A Study of CEO Duality, Audit Committees and Corporate Governance in Companies Listed in BSE 200 Index

Clause 49 of the Listing Agreement of SEBI does not mandate CEO non-duality and solely independent audit committees. But governance advocates and regulators favor these aspects. To put it differently, investors accord premium valuations for adopting good governance practices. This paper examines the impact of board processes like the separation of the roles of the CEO and Chairman and solely independent audit committees on firm valuations in companies listed in BSE 200 index. The findings reaffirm the research evidences of positive relationship between audit committee independence and firm values and that CEO duality does matter