Does Saudi corporate governance attain International standards using the UK best practice as an exemplar

Abstract

The concept of corporate governance has been recognised as one of the most important legal, business and financial management concepts in recent times. Corporate governance is a tool that aims to apply principles such as fairness between shareholders, punishing and preventing wrongdoing, helping society and encouraging full disclosure of company information. This will help to reinforce the stability in the financial market, restore the confidence of investors and attract new and foreign investment. The primary objective of this research is to determine whether the Saudi Arabia corporate governance framework is in line with international standards and to examine if there are any need and willingness for reform. The motivation for selecting the United Kingdom as a benchmark for comparison was inspired by its reputation in upholding high corporate governance standards. The research seeks to outline possible recommendations to add to the Saudi corporate governance regulation, so it can achieve the highest possible standards of corporate governance. A starting point would be the analysis of the UK Companies Act and the UK Corporate Governance Code to determine what can be learned from the experience in the UK to help advance the situation in Saudi Arabia. The research will focus on several key issues, namely, directors’ duties, current boardroom practices and gender diversity in Saudi corporate boards. The research will also take into account the possibility of implementing any suggested reforms in adherence to Sharia principles. The research found that the Saudi corporate governance reflects certain elements of good international corporate governance standards. However, the research revealed major shortcoming in Saudi directors’ duties and gender diversity and that these need reform to attain international standards. Taken together, the research findings suggest that Saudi Arabia will benefit from adopting some of the best practices from the UK to reinforce its attractiveness to foreign investment