Microsoft Word - UPLOAD TO ME HASSAN GUJAF VOL 6 ISSUE 2 APRIL MR HASSAN 2222[1] Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 154 TIMELINESS OF FINANCIAL REPORTING AND INVESTMENT DECISION DYNAMICS: EVIDENCE FROM QUOTED DEPOSIT MONEY BANKS IN NIGERIA Ehigie, Ikponmwosa Darlington Jackson-Akhigbe, Beauty E (PhD) Abusomwan Rachael E. (PhD) Department of Accounting, Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, Benson Idahosa University Corresponding author: rabusomwan@biu.edu.ng https://doi.org/10.57233/gujaf.v6i2.11 Abstract Thisstudyexaminedtherelationship between the timeliness offinancialreporting andinvestmentdecisionsofquoteddepositmoney banks in Nigeria.Ex-post facto research design was employed and the sample population is made up of 12 depositmoney banks quoted companies in the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). The depositmoney banks for the population must have the responsibility to publish its financial statements for the period from 2012 to 2023. The data are analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and ordinary least square (OLS) regression technique.The result shows that the timeliness of financial reporting has a negative and statistically significant relationship with investment decision dynamics of money deposit banks in Nigeria and financial reporting quality has positive and statistically significant relationship with investment decision dynamics of money deposit banks in Nigeria at 5% level.The study recommended that stakeholders of depositmoney banks in Nigeria should set a time limit for the managing director to present the financial report and accounts for the external auditors to report timely, since timeliness of financial reporting has an adverse effect on investment decision dynamics. Keywords:FinancialReporting Quality,Investment Decision Dynamics, Timeliness of FinancialReporting. 1.0 Introduction The adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by listed companies in Nigeria has been more attractive for investment and to be abreast with global best practices on timely basis. Financial reporting timeliness is the early disclosure of financial statements to the relevant stakeholders on the financial status of the firm for making well-informed decisions (Ozer, et al., 2023). Financialstatementqualityisastatementwhichconveystomanagementandtointerestedoutsidersa concisepictureoftheprofitabilityandfinancialpositionofabusiness.Financialstatementplaysasignifica ntrole withintheconceptofgeneratingandcommunicatingwealthofcompanies.Odjaremu and Jeroh (2019) posited that the timely release and presentation of corporate report depends to a very large extent on the internal audit procedures, controls and processes. FinancialStatementqualityisaninformationsystemthatisusedforcommunicationpurposesandforthep Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 155 urpose of aiding decision making (Amahalu, et al, 2022). The Banking sector of Nigeria is an organized businesssectorwhosebusinesshastodowiththemonetarytransactionsofindividualsandcorporateinst itution. Investment decision involves the commitment of current funds into long termprojectsforfuturebenefit,assuchfinancialStatementbecomesimportanttothesuccessoftheseinves tment opportunities(Mahmoud,2023).Investmentdecisionsareverycrucialandcautionmustbetakenbecau sehuge, scarceandhardearnedresourcesareinvolved,irreversibleinnature,riskyandhavelongtermimplicatio nwhich noinvestorwouldwanttobeconfrontedwithifnegativeresultsoccurred.Theperceivedrelevance of financial statement is to provide reliable and timely financial reporting to the prospective users such as investors, managers, directors, financial institutions, financial analysts, government, regulatory agencies, the media, vendors and the general public in making informed or rational investment decision. Investment strategy of deposit money banks may result in demanding timely presentation of financial statement. Accounting literatures showed that many researchers examinetherelationship between timeliness offinancialreportingand investmentdecisions (see, (McNicholas&Stubben, 2019;Paananen&Lin,2019; Ajayi-Owoeye, et al., 2022; AmahaluAbiahu,Obi&Nweze,2023; Abiloro and Lodikero, 2023). However, the relationship between timeliness financial reporting and investmentdecisions is not completely clear in the context of Nigeria. However, literatures had indicated that sizeable evidence on the subject matter has not been proven satisfactorily in Nigeria quoteddepositmoneybanks to the best of researcher’s knowledge. Hence, the identified gap in research in knowledge is to examine therelationship between timeliness offinancialreportingand investmentdecisions ofquoteddepositmoneybanksinNigeria. Based on the research objectives, the following null hypotheses were formulated: H01:There is no significant relationship between timeliness of financial reporting and investmentdecisions ofquoteddepositmoneybanksinNigeria. H02:There is no significant relationship between financial reporting quality and investmentdecisions ofquoteddepositmoneybanksinNigeria. 