Relationship between Board Characteristics and Dividend Payment Policies

Objective: To investigate the relationship between corporate governance board characteristics and dividend pay-out (e.g. dividend pay-out ratio). Method: A panel regression analysis was undertaken to investigate the relationship between corporate governance board characteristics and dividend pay-out (e.g. dividend pay-out ratio). Data was collected from a sample of 29 firms in the top-40 of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). Data collected spanned for a period of five years from 2013 – 2018 Results: Obtained result demonstrate that there is a significant relationship between board diversity, as measured by ethnicity, the board independence and the dividend pay-out ratio. Originality/Relevance: Previous studies have asserted that corporate governance affects the level of dividends paid out by a firm. What has remained unclear with the previous studies is whether the dividend pay-out is an outcome or a substitute for effective governance.  Theoretical/methodological contributions: The results suggest that there is a strong evidence in favour of the substitution hypothesis, where JSE top 40 boards with a higher degree of independence did not need to use dividends as a tool for monitoring managerial behaviour. The results illustrate evidence supporting the maturity and dividend smoothing theories, and this is observed through the significant relationships established between profitability, previous dividend and the dividend pay-out ratio. Social/management contributions: The main contribution of this study being the establishment of the determinants of dividend pay-out policy in South Africa’s JSE listed companies.