The study examined the impact of integrated reporting on the performance of corporate organizations in Nigeria between 2009 and 2018. The major motivation for the study was the clarion call and the outcry by the public as regards environmental degradation due to firm activities. Unfortunately, such outcry were not really heard as information about the environment has not really been captured in the reports of firms which then makes them not accountable to their immediate environment. In the light of this necessity, the study which considered thirteen banks due to unavailability of data for the intended periods for the remaining five, used profit after tax as the dependent variable and also used IR index as a blend of financial and sustainability reporting, debt to equity ratio and total asset as independent variables. The study employed the classical Ordinary Least Square and Panel Co-integration techniques for analysis revealing that while IR has no significant impact on corporate performance in the short run, it has a significant relationship with firm performance in the long run. Hence, it was recommended that reporting authorities such as the FRCN should mandate firms to adopt the IR standard just like in South Africa as stipulated in their King’s Code of Governance in a bid to strengthen such long run relationship. Also, non-financial information that embraces long-term forecasting should be included in corporate reports in a bid to educate relevant entities about its long-term prospects and its ability to continue in the foreseeable future.

The board structure of an organization gives an overview of the standard of such organization, which also influences its public image. This study attempts to evaluate the role board structure plays in curtailing earnings management practices in Nigerian companies. This study sampled the data of 137 quoted companies in Nigeria for a period of 8 years (2003-2010). Earnings management was measured using the magnitude of the discretionary accruals as estimated by the performance matched modified Jones model. The ordinary least squares (OLS) regression technique was used to measure the research model as well as the Pearson moment correlation coefficient. The study shows that there is a significant relationship between board structure and earnings management practices in Nigeria. The study shows that there is a negative significant relationship between board size, gender, and board composition with earnings management; also, there is a positive significant relationship between board meeting and earnings management practices in Nigeria. There is a positive nonsignificant relationship between the presence of a remuneration committee and the dualization of CEO and chairman positions with earnings management practices in Nigeria. This study recommends that regulators at all levels should enforce the preparation and publication of financial reports by companies operating in Nigeria.

International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) Adoption and Implementation in Nigerian Public Sector

Regulation and regulatory agencies are to serve as external control mechanisms to ensure that the financial statements provide a fair view of the company’s operating performance and financial position, free of any unethical practice and suitable for all stakeholders’ needs. Despite the increasing importance of regulatory agencies in enforcing compliance with the standards and laws, it occupies a limited space in accounting research. This study, therefore, investigated the impact of regulatory agencies on creative accounting practices. The study used descriptive and survey research design to achieve its aim. It employed a multi-stage sampling technique, also questionnaires were distributed among 405 respondents consisting of preparers of accounts, users of accounts, and regulators. Out of the number distributed, the respondents returned 241 copies, and all of them were found suitable. The study used Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) to analyze the data and test the hypothesis. The empirical findings showed that the regulatory agencies jointly show a significant impact on creative accounting practices, but the level of contribution to the overall impact by each regulatory agency varies. The study concludes that Nigeria’s regulatory agencies are weak and inefficient in enforcing compliance with the relevant rules. The study recommends that the institutional capacity of the regulatory agencies should be strengthened by enforcing compliance with financial reporting rules and regulation. Most of these agencies should develop capacity in the areas of manpower, information technology infrastructures, and funding. Acknowledgment The authors acknowledge Covenant University who has solely provided the platform for this research and has also fully sponsored the research cluster search for data across the country.

The impact of technology on commerce cannot be denied, especially in relation to trade. This study was conducted to examine the impact of electronic banking on the financial performance of Nigerian deposit money banks. The data for the study was obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Statistical Bulletin and the National Bureau of Statistics’ Statistical Bulletin for various years, as well as from published financial statements of the banks under study. An ex-post facto research design was used and a normality test was carried out to establish the goodness of the data; descriptive statistics and a multicollinearity test were conducted in which the independent variables were found good. Regression was adopted to test two hypotheses. It was found that ATM has a positive and significant association with Earning EPS and ROA; POS and NEFT significantly affect ROA only, while WEB has an insignificant impact on both EPS and ROA. It is concluded that electronic banking significantly affects financial performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria. Thus, the study recommended that deposit money banks in Nigeria should educate their customers more in the use of NEFT, WEB, and POS, and that the amount of ATM withdrawals should be increased to improve bank performance.