scholarly journals Board characteristics and earnings management in Sri Lanka

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-18
Author(s):  
Shanmugavel Rajeevan ◽  
Roshan Ajward

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the association between designated corporate governance attributes and the degree of earnings management in selected quoted companies in Sri Lanka. Design/methodology/approach In total, 70 listed companies in Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) were selected based on the highest market capitalisation for the period covering from 2015 to 2017 and representing beverage, food and tobacco, diversified, hotel and travel, manufacturing, oil palms and health care sectors, which accounted for 59.9 per cent of the total market capitalisation of CSE. Findings This study found a positive relationship between CEO-Chair duality and earnings management. Practical implications The insights may also provide investors, economic analysts and regulators with early caution indicators of potential problems in a corporation regarding corporate governance failures and aid stakeholders in assessing the effectiveness and efficiency of the board and corporate governance structure and earnings management methods. Originality/value This study extends the extant research on board characteristics and real earnings management by adopting prominent research design and modernised data. This study offers evidence on how selected audit and board committee’s characteristics influence real earnings management practices.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristian Baú Dal Magro ◽  
Roberto Carlos Klann

Purpose Although board interlocking underlying forces are largely hidden, the purpose of this paper is to provide managers, auditors, analysts, regulators and other stakeholders with sociological board interlocking information considering the different backgrounds of their members. Design/methodology/approach The research sample gathered 1,606 observations from 2010 to 2017. For data analysis, the direct and indirect board interlocking linkages, considering the different backgrounds of board members, established the centrality indicators. Subsequently, the authors used these indicators according to each measured background in the regression models. Findings The results indicate that the political background of board interlocking members is positively related to real earnings management practices, while the financial background has a mitigating effect on such practices. Research limitations/implications The findings suggest that individual skills and interests conveyed across the corporate social network have shaped corporate governance, with distinct impacts on the quality of accounting information. Practical implications The authors conclude that both backgrounds could have implications on agency conflicts, increasing (policy) or reducing (financial) information asymmetry between the company and its various stakeholders, which indicates that the authors must consider sociological and not just economic aspects within corporate governance. Social implications The sociological background of individuals is necessary for the congruence of monitoring mechanisms, and consequently, the quality of accounting information. Originality/value This study examines the influence of the political and financial background of board interlocking members on real earnings management practices in Brazilian publicly traded companies in the International Financial Reporting Standards post-adoption period.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Virasty Fitri ◽  
Dodik Siswantoro

Purpose This study aims to provide empirical evidence on the role of corporate governance mechanisms in reducing earnings-management practices in Islamic banks in Asia. Design/methodology/approach This study used 28 Islamic banks in Asia, which were listed on the stock exchange from 2013–2017. The research method used quantitative regression with data on the characteristics of Islamic banks taken from the websites of each bank. This study used discretionary loan loss provision as a proxy for measuring earnings management. Findings The results show that only the audit committee size has a significantly negative effect on earnings management. An independent audit committee has a negative, but not significant, effect. The difference expectation signs cannot be interpreted further. Research limitations/implications Only a few components of corporate governance were tested in this study. Therefore, it is expected that future studies will include more components. Practical implications In general, the components of corporate governance that include the characteristics of the board of directors and the audit committee have a varied effect on reducing the earnings-management practices in Islamic banks, except audit committee size. In practice, audit committee size should have an important role in earning management reduces. Originality/value This may be the first paper that studies the effect of corporate governance on earnings management in Islamic banks in Asia.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aprajita Pandey ◽  
J.K. Pattanayak ◽  
Prakash Singh