2.0 Literature Review Investment is the commitment of current funds or other resources in the expectation of reaping future benefit. Pandey (2023) posited that investment decisions or analysis has to do with an efficient allocation of capital. It involves decision to commit the firm’s funds to the long-term assets. Investment decision has to do with an efficient allocation of capital. It involves decision to commit funds in long- term assets. Such decisions are of considerable importance to the firm and the individual since they tend to determine the value and size by influencing the growth, profitability and risk. Kapellas and Siougle (2017) defined investment decision as the selection of alternatives courses of action from available alternatives in other to achieve a given objective. Decision Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 156 is the process of identifying and selecting a course of action to deal with a specific problem or take advantage of an opportunity. The major tool for these investment decisions is the ratio analysis (Abiahu & Amahalu, 2017). Ratio analysis is the judgmental process which aims at evaluating the current and past financial positions and the results of an entity, with the primary objectives of determining the best possible estimate about the future conditions and performances. It provides a quick diagnostic look at an entity’s financial health and provokes subsequent financial and operational analysis (Kariuki & Jagongo, 2023). In this study, investment decision is proxied by returns on equity. Return on Equity (ROE) is a ratio that provides investors with insight into how efficiently a firm’s managementisusing equity resourcesthatshareholdershaveinvested into the firm.The ROE ratio measures the profitability of the firm in relation to stockholders’ equity. According to Ezechukwuand Amahalu (2016),the higher the ROE, the more efficientacompany'smanagementisatgeneratingincomeandgrowthfromitsequityfinancing.RO Eisoftenusedtocompareacompanytoitscompetitorsandtheoverallmarket.Ryan (2021) is the financial investment ratio explore by management of firm to giveaccurateindicationsof which firms are operating with greater financial efficiency, and for the evaluation of any company with primarilytangibleratherthan intangibleassets(Ryan, 2021).Returnonequity(ROE) isameasureoffinancial performancecalculatedbydividingnetincomebyshareholders'equity.Becauseshareholders'equity isequaltoa company’s assets minus its debt, ROE could be thought of as the return on net assets. ROE is considered a measureofhoweffectivelymanagementisusingacompany’sassetstocreateprofits(Marshall,2022). Timeliness of Financial Reporting Timeliness is the disclosure of accounting information to decision makers before it loses its capacity to influence decisions” (International Accounting Standard Board (IASB), 2008). The timeliness of financial reporting has been defined from different perspectives. Totok, (2017) defined timeliness as the period between the company’s yearend and the date that the financial report was released for public view. Vestine, et al. (2020) conceptualised timeliness of financial reports as audit delay, which is the number of days between the balance sheet date and the date the external auditor’s report was signed; financial statement issue delay, which is the number of days between the balance sheet date and the date of declaring the notice of the annual general meeting (AGM); and the AGM delay, which is the number of days between the date of the financial year end and the AGM. The timely disclosure of accounting information is the bane of financialreportingquality which relatestotheaccuracywith which reported financials of a bank reflects its operating performance and how useful they are in forecasting futurecashflows(Nyor,2013).Theabilitytopresentagoodandaccuratefigureforaccrualistermedasf inancial reportingquality.Nwaobia,et al.(2016)affirmedthatfinancialreportingisoneofthe productsofaccountingsystemthatprovidesthenecessaryinformationneededtotakeeconomicandi nvestment decisions.Thismeansthat,anyelement(s)ofensuringthepossibilityofevaluatingthepastperforma ncewiththe intentiontoeffectivelyassessandpredictthepossiblefutureprofitabilityshouldbeconsideredasapr erequisite forachievingahighvolumeofinvestment. Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 157 Zayol, et al (2017) investigated the effect of financial information on investment decision of shareholders of banks in Nigeria. The data for the study were extracted from published annual reports of five selected banks in Nigeria from 2013 to 2023. Correlation matrix and regression analysis were deployed to establish therelationshipbetweenthevariables.Theresults revealedapositiverelationship,indicatingthatdividendper share have significant influence on investment decision of shareholders of banks in Nigeria. Lodikero (2023) explore ex-post facto research design to sample 8 listed deposit money banks in Nigeria to investigate the relationship between financial reporting quality and investment decision. The study used return on equity as a proxy for investment decision while Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression analysis technique was used to analyse the data. The empirical