Ownership structure and integrated reporting quality: empirical evidence from an emerging market

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the role of ownership structure on integrated reporting quality (IRQ) in an emerging market. Design/methodology/approach – This study includes a sample consisting of 64 firms from Bursa Malaysia, with 173 firm-year observations from 2017 to 2020. Feasible Generalised Least Square model has been used to test the hypotheses. Findings – The findings show that government ownership has a positive effect on IRQ and that the integrated reports and <IR> framework are well aligned. Foreign ownership influences IRQ positively. However, the results did not support the effect of family ownership on IRQ as hypothesised. Practical implications – The findings of this research hold practical implications for companies and regulators in Malaysia. The results demonstrate to investors that both government and foreign ownership have a positive impact on IRQ. Therefore, investors can make well-informed investment decisions regarding companies with a high level of government or foreign ownership. Originality/value – To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper to explore the effect of ownership structure on IRQ in the Malaysian context.