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To contribute to the growing literature on the implications of board busyness for firm outcomes, this study investigates the relationship between overboarding risk (OBRisk) and firm value (FV) in an emerging market setting and whether financial expertise matters for this relationship. We apply the least square dummy variable (LSDV) two-way fixed effect estimator to panel data of non-financial publicly-listed South African firms from 2014–2020. We provide empirical evidence that OBRisk negatively affects FV. We further find substantial evidence that the benefits of independent directors' financial expertise outweigh the agency costs of weak monitoring orchestrated by their overboardedness. Specifically, the marginal effect of independent directors' financial expertise at the maximum level attenuates the effect of OBRisk on FV, indicating that high-level financial expertise is value-relevant. This study comes at an appropriate time when directorship regulation is a topical issue among sub-Saharan African regulators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PurposeAimDesign/Methodology/ApproachMain findingsPractical implicationsNovelty/ContributionTo ascertain how JSE-listed companies use derivatives to hedge.Determine whether JSE-listed companies apply established rationales for corporate hedging practices.This empirical study uses data from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), South Africa, as a proxy for emerging markets.Binomial logistic regression, applied to the 200 largest non-financial firms (by market capitalization) on the JSE from 2005 to 2017, indicates that larger firms, higher leveraged firms, ones with better growth prospects, and less information asymmetry between directors and management are more likely to use derivatives to hedge.The findings suggest that some traditional determinants for corporate hedging practices apply in an emerging market context, but local conditions still remain an important consideration.By confirming the applicability of traditional hedging theories in an emerging market context, the study extends the theoretical understanding of corporate risk management. It supports the notion that established hedging rationales, such as reducing financial distress costs and addressing information asymmetry, are relevant across different economic contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]