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of corporate governance on both accrual-based and real earnings management practices in select firms of the two world's largest economies, i.e. India and China. Design/methodology/approach The study has implemented a feasible generalized least square regression (FGLS) method to analyse the effect of corporate governance on accrual-based and real earnings management. Findings The study exhibits the significant contribution of large board sizes and independent boards in constraining the use of both accruals as well as real earnings management practices. However, audit quality had an impact on accrual earnings management only. The study also documents that accrual earnings management practices are controlled when the government’s potential to develop and enactment of policies increases. Practical implications The findings of the study provide insights to analysts, prospective investors and regulators to evaluate the effectiveness of the board in a new issue firm and help the firm to enhance its corporate governance policies. Originality/value Unlike previous studies who mostly examined the impact of corporate governance factors on accrual earnings management, the present study has, first, considered both accruals as well as real earnings management. Second, the present study has used the unique sample of new issue firms listed on the Indian and Chinese stock market, and third, the study did an additional analysis to examine the impact of country-level governance factors on accrual earnings management.


Author(s):  
Ratih Pujirahayu Nugroho ◽  
Sutrisno T Sutrisno ◽  
Endang Mardiati

This study aims to verify the correlation between financial distress and earnings management of tax aggressiveness moderated by corporate governance. This study uses a population of manufacturing companies that publish their financial statement on the Indonesia Stock Exchange from 2017 until 2018. Sample collection was performed using a purposive sampling method, resulting in a total of 212 populations that published complete financial reports. This study was tested by using the Multiple Regression Analysis test. This research gave empirical proofs that financial distress and real earnings management positively influenced the tax aggressiveness was supported, the proportion of independent commissioners weakened the financial distress and negatively impacted the tax aggressiveness was supported, the total audit committees weakened the financial distress and negatively influenced the tax aggressiveness was not supported, the proportion of independent commissioners and total audit committees weakened the real earnings management and negatively affected the tax aggressiveness was not supported


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 229-239
Author(s):  
Vina Kholisa Dinuka

The purpose of this study is to verify IFRS contribution by examining the presence of Accrual Earnings Management (AEM) and Real Earnings Management (REM) in the period pre- and post- IFRS implementation in manufacturing companies in Indonesia. AEM is measured by absolute value of discretionary accrual, while REM is proxied by three measurements of REM, they are abnormal cash flow operation, abnormal production and abnormal discretionary expenses. The sample is taken from Indonesia stock exchange in 2009-2011 and 2013-2015. 2012 is Indonesia adoption period and it is excluded from the sample, because it is considerated as transitory year. This study uses regression analysis and Paired t-test to compare the presence of AEM and REM preceding and following IFRS implementation. The findings reveal that IFRS adoption has significantly negative effect towards AEM and REM. It indicates that the following IFRS implementation, AEM and REM are decrease. Therefore, IFRS is able to reduce earnings management practices in manufacturing companies in Indonesia both for AEM and REM.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Zubaedy Sy ◽  
Nuryati Nuryati ◽  
Surifah Surifah

