The influence of institutions on the proportion of social elites on boards of business group IPO firms in emerging economies

This study examines the differential impact of the quality and structure of institutional environment on proportions of boards comprised of social elites in business group constituents as opposed to unaffiliated firms. Using a unique sample of 136 private sector initial public offering (IPO) firms from 17 emerging African economies we find business group constituents are associated with marginally higher proportions of social elites in board roles. This is positively moderated by common law legal origin - underscoring the importance of elites in monitoring and oversight of market governance - and inversely moderated by institutional quality – reflecting narrow political economies