One of the legacies of the era of corporate scandals earlier in this decade is a heightened awareness of corporate governance issues. This development is most obvious for publicly traded companies in the United States, with the governance requirements embodied in the form of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The heightened governance awareness has also had spill-over effects for private companies (refer here) and even non-profit entities (refer here).
But there are many other types of non-listed firms, beyond just private companies and non-profit enterprises – including joint ventures and family-owned firms, as well as venture funds, private equity firms and hedge funds. The heightened governance awareness has also affected these other kinds of non-listed firms. But many of the principles and practices developed for publicly traded companies may be ill-suited to these other kinds of non-listed firms.
In a comprehensive book entitled “Corporate Governance of Non-Listed Companies” (here), Professors Joseph McCahery of the University of Amsterdam and Erik P.M. Vermuelen of Tilberg University take a look at corporate governance principles and practices for these other kinds of non-listed firms.
The professors begin with observations about current attitudes toward governance, particularly those evolved from the context of publicly traded companies. They note that “it could very well be argued that non-listed companies do not always benefit from the spill-over effect of the application of disproportionate governance rules” and that a “corporate governance framework that is not consistent with the social and economic requirement of non-listed companies will yield imperfections over time.”
In their book, the authors propose a corporate governance framework for non-listed firms that will “foster strong decision-making, accountability, transparency and ultimately firm performance.”
The authors organize their corporate governance analysis around “three pillars.” The “core pillar” represents “company law, which provides rules and standards for registration and formation, organization and operation.” The second pillar consists of “contractual mechanisms, such as joint venture agreements and shareholder limitations.” The third pillar consists of the non-listed firms “embrace of the corporate governance rules and principles that are tailored to the organization of their publicly held counterparts.”
The authors’ exhaustive overview of the transjurisdictional development of “company law” demonstrates how various legal norms have evolved in many jurisdictions to address concerns arising from the need to protect investors and creditors from “managerial opportunism.” But these paramount principles of governance for publicly traded firms, whose ownership is widely dispersed and at an informational disadvantage to management, may not be as relevant within the ownership structures of non-listed firms.
Because of the differing needs and structures of non-listed firms, many of their governance requirements and expectations are highly contractual in nature, and tend to be more focused on protecting one set of owners and shareholders from another set of owners or shareholders. These contractual arrangements tend to address “four fundamental elements – risk of losses, return, control and duration.”
From the authors’ perspective, the value and importance of these contractual arrangements underscores the limitations of a “one-size-fits-all” approach to corporate governance and also militates against the regulatory imposition of rigid governance mandates on non-listed companies. The authors particularly address these concerns in depth in the context of private equity firms and hedge funds.
The third pillar of the authors’ governance framework pertains to non-listed firms’ voluntary adoption of governance measures to improve transparency and accountability. The authors suggest that companies have “strong incentives to adopt or disregard governance recommendations based on a cost-benefit assessment.” Non-listed firms have a “high-powered incentive to comply with corporate governance provisions.” The implementation of appropriate internal control measures, for example can “(1) reduce financial/reporting errors; (2) help firms follow their business practices and performance; (3) assist in tracking inventory; and (4) signal potential weaknesses within the firm.”
The authors argue for the adoption of an “optimal set of recommendations” that not only would “create a dynamic and sustainable network of business practices and advice tailored to the needs of non-listed companies” but would also “head off legislative pressures.” The “steady and healthy growth” of these kinds of firms, which are so critical to overall economic growth and development, would be advanced by their implementation of mechanisms ensuring that
(a) financial statements fairly present the performance of the business; (b) independent and knowledgeable directors and/or supervisors are appointed; (c) audit committees are established; and (d) strong internal control systems and processes reduce business risks and lower costs.
The authors’ ultimate point is that “the ‘one-size-fits-all’ and regulatory mentality arguably led to some undesirable spill-over effects to non-listed companies.” They advocate “the introduction of a separate approach” based on the development of guidelines for non-listed firms that are “sufficiently attractive and coherent from a cost-benefit perspective to persuade non-listed companies to opt into a well-tailored framework of legal mechanisms and norms.” The authors conclude that non-listed companies that operate under “well-designed and effective governance structures are likely to perform better and consequently will be more attractive to external investors.”
The authors’ analysis of the limitations of a one-size-fits-all approach to corporate governance is well-founded, and indeed these concerns may be valid even among listed companies as well as between listed companies and their non-listed counterparts. The authors’ analysis of the possibilities for and limitations of contractual mechanisms for non-listed companies is perceptive, particularly with regard to private equity firms and hedge funds.
In the end, the implementation of effective governance mechanisms and controls is critical for all firms, regardless of the particular form within which any specific firm operates. The most critical point is that mechanisms adopted must be suited to the form in which any particular firm does business. Mandatory regulatory requirements may not be sufficiently sensitive to the differing needs of different kinds of firms.
Very special thanks to Professor McCahery for providing me with a copy of this excellent book.
Olympic Questions:
1. Am I the only one that found the opening ceremonies scary?
2. Who decided beach volleyball is such a big deal?
3. Why does Bob Costas think Cris Collinsworth is so damned funny?
4. How did Mark Spitz win seven gold medals without a swim cap or goggles?
5. Bela Karolyi. Discuss.
6. Why do so many commercials (including political ads for both Presidential candidates) have images of wind turbines?
7. With a 32-year old winning two swimming relay gold medals, a 38-year old winning the women’s marathon, a 33-year old female gymnast winning silver in the vault competition, and a 41-year old winning two swimming silver medals, is it possible the Chinese are on the wrong track with their prepubescent “women’s” gymnastics team?