Intellectual Capital and Financial Performance: a Study of Russian Insurance Market

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of the intellectual capital and its components on the financial performance of Russian insurance companies. Data covered 109 Russian insurance companies during the period from 2012 to 2015. The intellectual capital and its components were measured by “Value Added Intellectual Coefficient” developed by Pulic (2000) and the companies’ performance was measured using return on assets coefficient (ROA). This research shows that there is a positive and significant relationship between VAIC and ROA, indicating that insurance companies with greater performance based on ROA are expected to have a higher intellectual capital level. Also, received results indicate that human capital and structural capital have a significant and positive impact on financial performance. This paper is the first attempt to analyze an impact of intellectual capital on the financial performance of Russian insurance companies. The results prove the importance of intellectual capital management for improving financial performance what may be useful for practitioners. This study also supplements the existing literature on similar analysis on other markets.