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Key research themes
1. What corporate governance mechanisms influence financial reporting timeliness and how?
This research theme explores how aspects of corporate governance, particularly audit committee characteristics and broader governance quality, affect the promptness of financial reporting. Understanding these relationships matters because effective governance can facilitate quicker, more reliable financial disclosures that enhance transparency and aid investor decision-making. It also informs regulatory improvements in governance structures to promote timely reporting.
Key finding: Using a composite CG-Index derived from 8 validated corporate governance attributes, the study finds that financial expertise in the audit committee, board size, board meetings, and board independence are significantly... Read more
Key finding: Empirical analysis on 2,284 firm-year observations reveals that audit committee gender diversity, meeting frequency, and independence are negatively associated with audit report lag (ARL), indicating these characteristics... Read more
Key finding: The study on Malaysian cooperative societies finds that audit committee size and meeting frequency are positively associated with timeliness compliance in financial reporting, while audit committee expertise shows no... Read more
Key finding: An investigation using Tehran Stock Exchange data (2013-2018) shows that neither the financial expertise nor tenure of audit committee chairs significantly affects audit report delays. This suggests that mere presence of... Read more
2. Which firm-specific and audit-related factors determine the timeliness of financial reporting in emerging markets?
This theme focuses on identifying characteristics intrinsic to firms and attributes of the audit process that affect how quickly financial reports are published. The importance lies in recognizing operational, size, and sectoral factors as well as audit complexity that either facilitate or delay timely disclosure, enabling stakeholders to understand and potentially mitigate lag risks prevalent in developing economies.
Key finding: Using 396 observations from 99 non-financial firms (2014–2017), this study finds that audit opinion type, company liquidity, firm size, and industry significantly influence audit opinion lag, with publication delays ranging... Read more
Key finding: This paper identifies regulatory frameworks and institutional requirements in Zimbabwe and empirically examines audit-related and firm-specific factors affecting timeliness. It highlights that despite legal mandates, delays... Read more
Key finding: Through panel data regression on 214 Vietnamese listed companies, the study documents that consolidated financial reporting, audit firm type, firm profitability (ROA), and business size significantly enhance financial report... Read more
Key finding: In a sample of Tehran Stock Exchange firms (2008-2011), auditor size and opinion, industry classification, consolidated financial reporting, and costing system quality significantly influence reporting timeliness, with large... Read more
3. How does market capitalization affect audit report lag and financial reporting timeliness in emerging capital markets?
This theme investigates the relationship between firms' market capitalization levels and the duration between the end of financial periods and audit report publication dates (audit report lag, ARL). Understanding this relationship is vital because it captures how firm size and associated complexity influence audit timelines, investor risk assessment, and market information efficiency in emerging economies.
Key finding: Analysis of 400 firm-year observations from the Belgrade Stock Exchange (2017) shows that higher market capitalization statistically significantly predicts shorter audit report lags. Larger firms typically have stronger... Read more
Key finding: The study replicates and extends findings on BELEX companies, confirming that market capitalization is a significant determinant of audit report lag duration. Larger firms’ audit processes benefit from robust control... Read more