This paper examines the moderating effect of corporate digital transformation in the relationship between audit quality and aggressive tax avoidance in the sample of industrial companies listed on the ASE and operating during the 2020–2025 period. They were based on data of a balanced panel of 30 industrial companies listed on the ASE 180 observations. The primary estimator used was the feasible generalized least squares (FGLS) method that was employed after it was established that first-order autocorrelation, groupwise heteroskedasticity, and partial cross-sectional dependence existed. System-GMM estimator was used to confirm the robustness of the results, and to deal with the endogeneity that may arise due to reverse causality between auditor selection and result. There are three key findings of the study. First, there is a strong and consistent negative relationship between affiliation with one of the Big Four audit firms and aggressive tax avoidance in all the models studied, confirming that reputation-based audit quality is an effective institutional deterrent a finding of particular importance given that 73.3% of the Jordanian industrial firms in the sample rely on local auditors and therefore lack similar governance controls. Second, aggressive tax avoidance is positively related to higher audit fees, which are indicative of a more complex client base and an economic dependence on clients by the auditor, rather than a signal of greater monitoring rigour and, therefore, as a challenge to the fee-as-quality assumption common to the developed-market framework. Third, although digital transformation demonstrates a direct positive correlation with aggressive tax avoidance—indicating that firms can use digital capabilities to enhance tax planning and not compliance in the pre-JoFotara regulatory environment—its moderating effect on Big Four affiliation is not statistically significant. It is important to note that the relationship between the intensity of audit fees and digital transformation is positively significant, which is in line with the economic dependence argument. The implications of the findings are important to the Jordan Securities Commission, the tax authorities as well as regulatory bodies who are looking to enhance corporate tax compliance in a dynamic digital regulatory environment, and raise important questions of the portability of audit quality assumptions across institutional settings.

Foreign direct investment (FDI), renewable energy, and energy intensity are the environmental performance of emerging economies. Utilizing the CS-ARDL method and a panel dataset spanning 2000–2023, the study investigates the evolving drivers of CO₂ emissions across BRIC countries. Empirical evidence illustrates that FDI exacerbates emissions in the short run, reflecting its allocation to the pollution-intensive sector. However, in the long run, the diffusion of cleaner and developed production technology, FDI exerts a positive environmental effect. Conversely, although renewable energy consumption primarily increases environmental quality, its associated life-cycle emissions and energy inefficiencies contribute to higher emissions over time. Initially, energy intensity has a positive impact on CO₂ emissions in the short run and a negative impact in the long run, highlighting the importance of more energy efficiency reforms. This research emphasizes the need for policy precision that reflects the characteristics of FDI, the lifecycle impact of renewable energy policies, and reinforced energy efficiency improvements that will support emerging countries in achieving a low-carbon economy.

This study investigates the effect of cybersecurity effectiveness on cloud accounting risk—operationalized through the three dimensions of the confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CIA) triad—within the Jordanian banking sector, comprising the 13 commercial banks listed on the Amman Stock Exchange. It further examines the moderating role of Control Objectives for Information and Related Technologies (COBIT-5) governance maturity in this relationship. Drawing on data from 388 cybersecurity, information technology, network security, and accounting professionals, the study employs Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) via SmartPLS 4 to estimate a single integrated structural model. The results indicate that cybersecurity effectiveness is significantly and negatively associated with all three dimensions of cloud accounting risk. COBIT-5 governance maturity significantly strengthens these negative associations across confidentiality, integrity, and availability, while exerting no statistically detectable direct effect of its own—a pattern consistent with COBIT-5 functioning as a pure moderator. Out-of-sample predictive tests (PLSpredict and the cross-validated predictive ability test, CVPAT) confirm that the model’s explanatory power translates into genuine predictive validity. These findings suggest that technical cybersecurity controls alone may be insufficient to secure cloud-stored financial information, and that their risk-mitigating potential appears to be more fully realized when embedded within a mature governance framework that institutionalises accountability, continuous monitoring, and compliance enforcement. The study recommends that Jordanian banks treat cybersecurity investment and COBIT-5 governance maturity as complementary, jointly prioritised strategic initiatives, and that regulatory authorities incorporate explicit COBIT-5 maturity benchmarks into supervisory assessment frameworks.