 The main objective of this research is to create good corporate governance that is able to restrictopportunistic REM. The specific objectives of this study are 1) to provide evidence of difference inthe practices of CG and REM in Indonesian and Malaysian Islamic banks,and 2) to provide empirical evidence of the influence of CG on the REM of Indonesian and Malaysian Islamic banks.           The study was conducted on Indonesian and Malaysian Islamic banks from 2011 to 2016by using purposive samplingmethod. The research data is secondary data in the form of annual reports and financial reports originating from the Indonesian Banking Directory, the Indonesia Stock Exchange and the Malaysia Stock Exchange. The analysis method used to test the differences between CG and real earnings management is the Man Whitney test whilethe method used to test the effect of CG on the REM of Islamic Banks in Indonesia and Malaysia is the multiple regression analysiswithordinary least square.            The results show that the practices of corporate governance in Indonesia and Malaysia have their own strengths and weaknesses. CG mechanism of Indonesia and Malaysia shows lower level in some parts and higher level in other parts. Malaysia’s REM islower than Indonesia’sREM through operating cash flow, investment profit sharing, and discretionary costs. The experimental results show that CG generally does not affect real earnings management and only the independent audit committee who is able to restrictreal earnings management through operating cash flows.            Riset ini  menguji  hubungan antara corporate governance (CG) dan manajemen laba berdasar aktivitas riil  atau disebut real earnings management (REM) bank-bank Islam  di Indonesia dan Malaysia. Tujuan jangka panjang riset ini adalah terciptanya good corporate governace yang mampu membatasi REM oportunistik. Target khusus penelitian ini adalah 1) memberi bukti empiris perbedaan praktik CG dan REM bank Islam  Indonesia dan Malaysia. 2) memberi bukti empiris pengaruh CG terhadap REM bank Islam  Indonesia dan Malaysia.             Metode penelitian menggunakan metode ilmiah - kuantitatif, dengan membangun satu atau lebih hipotesis berdasarkan pada suatu struktur  atau kerangka teori dan kemudian menguji hipotesis-hipotesis tersebut secara empiris. Penelitian dilakukan pada bank Islam  Indonesia dan Malaysia periode waktu 2011 sampai 2016. Metode pengambilan sampel secara purposive sampling. Data penelitian merupakan data sekunder berupa  annual report dan laporan keuangan yang berasal dari Directory Perbankan Indonesia, Bursa Efek Indonesia  dan Bursa Efek Malaysia.  Teknik analisis untuk menguji perbedaan CG dan manajemen laba riil adalah uji beda Man Whitney, sedangkan untuk menguji pengaruh CG terhadap REM Bank Islam  Indonesia dan Malaysia menggunakan analisis regresi berganda ordinary least square.            Hasil menunjukkan bahwa praktik corporate governance Negara Indonesia dan Malaysia, masing masing memiliki kelebihan dan kelemahan. Mekanisme CG ada yang lebih rendah, maupun lebih tinggi antara Negara Indonesia dengan Malaysia. REM Malaysia lebih rendah signifikan dari pada Indonesia, baik melalui arus kas operasi, bagi hasil investasi, maupun biaya diskresioner. Hasil uji menunjukkan bahwa pada umumnya mekanisme CG tidak berpengaruh terhadap manajemen laba riil. Hanya Independensi komite audit yang mampu menekan manajemen laba riil melalui arus kas operasi.Keywords:Corporate governance, real earnings management, Islamic banking.


2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neila Boulila Taktak ◽  
Ibtissem Mbarki

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of board characteristics and external audit quality on earnings management among major Tunisian banks over the period 2003-2007. Design/methodology/approach – Multivariate regressions are employed to test the effect of board structure and external audit quality on discretionary provisions as a proxy for earnings management. Findings – Results indicate that among the characteristics of the board, CEO duality is associated with higher levels of discretionary provisions. However, the presence of directors affiliated to the largest shareholder tends to constrain earnings management practices. The results reveal also that a co-audit belonging to the BIG 4 provides incentives to manage earnings while the capacity of the external auditor to disclose reservations impacts negatively the manager's discretion. Practical implications – First, it is not desirable to appoint a co-audit both belonging to the BIG 4. Second, the presence of affiliated directors reduces the discretionary practices except in cases where directors are affiliated to families. In this case, banks should strengthen the presence of independent directors. Finally, the delineation of the leeway left in the Tunisian accounting standards would provide more transparent financial information. Originality/value – This study contributes to the literature on governance and its impact on earnings management among Tunisian banks by introducing two variables that have not been tested before which are affiliated directors and co-audit. The paper will be of value to banks willing to comply with the Governance Good Practice Guide adopted recently in Tunisia.


