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This paper longitudinally examines the intellectual capital (IC) disclosure practices of Nigerian banks following the restructuring exercise and the subsequent policy changes in the Banking sector.

Content analysis of annual reports of the banks was carried out over a period of four years (2006‐2009), a period following the consolidation exercise and the subsequent introduction of the mandatory code of corporate governance. A self‐constructed IC disclosure checklist was used to measure the extent of IC information disclosed in the annual reports. A number of statistical techniques were performed to assess the trend of IC disclosures and compare the IC disclosure categories.

The results show that the overall IC disclosures of the Nigerian banks increased moderately over the four year period. Human and internal capital disclosures dominated the banks' IC disclosures, with only internal capital disclosures showing a significant increasing trend over time.

The increasing trend of IC disclosures of the banks suggests that the introduction of the mandatory code of corporate governance had positive implications on IC reporting practices. Hence, the findings of this study give support to previous research that established a strong positive association between IC disclosures and corporate governance development. However, this study only examines the IC disclosures of Nigerian banks following the reformation of the banking sector. Future research should incorporate other countries experiencing similar regulatory changes.

The introduction of the corporate governance code might have positively influenced the IC disclosure practices of the banks. However, the results had shown that the IC disclosures were mainly inconsistent and discursive in nature. Hence, the regulatory authorities, accounting setters and other relevant government agencies may wish to devise a detailed IC reporting framework for the banking sector.

Despite the significance of the banking sector to any economy, the IC disclosure practices of the banks largely remained unexplored. This study provides a much needed longitudinal assessment of the IC disclosures in the case of Nigerian banks following a major consolidation exercise and the introduction of a mandatory code of corporate governance specifically designed for the banks. The study also represents the first empirical investigation of IC reporting practices in Nigeria.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of corporate governance and ownership structure attributes on firm performance following the revised code on corporate governance in Malaysia. The study presents a longitudinal assessment of the compliance and implications of the revised code on firm performance.

Two data sets consisting of before (2006) and after (2008-2010) the revised code are examined. Drawing from the largest companies listed on Bursa Malaysia (BM), the first data set contains 92 observations in the year 2006 while the second data set comprises of 282 observations drawn from the largest companies listed on BM over a three-year period, from 2008-2010. Both accounting (return on assets and return on equity) and market performance (Tobin’s Q) measures were used to measure firm performance. Multiple and panel data regression analyses were adopted to analyze the data.

The study shows that there were still cases of non-compliance to the basic requirements of the code such as the one-third independent non-executive director (INDs) requirement even after the revised code. While the regression models indicate marginal significance of board size and independent directors before the revised code, the results indicate all corporate governance variables have a significant negative relationship with at least one of the measures of corporate performance. Independent chairperson, however, showed a consistent positive impact on firm performance both before and after the revised code. In addition, ownership structure elements were found to have a negative relationship with either accounting or market performance measures, with institutional ownership showing a consistent negative impact on firm performance. Firm size and leverage, as control variables, were significant in determining corporate performance.

One limitation is the use of separate measures of corporate governance attributes, as opposed to a corporate governance index (CGI). As a result, the study constructs a CGI based on the recommendations of the revised code and proposes for future research use.

Some of the largest companies did not even comply with basic requirements such as the “one-third INDs” mandatory requirement. Hence, the regulators may want to reinforce the requirements of the code and also detail examples of good governance practices. The results, which show a consistent positive relationship between the presence of an independent chairperson and firm performance in both data sets, suggest listed companies to consider appointing an independent chairperson in the corporate leadership. The regulatory authorities may also wish to note this phenomenon when drafting any future corporate governance codes.

This study offers new insights of the implications of regulatory changes on the relationship between corporate governance attributes and firm performance from the perspective of a developing country. The development of a CGI for future research is a novel approach of this study.