Association between foreign background of executives and firm goodwill impairment risk

In recent years, the wave of mergers and acquisitions in the capital market has risen. As a result, the goodwill impairment (GI) of listed firms has been frequent. This study empirically examines the association between the foreign-background characteristics of executives and firm GI risk using data from 2008 to 2020 for A-share listed firms in Shanghai and Shenzhen, China. The results show that there is a positive relationship between the foreign background of executives and the risk of GI of firms. Further results show that executives with foreign working backgrounds have a more significant positive impact on GI risk than executives with foreign study backgrounds. In addition, the positive effect of the foreign background of executives of non-state-owned enterprises (SOEs) on GI risk is more profound than that of SOEs. However, internal controls and institutional investors’ shareholdings weaken the positive association between executives’ foreign backgrounds and GI risk. This study provides evidence of the determinants of GI in firms and the economic consequences of the foreign-background characteristics of executives.