2016 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zgarni Inaam ◽  
Halioui Khamoussi

Purpose – Many researchers, in several contexts, have investigated the influence of audit committee effectiveness and audit quality variables on reducing the extent of earnings management, and empirical evidence is rather inconsistent. Design/methodology/approach – The aim of this paper is to meta-analyze the results of 58 prior studies that examined whether differences in results are related to moderating effects associated with corporate governance mechanisms or measures of earnings management. Findings – The findings show that the meta-analysis identifies many significant relationships. The independence of the audit committee, its size, expertise and the number of meetings have a negative relationship with earnings management. Similar negative relationships exist between auditor size, specialization and earnings management. Research limitations/implications – This study contributes to the corporate governance literature. Further, recognizing the function of an audit committee and audit quality shows the value of considering an institutional setting in governance research. This study is significant to academic and practitioner literatures, policy makers and professional accounting bodies as it shows that governance reforms promote companies to adopt good governance practices. The results also give useful information to investors in examining the effect of audit committee characteristics and audit quality on earnings quality. Originality/value – This study extends existing research on audit committee and audit quality to oversee both accrual and real earnings management using meta-analysis. Thus, this study has the potential to help stakeholders, board of directors, regulators and auditors, who are related with enhancing the supervision of firms and reducing the opportunities given to managers, to engage in earnings management.


2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-181
Author(s):  
R.P. Sitanggang ◽  
Yusuf Karbhari ◽  
Bolaji Tunde Matemilola ◽  
M. Ariff

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether audit quality is associated with real earnings management in the UK. Design/methodology/approach The authors apply the panel fixed effects method that controls for heterogeneity across firms to investigate whether audit quality is related to real earnings management for a large sample of UK manufacturing companies for the period 2010–2013. The authors utilized three proxies to measure real earnings management and two proxies to measure audit quality. Findings The results provide evidence that audit fees are negatively related to abnormal operating cash flows. Conversely, audit fees are positively related to abnormal discretionary expenses. Besides, audit quality proxies show insignificant relationship with abnormal production costs and real earnings management index. Overall, the study finds partial evidence of significant relationship between audit quality and real earnings management. Research limitations/implications These results are important subject to the adequacy of the indicators of real earnings management and audit quality. Like previous research works that mostly focus on upward earnings management, the authors do not address the question of whether and how firms take real actions to manage earnings downwards in certain contexts. Practical implications The findings inform monitoring bodies that the imposition of higher levels of audit quality may result in unintended consequences. Therefore, monitoring bodies, such as audit committees, should consider the implication of imposing higher quality auditing, which may drive firms to potentially value-decreasing real earnings management practices. Managers should curtail real earnings management practices, especially abnormal operating cash flow, because attempt to use higher-quality auditors to mitigate such practice may destroy firm value. Also, managers’ employment may be threatened due to the potential deterioration of firm value caused by using higher-quality auditors to mitigate managers’ real earnings management practices. Moreover, shareholders are informed of the potential detrimental effects of imposing higher levels of audit quality which may lower the value of their investments. Originality/value The paper extends previous research on earnings management in several ways. First, while earlier studies usually use accruals methods to measure earnings management, the authors use the real earnings management approach as managers can switch from accruals to real earnings management when facing more scrutiny from auditors and/or more constrained regulations or standards that may limit their capability to use discretionary accruals. Second, this study reports new findings, as the authors find partial evidence of a significant relationship between audit quality and real earnings management. Third, it is one of the few studies to use a real earnings management index to measure earnings management and its link to audit quality.


2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurlan Orazalin

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine whether board gender diversity and other board characteristics affect earnings management practices of top public companies in Kazakhstan. Design/methodology/approach The study analyzes data of top public companies for the period 2010-2016. Data on corporate governance were manually collected from annual reports and investment memorandums, and financial data were collected from audited financial statements. Findings The empirical results show that companies with greater board gender diversity are more effective in constraining earnings management. The findings also indicate that companies with larger boards adopt a more restrained approach to earnings management practices, thus supporting the theoretical framework of the study. However, the results provide weak evidence of the association between board independence and earnings quality. Originality/value This study is the first to investigate the relationship between gender diversity and earnings management in emerging markets such as Kazakhstan that offers managerial and policy implications.


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