evidence reveal that financial reporting timeliness and board financial expertise had a significant positive relationship with investment decision at a 5% level of significance while financial reporting verifiability and bank size had a positive and not significant relationship with investment decision. FinancialReporting Quality Financial reporting quality (FRQ) has become great concerns for scholars and researchers due to the incessant collapsed of major companies couple with financial scandals across the globe (Escaloni & Mareque, 2021). AccordingtotheCompaniesandAlliedMattersAct1990(CAMA),financialstatementconsistsofacc ountsused toconveyquantitativeStatementoffinancialnatureaboutabusinesstoinvestors,creditors,andothe rsinterested inthereportingcompany’sfinancialcondition,resultsofoperations,usersandsourcesoffunds.Amah alu,et al(2019)definedfinancialreportingqualityasastatementwhichconveystomanagementandtointer ested outsiders aconcise picture oftheprofitabilityand financialposition of abusiness.Yopie and Elivia (2022) opined that FRQ brings about quality decision making for ensuring that the information of accounting reports isrelevance and reliable for the users of financial statements. According to the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN) (2013), financial reporting quality are the areas of communicating to interested parties Statement on the resource obligation and performance of the reporting entity. Financial statement should disclose Statement that could be verified from the records of the reporting entity (Lashgari & Moghaddam, 2022). Ajayi-Owoeye, et al (2022) employed ex-post facto research design to examine the effect of FR quality on investment decision in Nigerian listed manufacturing companies in Nigeria. A sample of 52 manufacturing companies listed on the NGX for the period of 2011-2020 while descriptive and multiple regressions were used to analyze the data. The results show that FR quality has a significant effect on investment decision proxied by market price per share, timely loss recognition and accounting conservatism has significant effect on market price per share. Savita, et al. (2017) investigated the significance of accounting information on equity share investment in companies listed on Indian Stock Exchange. The accounting information variable used to establish the significance of accounting information on equity share Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 158 investment. The study investigated the influence of financial information on equity share investment decision making. Primary data is used for the study.Dataforthestudywerecollectedfromasampleof177respondentsinvestedinequitymarket. Thestudy indicates that investor’s information seeking behavior is based on their year of experience, their investment horizonandtheirinvestmentintention.Thestudyalsoindicatedthatyearsofexperiencehasnosignific antimpact on investment source choice. Theoretical Review TheAgencytheorywasfirstproposedbyJensenandMeckling(1976)inatheoryofthefirmbasedupon conflicts ofinterestbetweenvariouscontractingpartiessuchasshareholders,corporatemanagersanddebtor s. The agency is connected to the variable financial reporting and timeliness; it ensures that management (agent) makes available accounting information on timely basis to enable the stakeholders (principal) to investment decision. However, sincethen,thefinancetheoryhasdevelopedboththeoreticallyandempiricallytoallowafullerinvestig ationofthe problems caused bydivergences of interestbetweenshareholders and corporate managers.The agency theory indicatesthatagencyproblemsarisebecauseoftheimpossibilityofperfectlycontractingforeverypos sibleaction of an agent whose decisions affect both his own welfare and the welfare of the principal. The main challenge that arises from the agency conflict is how to induce the agent to act in the best interests of the principal.JensenandMeckling(1976)suggestthatthiscanbeachievedthroughincentiveschemesf ormanagers whichrewardthemfinanciallyformaximizingshareholderinterests.Suchschemestypicallyincludepl answhereby senior executives obtain shares, perhaps at a reduced price, thus aligning financial interests of executives with those of shareholders. 3.0 Methodology The study made use of ex-post facto research design to examinetherelationship between timeliness offinancialreportingand investmentdecisions ofquoteddepositmoneybanksinNigeria for the period of 2012 to 2023. The population of this research study consists of thirty-one (31) deposit money banks in Nigeria as at 31st December, 2023. In considering the sample size of the study, the simple random sampling technique was used to randomly select twelve (12) deposit money banks that consistently disclosed its audited financial reports and accounts for the sample periods of 2012 to 2023. The sample deposit money banks include: Access-Diamond Bank, GT Bank, Fidelity Bank, First Bank of Nigeria, First City Monument Bank, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Sterling Bank, UBA, Unity Bank, Union Bank, Wema Bank and Zenith Bank. The study used ordinary least square regression (OLS) technique to examine the relationship between timeliness of financialreporting and investment decisions of DMBs inNigeria. The justification of using OLS regression technique in the analysis of data was based on the fact that it tests the significant relationship Y variable and X variable in an empirical study. The Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 159 model of Abiloro and Lodikero (2023) was adapted. The adapted model is specified as: ROEίt = β0 + βFSVίt + β2FSTίt + β3BFEίt+β4BSZίt+μίt …………………………..