Do banks have special features of corporate governance that influence financial performance Evidence from Tunisian Listed Banks

Abstract

The paper aims to investigate the impact of corporate governance, based on the board, on the bank's financial performance. We complete previous literature by analysing the case of an emerging context. Specifically, our sample includes eleven banks listed on the Tunisian stock exchange, during six years (2008–2013). The empirical results suggest that there is a negative effect of foreign directors and administrators representing the state. In addition, there is a positive effect of the following variables: independence of directors, audit quality and duality on bank performance. However, board diversity doesn't seem to have any substantial effect on Tunisian bank performance.