Audit Committee versus Adapted Fiscal Council: the point of view of market analysts and executives of companies with ADRs

Abstract

The aim of this study was to obtain the opinion of executives working in companies that companies that operate in Brazil and negotiate their titles in the North-American market and the opinion of market analysts. For that, we used questionnaires and made interviews. The majority of executives working in companies with an Audit Committee pointed out the level of Corporate Governance as one of the factors that most influenced the decision to establish either of the agencies. On the other hand, according to the majority of executives working in companies with an adapted Fiscal Council, the level of Corporate Governance, in addition to the fact that the company was audited by one of the Big4, and the company's classification according to the Aggregate Worldwide Market Value, were factors that influenced their decisions. There was no consensus of opinions among company executives and market analysts regarding a Fiscal Council being more adaptable to the Brazilian business environment than an Audit Committee, both in terms of the role of each entity being distinct and in terms of the costs associated with building an Audit Committee. Thus, we can conclude that in some cases, the point of view of analysts is different than that of company executives.