Corporate Governance in the Metaverse: Perspectives on Applicability and Challenges from the Standpoint of Firm Theory

Abstract

Concerns about data governance and information protection have been gaining ground in social and academic debate in recent years, especially after the announcement by Meta - formerly Facebook-of the development of the Metaverse. In this context, this theoretical essay addresses these issues, also taking into account the expansion of economic systems through new methods of using of the internet. As a main objective, we investigate the potential uses of the Metaverse for governance purposes, touching on aspects of informational asymmetry and agency problems. The results point to two main issues: firstly, there are potential uses of the metaverse for governance purposes, as well as its use for monitoring and compliance systems in companies. Secondly, when migrating governance practices to virtual realities, new challenges arise that must be taken into account for corporate decision-making, such as legal aspects of image and information rights, as well as sovereignty over metaverse rights. The study contributes to the literature by highlighting the use of immersive technologies in corporate governance, addressing agency and ethics problems, and offering insights to improve compliance and governance practices.