This study examines the moderating effect of firm size on the relationship between innovation and firm performance of small and medium enterprises in 29 countries in Eastern European and Central Asia. The study also investigates whether the impact of innovation in products and processes on firm performance is affected by financial capital. The method applied is partial least square structural equation modelling. The findings indicate that firm size and the financial capital both moderate and mediate the impact of innovation on firm performance, positively or negatively. The findings have implications for decision makers by highlighting the significance of firm size and financial sources when planning to introduce innovations to enhance firm performance.

This research inquiry analyzed the association between corporate governance and firm performance through the mediating role of financial leverage based on panel data of 2568 firms during the period from 2002 to 2017. The study uses a two-step dynamic panel as well as a generalized method of moments (GMM) to estimate these relationships. The findings demonstrated financial leverage mediates the relationship between corporate governance and firm performance in the context of developed economies, and also in emerging economies. Additionally, firm performance is negatively associated with corporate governance through excessive leverage. The study suggests it is the responsibility of the board to use low financial leverage to enhance firm performance. In emerging countries, firms with a large-sized board use low leverage, whereas in developed countries, firms with a small-sized board use low leverage to enhance corporate performance.

This paper examines the effect of economic policy uncertainty (EPU) on firm-level investment and corporate financial leverage. The panel data of 1072 firms traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), New York Stock Exchange Market (NYSE MKT) (formerly known as American Stock Exchange—AMEX), or NASDAQ over the period 2012–2021 was analyzed using the fixed-effect model. The empirical results show that the financial leverage of a firm is negatively affected by EPU. Additionally, EPU depresses firms’ investment decisions and debt financing. Our results are robust when alternative measures of our main variables are used.