The Corporate Governance Models for Banks: A Comparative Study

An effective corporate governance system is vital in modern-day economics and firms. It can help to specify the distribution of roles, responsibilities, and resources among various stakeholders of an organization or society. The enhanced role of the banks in various economic systems demands a higher level of corporate bank governance for a stable and sustainable financial system. In this paper; four major corporate governance models of banks are compared and the financial outcomes of each model are analyzed to assess their alignment with expectations of an effective corporate governance system. The Continental corporate governance model found to be closer to the expectations of an effective corporate governance system compared to the Anglo- Saxon, Chinese, and Islamic banking. Banks under the Continental model charge lower margin to its customers, use bank resources more efficiently and create relative balance in the distribution of resources among all stakeholders compared to the other three models. Banks under the Anglo- Saxon model are charging higher margin to its customer, Chinese banks are under-utilizing the banks’ resources, and Islamic banks are more favoring their shareholders and are riskier among banks of all selected models. Higher involvement of the more stakeholders in the decision-making process of the banks is key to effective corporate governance and sustainable banking system. Reforms in all corporate governance models are recommended while keeping in mind the prior research on corporate governance especially the Sir Adrian Cadbury report.