Here’s your weekly briefing on key developments of interest to board directors.

This week, I explain why a Dubai-based CEO is probably right to stay calm even in the midst of Middle East conflict, we look at which economies will be hit hardest by war in Iran, and dig into the schoolboy error by a leading law firm that means its client will have to unwind a landmark deal.

If you want to catch up on recent briefings, do explore the FT Infosys Board Network hub, where you’ll find links to the FT.com articles and research that we’ve referenced in recent weeks and to our archive of recent briefings.

If you have comments, suggestions or news you think we should include, email me at andrew.hill@ft.com or newsletter editor Jonathan Moules at jonathan.moules@ft.com.

Thanks for reading.

War has a habit of upsetting the best-laid plans. If you’re a buyer, seller or user of oil, or its derivatives, you know that to your cost this week, with crude prices gyrating and the US, Israel and Iran continuing to fire missiles and drones.

Zubin Karkaria of VFS Global has more reason than many chief executives to worry about this conflict. Not only is VFS headquartered in Dubai, he and his family live in the city, and, as the world’s largest processor of visas, the business depends on cross-border mobility.

Yet in an interview with me and FT colleague Stephanie Stacey, Karkaria, who is also a Zoroastrian priest, evinced an unexpected calm about geopolitical volatility. “My experience over the last 20 years has taught me: do not take impulsive decisions,” he told us. In recent years, only the pandemic, which slashed demand for VFS services from 30mn visa applicants a year to just 1mn overnight, has really demanded a radical response from the VFS boardroom.

Karkaria’s no-drama approach is rooted in his belief that, future pandemics aside, people will continue to want to travel, for business and pleasure, and that VFS is sufficiently broad-based to withstand shifts in immigration policy, tariffs or geopolitical alliances.

He also has the backing of data. Boston Consulting Group chief economist Philipp Carlsson-Szlezak ran the numbers on “macro” events for his 2024 book Shocks, Crises and False Alarms — published, admittedly, before Trump’s second term — and found that in almost every case grave conflicts and shock election results did not have lasting global macroeconomic impact.‌

Adaptability remains a key trait for executives and directors, but kneejerk responses to shocks risk adding to the uncertainty rather than offsetting it. As Karkaria put it: “Geopolitics has an impact, but it’s temporary.”

‌Which leading economies will pay the biggest price for the Iran war? Probably not the ones that started it, according to this FT analysis.‌

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My top FT picks

White men will have ‘fewer board seats’ in future, says UK diversity chair The chair of a report on ethnic diversity in the senior ranks of British companies has said it will be “natural for white males to have fewer board seats” in the future due to the UK’s changing social demographics. Merger blocked after lawyers Simpson Thacher miss deadline for appeal One of the world’s largest law firms, where partners are paid an average of $7.7mn, blames its failure to file on time on a ‘misinterpretation of the rules’. Green investors threaten BP with legal action over rejected resolution The oil major has been accused of an ‘unprecedented attack on shareholder rights’ for its refusal to allow a vote at its AGM. Phillips 66 changes board to avoid new proxy battle with Elliott A brokered peace at the oil refiner draws a line under one of the activist hedge fund’s most bitterly fought recent campaigns.

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1. 2026 Continental Europe Proxy Season Preview | ISS Insights This study assesses the impact of EU governance rule changes, the reframing of DEI metrics in executive pay and a wave of management say-on-climate proposals. The full report is available to institutional subscribers.

2. Transparency and the Visibility of Misconduct: Evidence from ESG Disclosure Mandates | ECGI Ensuring that companies meet Environmental, Social and Governance standards is a major governance challenge. This study investigates how increased regulation of the issue correlates with companies issuing misleading communications on their ESG adoption.

3. CEO Tenure is More Important than the CEO-Chair Debate | FCLT Global Should a CEO also serve as board chair? This article assesses the pros and cons of one of the most contested questions in governance.

Board Network is written by Andrew Hill and Jonathan Moules