Sustainable development has gained the attention of researchers worldwide and is becoming an important topic, especially in relation to corporate governance principles. This study investigates the influence of corporate governance on sustainable development in a sample of 185 countries over 2005–2020 using a panel linear regression model. Separate analyses are also conducted on subsamples of high- and low-income countries. Our findings highlight the positive influence of corporate governance, as measured by board efficacy, the strength of audits and reports, and digitalisation, on sustainable development, as measured by the Human Development Index, Human Capital Index, and Environmental Performance Index. Moreover, we find a higher positive and marginal effect of the influence of corporate governance on sustainable development for low-income countries than for high-income countries. The robustness checks performed using variables related to the happiness index, women in top management positions, and technology adoption verify our results. Our findings are important for managers and policymakers to consolidate sustainable development through the incentive brought about by high-quality corporate governance.

Tax avoidance is one of the most frequent reasons for which companies tend to resort to creative accounting techniques. The purpose of the study is to identify which of the eight-variables from the Beneish influences the most or least the outcome of the final score, as a percent, by developing a statistical model. The sample was selected from the Bucharest Stock Exchange and consists of 66 companies traded on the main market, for the years 2015–2019. The results show that from the total of the eight variables, GMI (Gross Margin Index), AQI (Asset Quality Index), DEPI (Depreciation Index) and TATA (Total Accruals to Total Assets) are significantly influencing the probability to commit fraud. The developed model is validated with only 10% of the non-fraud companies being mistakenly considered as fraud based on our model and vice versa.

Creative accounting has its background since early studies in 1975, until the present time. It continues to be a subject of great interest for the companies and interested parties. Thus, the current paper will aim to answer the following proposed research questions: 1. Which are the most used methods for detecting the manipulation of financial statements in the literature? 2. Which are the terms that are most frequently encountered in the literature associated with “creative accounting? 3. Which are the journals that have the highest frequency of articles written on the topic “creative accounting”? 4. Over time, how did research evolve in the field of creative accounting? 5. Which countries are most preoccupied in publishing regarding this topic? To answer the research question 1, the models published in the literature for measuring manipulation techniques through creative accounting were reviewed and analyzed. For the remaining research questions, a bibliometric analysis for the publications in this area was performed. For collecting the sample, articles on this topic were selected from the international Web of Science database. Following this, a bibliometric analysis of the articles was performed, using the VOSviewer program. A total of 4045 publications on creative accounting were identified. Through the bibliometric analysis we have answered research question 2, by identifying the key words that have the closest proximity to creative accounting. To answer the remaining research questions, we identified the journals with the highest frequency of publication and the countries with the highest interest on the topic. It is especially important to evaluate the quality of this many research papers and to obtain valuable information.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) represent a fundamental pillar of economic development in Eastern Europe. Yet, they frequently encounter significant obstacles in accessing financing, stemming from informational asymmetries, elevated risks, the absence of collateral, and adverse regulatory environments. This research examines the primary determinants of adopting blockchain-based supply chain financing platforms, an alternative financing solution that streamlines processes, reduces costs, and enhances transparency and security. The study develops and validates an innovative conceptual model grounded in the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). A structured questionnaire was administered to a sample of 200 respondents across seven Eastern European countries, and the model’s hypotheses were tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The research findings demonstrate that supply chain partner readiness constitutes the most influential factor affecting behavioral intention to use blockchain-based supply chain financing platforms. Additionally, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and perceived trust were identified as significant positive determinants. Furthermore, the study highlights blockchain readiness as a crucial factor influencing actual usage behavior. These findings provide valuable insights and contribute to advancing knowledge through the utilization of an extended UTAUT framework and validation of obtained results through comparison with other relevant studies in the field.

The act of fraud has been practiced since ancient times and manifests itself in different ways. The aim of the study is to apply the Beneish score on Romanian firms and to identify which indicators are sensitive to the state of fraud. The sample was selected from the Bucharest Stock Exchange and consists of 66 companies traded on the main market for the years 2016-2021. The collected data were analyzed year-by-year and cross-sectional methods (panel data) using manually collected information extracted from financial statements downloaded from the Bucharest Stock Exchange. Based on this data, the Beneish score was calculated and then statistical tests were performed. Using the obtained results from the Beneish Score calculation, we were able to divide the companies into two groups. The obtained scores, clearly underlines the two states: fraud and non-fraud. The ones in the fraud state have a decreased score, while the companies with no likelihood of fraud risk have lower scores. To further investigate our results, we identified sensitive items in both states such as DSRI (Days Sales Receivable Index) and GMI (Gross Margin Index). In conclusion, several theories or hypotheses are offered to explain the underlying motivations for fraud appearance. Romanian companies listed on regulated markets can be classified into risk groups in terms of fraudulent financial statements by applying the Beneish score. The results of the present study are in the interests of the policy makers, management team, business analysist and as well for the general use.

Congratulations on a job well done. The work is interesting, but it needs some adjustments such as: * the specialized literature would require an update; * I propose an expansion of the theories; we also have in the specialized literature the diamond...