Influence of Board Gender Diversity on Corporate Cash Holding: Evidence from Listed Family Firms of Pakistan

Abstract

All around the globe, family companies are a prominent and well-recognized identity. On the other hand, controlling families have a strong desire to reap private gains by expropriating assets from minority investors and engaging in practices that reduce the firm's worth, especially in developing countries. A sound governance system defends against these behaviours and, by decreasing them, improves long-term performance. This research expands on this by looking at board diversity, the board size, leverage, firm size and dividend allocation on cash keeping in Pakistani listed family-owned businesses. Secondary sources of data used, including published financial statements and governance practices reports for 212 listed family companies. In this analysis, the dynamic and static versions of fixed - effect model, random – effect model, and GMM are essential measurement methods. The findings indicate that board diversity has a negative effect on cash holding, suggesting that governance in family companies is active. In contrast, board size has a positive impact on cash holding, offering ineffective governance. Ultimately, the study includes policy guidelines for shareholders and other stakeholders.