Board Compensation and Future Financial Distress with Emphasis on Firm Life Cycle Stages

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Assistant Professor of Accounting, Bu-Ali Sina University

2 M.Sc. in Accounting, Department of Accounting, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamadan, Iran

Abstract

Abstract

This study aims to examine the relationship between the compensation of the board of directors and future financial distress, taking into account the moderating influence of life cycle stages. The research analyzed data from 174 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange between 2012 and 2023, totaling 2088 firm-year observations. Multiple regression analysis was conducted using a static panel approach with a least squares estimator as the primary approach and a dynamic panel approach with generalized methods of moments estimator as the complementary method. The study results indicate a significant and positive association between the board of director's compensation in the current year and the likelihood of financial distress in the coming year. Additionally, the research showed that life cycle stages (introduction, growth, and decline) significantly moderate the relationship between the board of director's compensation and the probability of financial distress in the subsequent years. However, this relationship is not statistically significant in the maturity stage. The findings of the complementary method also confirmed the results of the primary approach. Overall, the study contributes to life cycle theory and financial bankruptcy literature. Based on the findings, it is recommended that the compensation contract of the board of directors be adjusted according to the optimal contract theory to reduce the financial distress of distressed companies.

Keywords

Main Subjects


Aflatooni, A. (2023). Econometrics in Quantitative Accounting Research, first edition, Termeh, Tehran. )In Persian(.
Al‐Hadi, A., Chatterjee, B., Yaftian, A., Taylor, G., & Monzur Hasan, M. (2019). Corporate social responsibility performance, financial distress and firm life cycle: evidence from Australia. Accounting & Finance59(2), 961-989.
Al-Hadi, A., Hasan, M. M., Taylor, G., Hossain, M., & Richardson, G. (2017). Market risk disclosures and investment efficiency: International evidence from the Gulf Cooperation Council financial firms. Journal of International Financial Management & Accounting. 28(3), 349–393.
Ali, S., Rehman, R. U., Sarwar, B., Shoukat, A., & Farooq, M. (2021). Board
financial expertise and foreign institutional investment: the moderating role of ownership concentration. Review of International Business and Strategy, 32, 325–345.
Almamy, J., Aston, J., and Ngwa, L. N. (2016). An evaluation of Altman’s Z-score using cash flow ratio to predict corporate failure amid the recent financial crisis: Evidence from the U.K. Journal of Corporate Finance, 36(3), 278–285.
Altman, E.I. (1968). Financial ratios, discriminant analysis and the prediction of corporate bankruptcy. The Journal of Finance, 23(4), 589–609.
Anthony, J. H., & Ramesh, K. (1992). Association between Accounting Performance Measures and Stock Prices: A Test of the Life Cycle Hypothesis. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 15, 203-227.
Ararat, M., Aksu, M., & Cetin, A. T. (2015). How board diversity affects firm performance in emerging markets: Evidence on channels in controlled firms. Corporate Governance: An International Review, 23(2), 83–103.
Bebchuk, L. A., & Jackson, R. J. (2005). Executive Pensions. Journal of Corporation Law, 30(4), 823–855.
Becht, M., Bolton, P., & Roell, A. (2012). Why bank governance is different? Oxford Review of Economic Policy, 27(3), 437–463.
Berger, P., Ofek, E., Swary, I. (1996). Investor valuation of abandonment option. Journal of Financial Economics, 42(2), 257–287.
Bernile, G., Bhagwat, V., & Yonker, S. (2018). Board diversity, firm risk, and corporate policies. Journal of Financial Economics, 127(3), 588–612.
Bhaskar, L. S., Krishnan, G. V., and Yu, W. (2017). Debt covenant violations, firm financial distress, and auditor actions. Contemporary Accounting Research, 34(1), 186–215.
Black, E. (1998). Life-cycle impacts on the incremental value-relevance of earnings and cash flow measures. Journal of Financial Statement Analysis, 4, 40–57.
Callan, S., & Thomas, J. M. (2014). Relating CEO compensation to social performance and financial performance: does the measure of compensation matter? Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 21(4), 202–227.
Chatterjee, B., Jia, J., Nguyen, M., Taylor, G., & Doung, L. (2023). CEO remuneration, financial distress and firm life cycle. Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, 80, 102050.
