Investigating transparency and disclosure determinants at firm-level in MENA emerging markets

Abstract

The objective of this study is to examine transparency and disclosure (henceforth T&D) determinants for Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) companies. Using a sample of 216 annual reports for companies followed by S&P/IFC and pertaining to 13 MENA emerging markets, we expect that the business milieu mostly inherited from the former British/French colonial era and shaped by privileged economic ties with the Anglo-American versus Continental European world has the potential to affect T&D. We investigate T&D determinants from a firm-level perspective. Our findings show that MENA companies from countries having historical links with Great Britain have substantially higher T&D scores than those from countries having historical links with France. Moreover, companies operating in the information technology sector exhibit higher levels of T&D. Multivariate analysis outlines that the nature of business culture, company size and the importance of intangibles affect positively the level of T&D in the MENA region.

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