventional corporate governance systems, that may outperform conventional governance structure in some situations. This, however, raises the question whether one governance framework could be the correct fit in all the situations.