Performance of government linked companies and private owned companies in Malaysia

Purpose - The purpose of this study was to find whether there was any significant difference in performance between government-linked companies (GLCs) and private-owned companies (POCs) and there was any significant improvement in performance of GLCs after Malaysian Government's initiatives to transform the GLCs to high-performance companies. Design/methodology/approach - Panel data estimation techniques were used to run the regression in this study. Findings - It was found that there was no significant difference in performance level between GLCs and POCs. It was also found that the performance level of GLCs had improved significantly after the initiation of GLCs' transformation programme by the Malaysian Government. Originality/value - The implication of the results of this study is that state-owned enterprises in developing countries like Malaysia can be relevant and important to take care of social responsibilities and needs, as also they can perform at par with private companies. There is no need for privatization of government-owned enterprises; rather, it needs corporatization. Government-owned enterprises can play an important role to drive national development.