BUFT Journal of Business and Economics

Concept of Independent Director in South Asian Developing Countries: The Case of Banking Sector in Bangladesh

Islamic University of Technology, University of Dhakagy
Email: farjana14nasrin @gmail.com

Abstract

Purpose: The study aims to identify the perception of the independent director inBangladesh's banking sector and the concept and implications in different developingcountries and international standards by reviewing existing literature justifying theoreticalcontribution.Methodology: Listed 32 banks of Dhaka Stock Exchange are included as a population where36 respondents from 6 listed banks as a broad stakeholder group are interviewed throughconvenience and snowballing technique. The study is descriptive with content analysis tojustify the understanding of previous studies about the independent director.Findings: Considering Bangladesh as a South Asian developing country, this study indicatesdifferences in corporate governance infrastructure, independent director policies and practiceswith family orientation, policy coordination and implementation related to other developingcountries of South Asia, and international standards. Moreover, the findings expressedsomewhat different perceptions and challenges independent directors faced in an actualsituation in Bangladesh's banking sector.Practical Implication: This study might help identify the accurate perception of theindependent directors and trends and challenges in Bangladesh's banking sector. The reportmight guide code formulators and policy coordinators to understand why and how the policiesaddressing independent directors' rules and responsibilities should look in Bangladesh'sbanking sector.Originality: There is no such previous study highlighting this issue. Now it urges the need tounderstand the perception of the concept of independent director among the broad stakeholdergroups of the banking sector of Bangladesh to identify whether the actual scenario andpolicies are aligned or questionable.Limitations: This paper includes a small number of respondents which should not be the case.Here, only the listed 32 banks of DSE are included as a population where 36 respondents from6 listed banks as a broad stakeholder group are interviewed through convenience andsnowballing technique which is not mentioned here as the data has confidentiality issue and isnot found in the archival.