Coles, J.L., Daniel, N.D., & Naveen, L. (2006). Managerial incentives and risk-taking. Journal of Financial Economics, 79 (2), 431-468.
Custódio, C., & Metzger, D. (2013). How do CEOs matter? The effect of industry expertise on acquisition returns. The Review of Financial Studies, 26(8), 2008-2047.
Damoori, D., & Hozhabrie, F. (2019). Impact of Life Cycle on Corporate Restructuring while in Financial Distress. Journal of Accounting Knowledge, 10(2), 113-135 [In Persian].
Darrat, A. F., Gray, S., Park, J. C., and Wu, Y. (2016). Corporate governance and bankruptcy risk. Journal of Accounting, Auditing & Finance, 31(2), 163–202.
Dastgir, M., & Tabousian, A. (2017). The Relationship between Characteristics of Corporate Governance, Earnings Management and Tax Management in Tehran Stock Exchange. Journal of Iranian Accounting Review4(14), 77-96. [In Persian].
DeAngelo, H., DeAngelo, L., Stulz, R.M. (2006). Dividend policy and the earned/contributed capital mix: a test of the life-cycle theory. Journal of Financial Economics, 81 (2), 227–254.
Dickinson, V. (2011). Cash flow patterns as a proxy for firm life cycle. Accounting Review, 86(6), 1969–1994.
Eckbo, B.E., Thorburn, K.S., & Wang, W. (2016). How costly is corporate bankruptcy for the CEO? Journal of Financial Economics, 121(1), 210-229.
Faccio, M., Marchina, M.T., & Mura, R. (2016). CEO gender, corporate risk-taking, and the efficiency of capital allocation. Journal of Corporate Finance, 39(2), 193-209.
Fakhari, H., & Ramezani, M. (2016). Study of relationship between cost behavior and changes in bonus for directors. Journal of Accounting Knowledge, 7(24), 41-65. (In Persian(.
Farooq, M., Khan, M. I., & Noor, A. (2023). Do financial constraints moderate the relationship between CEO compensation and firm performance: an emerging market evidence. Managerial Finance, 49(8), 1355-1376.
Faulkender, M., Kadyrzhanova, D., Prabhala, N., & Senbet, L. (2010). Executive compensation: an overview of research on corporate practices and proposed reforms. Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, 22 (1),107–118.
Gan, H., Park, M., Suh, S. (2020). Non-financial performance measures, CEO compensation, and firms’ future value. Journal of Business Research, 110, 213–227.
Gordon, M. J. (1971). Towards a theory of financial distress. The Journal of Finance, 26(2), 347-356.
Gray, B. and S. S. Ariss (1985). Politics and strategic change across organizational life cycles. Academy of Management Review, 10(4), 707-723.
Hamza, S. E., & Lourimi, I. (2014). Executive compensation and corporate bankruptcy in the context of crisis. International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 9 (1), 68-90.
Harjoto, M. A., Laksmana, I., and Yang, Y. W. (2018). Board diversity and corporate investment oversight. Journal of Business Research, 90, 40–47.
Hasan, M. M., Hossain, M., Cheung, A., & Habib, A. (2015). Corporate life cycle and cost of equity capital. Journal of Contemporary Accounting & Economics, 11(1), 46–60.
Hasan, M.M., Habib, A. (2017). Corporate life cycle, organizational financial resources and corporate social responsibility. Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, 13(1), 20–36.
Hasnawati, I. S. (2024). The Effect of Remuneration of Directors and Commissioners, Enterprise Risk Management on Financial Distress with Firm Life Cycle as Moderation. Journal of Indonesian Social Science, 5(2), 212-224.
Hazami-Ammar, S., & Gafsi, A. (2021). Governance failure and its impact on financial distress. Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society21(7), 1416-1439.
Helfat, C. E., & Peteraf, M. A. (2003). The dynamic resource-based view: Capability life cycles. Strategic Management Journal, 24(10), 997-1010.
Hemdan, D. A. M., Hasnan, S., and Ur Rehman, S. (2021). CEO power dynamics and firms’ reported earnings quality in Egypt: Moderating role of corporate governance. Pakistan Journal of Commerce and Social Sciences, 15 (1), 1–30.
Henderson, M.T. (2007). Paying CEOs in bankruptcy: executive compensation when agency costs are low. Northwestern University Law Review, 101(4),1543–1618.
Hribar, P., and N. Yehuda (2007). Life cycle, cost of capital, earnings persistence, and stock returns. Working Paper, University of Iowa and Columbia University.
Javanovic, B. (1982). Selection and evolution of industry. Econometrica, 50 (3), 649–670.
Jensen, M. and Murphy, K.J. (1990). Performance pay and top-management incentives. Journal of Political Economy, 98 (2), 225–264.
John, T.A. and John, K. (1993). Top-management compensation and capital structure. Journal of Finance, 48 (3), 949–974.
