AUDIT QUALITY, GOVERNANCE MECHANISMS AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT OF QUOTED DEPOSIT MONEY BANKS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Corporate failures across the globe have become an issue of concern for stakeholders andregulators. Financial reporting scandals that occurred in oceanic bank, intercontinental bank andthe recent bank crises of Skye Bank in 2016 really motivated the need for this study. The studyexamines audit quality, governance mechanism and earnings management of listed deposit moneybanks in Nigeria for the period of eleven years from 2009-2019. The population of the study consistsof all the 14 listed deposit money banks in Nigeria as at 31st December, 2019. The study adoptedexpo-factor and correlation research designs, and multiple regression was employed as techniqueof data analysis. The findings of the study revealed that audit independence, managerial ownershipand board independent have significant negative impact on earnings management of quotedNigerian banks while auditor size and audit tenure have insignificant influence on earningsmanagement of listed deposit money banks in Nigeria. In line with the findings, the study thereforeconcluded that audit independence, managerial ownership and board independence havesignificant negative impact on earnings management of banks in Nigeria while audit firm size andaudit tenure have no significant impact on earnings management of listed deposit money banks inNigeria. It is therefore recommended that Nigeria listed deposit money banks should maintain theaudit fees they are paying to the audit firm or increase it as any attempt to reduce the audit fees canincrease earnings management. However managerial shareholding should be increase as it willreduce earnings management and also board independent directors on the board should beincreased from minimum of two as it will reduce earnings management of listed deposit moneybanks in Nigeria on the other hand there is no significant impact between audit firm tenure andaudit firm size on earnings management of listed deposit money banks in Nigeria. For audit firmsize the study recommended that local audit firms should be used instead of the Big 4 as the size have no effect on earnings management. Also the study recommended that for audit tenure the bankshould maintain its audit tenure as it does not have any influence on earnings management.