Purpose The purpose of this study is to empirically investigate the impact of intellectual capital (IC) on the financial performance of Islamic banks operating in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Design/methodology/approach The study measures IC by the value added intellectual coefficient model. A regression analysis was used to assess the impact of IC on financial performance. The research sample consisted of Islamic banks operating in the GCC countries during the years 2011, 2012 and 2013. Data originated from the annual reports of Islamic banks. Findings The results support the thesis that IC has a positive impact on the financial performance of Islamic banks. Even though the average IC is lower than that reported in other studies, the positive effect on financial performance is obvious. The findings also show that human capital (HC) is higher than capital employed (CE) and structural capital (SC). The study reveals that SC has an insignificant impact on the financial performance of the Islamic banks compared to CE and HC. Practical implications The findings provide empirical evidence that IC affects the Islamic banks’ financial performance. It helps Islamic banks in the GCC countries to understand how to use their IC efficiently, especially SC as it is yet to be used efficiently. Also, the findings benefit the relevant authorities (e.g. legislators and central banks) who could use them to emphasise strategic policy reforms whenever required. Originality/value The current research adds to the empirical studies in the GCC countries as it views the region as a collective as opposed to individual countries. It also extends the IC and performance measurement literature of Islamic banks in the GCC countries. Moreover, the current study enriches the limited literature on IC in the context of Islamic banking.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent of voluntary disclosure (EVD) (i.e. overall, conventional, and Islamic disclosure) in the annual reports of Shariah Approved Companies (ShAC) listed on Bursa Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach -A disclosure index was developed, which consists of 59 items (including items related to the Shariah, i.e. Islamic items), to measure the EVD in the annual reports of ShAC. Secondary data from annual reports were analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-test. Findings -ShAC disclosed on average 19, 21 and 17 percent of overall, conventional, and Islamic items, respectively. The EVD of conventional items is comparable to prior studies, and higher than Islamic items.

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PurposeThe objective of this paper is to examine the determinants (i.e. firm size, profitability, leverage, type of audit firm and industry type) of intellectual capital (IC) disclosure in the annual reports of Malaysian listed companies.Design/methodology/approachThe data were collected from the 2006 annual reports of the selected listed companies; and analyzed using descriptive statistics, t‐test, correlation and regression analyses.FindingsThe paper found that firm size, profitability, industry type are determinants of IC disclosure (ICD) in the annual reports of Malaysian listed companies, while leverage and type of audit firm did not statistically influence ICD.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper only used data from the 2006 annual reports. However, the findings have highlighted the importance of ICD determinants based on data from an emerging economy (i.e. Malaysian economy).Practical implicationsThe paper provides empirical evidence on the current practices and determinants of ICD in the annual reports of the Malaysian listed companies. This evidence would help in understanding and determining factors that influence the extent of ICD. Subsequently, it could assist in enhancing ICD in the annual reports.Originality/valueThe paper contributes by extending the limited ICD literature in Malaysia. Furthermore, the paper has tested more determinants, deemed to influence ICD, compared to prior Malaysian studies. In addition, the paper used a larger sample size with a wider industry coverage compared to previous Malaysian literature.