In recent years, the debate about the efficiency of corporate governance mechanisms has focused on the activity of corporate boards of directors. This paper joins this debate by analyzing the effect of board size, composition and structure on firm value in a sample of 450 non-financial companies...

We identify the factors influencing the board composition of an international sample of commercial banks over the period 1996?2006. After considering the dual role of the board as monitor and advisor, our analysis shows that no one board composition is optimal for the banking industry and that...