Corporate voluntary disclosure becomes a burning issue in the literature of accounting throughout the last two decades. The study aims to explore the most crucial determinants that influence corporate voluntary disclosure in a transition economy. A cross-sectional study based on the pharmaceutical and chemical companies listed in the Dhaka Stock Exchange is conducted to reconnoiter the crucial determinants affecting the voluntary disclosure. Based on the agency theory, stakeholder theory, and previous literature, the determinants are selected. An unweighted disclosure index is used to measure the extent of voluntary disclosure; after that, a multivariate analysis is steered to reconnoiter the key determinants of voluntary disclosure. It is found that firm leverage and firm liquidity are the key determinants that significantly influence the corporate voluntary disclosure in a transition economy. In contrast, no significant positive association is found between voluntary disclosure and board size. In additon, it is also found that market category significantly influences voluntary disclosure with an inverse direction. This study has important implications for both the corporate people and the regulatory bodies of the transition economy. The study also helps various stakeholders of the transition economy – Bangladesh, in designing their strategies regarding the most significant determinants of voluntary disclosure. Acknowledgment We are very thankful to the Institute of Advanced Research (IAR), United International University, Bangladesh, to grant us the fund by mobilizing which we generate our required data for the study and complete this empirical study.

Corporate performance is the key indicator of availing the economic performances in all economies. Especially for the emerging economy, it is the oxygen for smooth economic operations. The study aims to investigate the influence of board characteristics on the corporate performance of the listed pharmaceuticals and chemicals sector from a developing country, namely Bangladesh. This empirical study examines eight attributes of the board and four financial performance indicators of the businesses. Here, the annual reports of the DSE-listed pharmaceutical and chemicals companies are considered to examine the impact of board attributes on corporate performance. Based on panel data analysis, this empirical study concludes that the fixed effect regression model is suitable for all four models. Except board size, the results demonstrate that all board attributes are generally statistically significant. Furthermore, it confirms that all the significant characteristics of the board are positively associated with corporate performance, except for board independence. The research offers valuable insights for policymakers, investors, organizations, and scholars, promoting optimal board structures, innovative solutions, and an enhanced understanding of corporate governance matters. This research explores the challenges in board attributes, which enhances our understanding of corporate governance matters and their impact over the last decade in the listed pharmaceutical and chemicals sectors in Bangladesh.

Corporate performance is one of the core pillars of accelerating the economic growth of any economy. There are some direct and indirect components of corporate performance. This study is conducted to measure the impact of indirect factors, such as corporate voluntary disclosures, on corporate performance. A sample of 872 annual reports is investigated. A content analysis has been conducted to measure voluntary disclosure. The study employs the short panel data, fixed model regression, and Panel Corrected Standard Error (PCSE). The analysis indicates that corporate voluntary disclosure has influenced the return on assets with a regression coefficient of 0.0724 at p ≤ 0.01. Corporate voluntary disclosure in the transitional economy significantly influences corporate performance. However, the volume of corporate voluntary reporting in energy-related disclosure and climate-related disclosure is minimal, as the mean is only 2.21% and 2.31%. This implies that the government of the transitional economy may focus on persuading corporations to disclose additional information besides mandatory disclosure. In addition, indirect determinant of corporate performance, like corporate voluntary disclosure, brings sustainability to corporate performance, which further assists the transitional economy in shifting its economic status from one dimension to another. AcknowledgmentThe authors are very thankful to the Institute of Advanced Research, United International University, Bangladesh, for providing partial funds to complete this empirical study.This project is partially funded by the Institute for Advanced Research Publication Grant of United International University, Ref. No.: IAR-2024-Pub-069.

The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of ownership structure on corporate performance from the context of an emerging country, Bangladesh. This empirical study is based on a dataset of 200 observations from the annual reports of twenty Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) listed pharmaceutical and chemical companies from the tenures of 2013 to 2022. Here a multiple regression model has been executed to explore the influence of ownership attributes on financial performance. It is found that director ownership, institutional ownership, general ownership and foreign ownership significantly influence the corporate performance. These findings imply the current comprehension of ownership structure and its association with financial success. This study also provides valuable insight for businesses and management to set their long-term vision and goals in terms of ownership and equity matters. External financiers and legislators can also benefit from this study in making investment decisions and new policies. Future researchers can expand their study reach by including more years of data, other relevant variables from the ownership structure field, macroeconomic variables, and other industries to serve the needs of a wide range of users.