Khan, U., Waleed, K., Nouman, M., and Khurram, S. (2020). Compensation committee gender diversity and CEO pay-performance link: Evidence from Australia. China, and Pakistan. Pakistan Journal of Commerce and Social Sciences, 14 (4), 1065–1087.
Khan, W.A., & Vieito, J.P. (2013). CEO gender and firm performance. Journal of Economics and Business, 67(1), 55-66.
Koh, S., R. B. Durand, L. Dai, and M. Chang (2015). Financial Distress Lifecycle and Corporate Restructuring. Journal of Corporate Finance, 33, 19-33.
Kordestani, G., Tatli, R., & Kosari Far, H. (2014). The evaluate ability of altman adjusted model to prediction stages of financial distress newton and bankruptcy. Journal of Investment Knowledge, 3(9), 83-100. (In Persian).
Li, Y., and Zhong, Z. K. (2013). Investing in Chapter 11 stocks: Trading, value, and performance. Journal of Financial Markets, 16(1), 33–60.
Liu, C. L. Chou, H. (2017). Corporate Lifecycle and CEO Compensation Structure. Europian Financial Management Association Annual Meeting.
Luong, H., Duong, L., Evans, J., 2022. CEO pay disparity, takeover premiums and bidder performance in Australia: efficient contracting or managerial power? Accounting and Finance, 62 (1), 143–179.
Mahardini, N. Y., &Bandi, (2023). an analysis of factors affecting the financial distress: the case of SOEs in Indonesia. Jurnal Akuntansi, 10 (1), 172-185.
Maina, F. G., and Sakwa, M. M. (2017). Understanding financial distress among listed firms in Nairobi stock exchange: A quantitative approach using the Z-score multi-discriminant financial analysis model. Nairobi: Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology.
Mariano, S. S. G., Izadi, J., & Pratt, M. (2021). Can we predict the likelihood of financial distress in companies from their corporate governance and borrowing?. International Journal of Accounting & Information Management29(2), 305-323.
Meshki Miavaghi, M., & Hashemi, M. (2015). Investigating the Relationship between Corporate Governance with Bankruptcy Probability in Companies Listed in Tehran Stock Exchange. Journal of Accounting and Social Interests5(2), 37-58. (In Persian).
Miller, D., & Friesen, P. H. (1984). A longitudinal study of the corporate life cycle. Management Science30(10), 1161-1183.
Noshadi, M., & Karimi, Z. (2023). Board Busyness and Financial Decisions with Emphasis on Firm’s Life Cycle Stages. Journal of Accounting Advances, 15(2), 357-385. (In Persian).
Ntim, C.G., Lindop, S., Thomas, D.A., Abdou, H. & Opong, K.K. (2017). Executive pay and performance: the moderating effect of CEO power and governance structure. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 29(1), 1-43.
Ramaswamy, V., Ueng, J.C., Carl, L., 2008. Corporate governance characteristics of growth companies: an empirical study. Academy of Strategic Management Journal, 7(1), 21–33.
Rostami, S. (2021). The impact of corporate governance and earnings management on bankruptcy of firms accepted in Tehran Stock Exchange. Management and Accounting Review, 4(3), 123-144.(In Persian).
Sadeghi, P. , Farid, D. , Mirzaei, H. R. , & Dehghani, A. (2025). Predicting Financial Distress through Ranking Working Capital Management Components Using Random Forest Algorithm. Journal of Asset Management and Financing13(1), 27-46. 
Safarzadeh, M. H., Arjmand, F., & Mahdigholi, M. (2023). Firm’s Life Cycle and Trade Credit. Journal of Accounting Advances14(2), 139-162. (In Persian).
Shahwan, T. M. (2015). The effects of corporate governance on financial performance and financial distress: evidence from Egypt. Corporate Governance, 15(5), 641– 662.
Tanjaya, F. L., & Santoso, E. B. (2020). Asosiasi Karakteristik CEO terhadap Potensi Kesulitan Keuangan Perusahaan. Media Akuntansi Dan Perpajakan Indonesia, 1(2), 57–69.
Udin, S., Khan, M. A., and Javid, A. Y. (2017). The effects of ownership structure on likelihood of financial distress: an empirical evidence. Corporate Governance, 17(4), 589–612.
Usman, M., Zhang, J., Wang, F., Sun, J., and Makki, M. A. M. (2018). Gender diversity in compensation committees and CEO pay: evidence from China. Management Decision, 56(5), 1065–1087.
Wang, G., & Singh, P. (2014). The evolution of CEO compensation over the organizational life cycle: A contingency explanation. Human Resource Management Review, 24 (2), 144-159.
Withers, M. C., A. J. Hillman, and A. A. Cannella Jr. (2012). A Multidisciplinary Review of the Director Selection Literature. Journal of Management, 38(1), 243-277.
Yousaf, U. B., Jebran, K., and Wang, M. (2021). Can board diversity predict the risk of financial distress? Corporate Governance, 21(4), 663–684.
Zhou, G. (2019). Financial distress prevention in China: Does gender of board of directors matter? Journal of Applied .