… (3.1) Where: β0 = Constant term (intercepts); βίt = Coefficients to be estimated for bank ί in period t μίt = Error term/Stochastic term; ROEίt = Return on Equity (dependent variable) of bank ί in period t; FSVίt = Financial Report Verifiability FSTίt = Financial report timeliness BFEίt = Board financial Expertise BSZίt = Bank size The adapted model of Abiloro and Lodikero (2023) was re-modified for this study and specified below: IDD= β0 + β1TFR + β2FRQ + et ……………………………….…………………….…. (3.2) Where: IDD= Investment decision dynamics TFR= Timeliness of financial reporting FRQ= Financial reporting quality Measurement of Variables The measurement of variables is shown in Table 3.1 below. Table 1: Measurement of Variables Source: Researcher’s Compilation (2024) 4.0 Presentation and Analysis of Results The presentation of results began with the descriptive statistics. The descriptive statistics result was presented in the Table 4.1 below; Table 2: Descriptive Statistics IDD TFR FRQ Mean 10.24590 83.43972 449567.2 Variables Definition Measurement Sources IDD Investment decision dynamics (dependent variable) It was measured by returns on equity (Net Income/Shareholder Equity) Abiloro & Lodikero, (2023) TFR Timeliness of financial reporting (Independent variable) It was measured by the difference between auditor report date and company year- end (measured with number of days) Pawitri & Yadnyana (2015) FRQ Financial reporting quality (Independent variable) It was measured by the natural log of audit fees Egbadju & Chijioke (2023) Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 160 Median 12.14590 80.00000 315000.0 Maximum 57.95580 343.0000 2563000. Minimum -394.3182 0.000000 28000.00 Std. Dev. 36.28999 35.26681 421525.7 Skewness -10.00829 3.092552 2.027114 Kurtosis 111.4196 22.77811 8.289804 Jarque-Bera 71413.39 2522.896 260.9604 Probability 0.000000 0.000000 0.000000 Sum 1444.671 11765.00 63388978 Sum Sq. Dev. 184374.8 174124.7 2.49E+13 Observations 141 141 141 Source: Researcher’s Compilation (2024) It was observed from the Table 4.1 above that investment decision dynamic (IDD) proxied by returns on equity has a mean of 10.24 with a corresponding standard deviation of 36.28. This suggests that investment decision is on the low path because the mean value of 10.24 < median value of 12.14. The timeliness of financial reporting (TFR) has a mean value of 83.43 with a corresponding standard deviation of 35.26. This implies that deposit money banks meet up the benchmark of 90 days stated by the corporate governance code of conduct. Financial reporting quality (FRQ) has a mean value of N449567.2 million with a corresponding standard deviation of 421525.7. Majority of the sample deposit money banks in Nigeria pays high audit fees above the median value of N315000 million. Looking at the Jargue-Bera statistic values of the variables, all the variables were normally distributed at p-value < 0.05 level. The correlation analysis measured the strength of relationship between corporate governance and auditor’s switching. The result was presented below; Table 3: Correlation Analysis Variables IDD TFR FRQ IDD 1.000000 -0.297980 0.189461 TFR -0.297980 1.000000 -0.048180 FRQ 0.189461 -0.048180 1.000000 Source: Researcher’s Compilation (2024) It was observed from Table 4.2 above that timeliness of financial reporting (TFR) has a moderate and negative association with investment decision dynamic (IDD=-0.2979) while a weak and negative association with financial reporting quality (FRQ=-0.0481). In the case of financial reporting quality (FRQ), the variable has a moderate and positive association with investment decision dynamic (IDD=0.1894) while a weak and negative association with timeliness of financial reporting (TFR=-0.0481). Careful examinations of the correlation coefficients results, independent variables were not perfectly correlated. To check for the possibility of multicollinearity among the variables, Variance Inflator Factor (VIF) was conducted, and result presented in Table 4.3 below. Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 161 Table 4: Variance Inflator Factor Coefficient Uncentered Centered Variable Variance VIF VIF C 67.11558 8.044568 NA TFR 0.006772 6.653174 1.002327 FRQ 4.74E-11 2.150590 1.002327 Source: Researcher’s Compilation (2024) Since the centered VIF values of the timeliness of financial reporting (TFR = 1.0023) and financial reporting quality (FRQ= 1.0023) respectively. The values were less than the benchmark of 10 which indicates the absence of multicollinearity among the explanatory variables. In order to examine the relationship between timeliness offinancialreportingand investmentdecisions ofquoteddepositmoneybanksinNigeria, we employed OLS regression techniques to examine the relationship between the dependent variable and independent variables and to test the formulated hypotheses. The regression results obtained were presented in Table 4.4 below; Table 5: Regression Results Variable Coefficient Std. Error t-Statistic Prob. C 28.31147 8.192410 3.455818 0.0007 TFR -0.297923 0.082289 -3.620428 0.0004 FRQ 1.51E-05 6.88E-06 2.194739 0.0299 R-squared 0.119525 Mean dependent var 10.24590 Adjusted R-squared 0.106764 S.D. dependent var 36.28999 S.E. of regression 34.29808 Akaike info criterion 9.929103 Sum squared resid 162337.5 Schwarz criterion 9.991843 Log likelihood -697.0018 Hannan-Quinn criter. 9.954598 F-statistic 9.366766 Durbin-Watson stat 1.991171 Prob(F-statistic) 0.000153 Source: Researcher’s Compilation (2024) Decision Rule: Hypotheses is tested at 5% (0.05) at level of significance. The null hypothesis (HO) was accepted, if the probability value (P-value) was greater than 5% (0.05) otherwise rejected. Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 162 It was observed from Table 4.4 above that the R2 value of 0.119525 which revealed that about 12% of the variation in investment decision dynamics were jointly explained by the independent variables which accounted for about 88% unexplained by factors not captured in the model (e.g, firm risk, firm size, cash flow, capital structure, firm growth, etc) which might contribute to investment decision dynamics. On account of the overall significance of the model, the F-statistics 9.36(0.00) provides that the models are valid for making inferences, as it is statistically significant at 1% levels respectively. The result above shows that timeliness of financial reporting (TFR) has a negative and statistical significant relationship with investment decision dynamics (IDD) of money deposit banks in Nigeria 1% level. This shows that TFR would adversely influence investment decision dynamics of the sample banks. Financial reporting quality (FRQ) has positive and statistical significant relationship with investment decision dynamics (IDD) of money deposit banks in Nigeria 5% level. This suggests that the presence of quality financial reporting would contribute immensely to higher level of investment decision dynamics. Constant Variance The variance of error term is expected to be constant for each observation or a range of observations which is known as homoscedasticity. Whenever there occurs a change on the variance, it tends to reduce the precision of the estimation in ordinary least square (OLS) linear regression. Hence the study used the ARCH test for the heteroscedasticity of the residuals as presented in the table below. Table 5: Heteroskedasticity Test: ARCH F-statistic 0.012639 Prob. F(2,134) 0.9874 Obs*R-squared 0.025839 Prob. Chi-Square(2) 0.9872 Source: Researcher’s Compilation (2024) Heteroscedasticity test has a decision rule that there is no heteroscedasticity if the probability of F-statistic value is greater than the critical value at 5% level. The Table 4.5 above indicates that probability value of 0.9874 is greater than the critical value of 0.05. Therefore, we conclude that there is no heteroscedasticity, which means there is a constant variance. The study employed Ramsey RESET test to check for the presence of non-linear independent variable combinations or miss-specification in the model as presented in the table below. Table 6: Ramsey RESET Test Value df Probability t-statistic 0.539952 137 0.5901 F-statistic 0.291548 (1, 137) 0.5901 Likelihood ratio 0.299742 1 0.5840 Source: Researcher’s Compilation (2024) Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 163 The Table 4.6 above is the result of the test for miss-specification or omitted variables done with the help of Ramsey RESET Test, which provides the probability value of 0.5901 and, this implies that the model has no omitted variables and the model is well specified. Discussion of Results The result above shows that timeliness of financial reporting has a negative and statistical significant relationship with investment decision dynamics of money deposit banks in Nigeria 1% level. The result is consistent with the findings of Abiloro and Lodikero (2023) the relationship between financial reporting quality and investment decision that financialreporting timeliness and board financial expertise had a significant positive relationship with investment decision at a 5% level of significance. Financial reporting quality has positive and statistical significant relationship with investment decision dynamics of money deposit banks in Nigeria 5% level. The result is consistent with the findings of Ajayi-Owoeye, et al (2022) the effect of FR quality on investment decision in Nigerian listed manufacturing companies in Nigeria that that FR quality has a significant effect on investment decision while inconsistent with the findings of Abiloro and Lodikero (2023) that financial reporting verifiability has a positive and not significant relationship with investment decision. 5.0 Conclusions and Recommendations Thisstudyexaminedtherelationship between timeliness offinancialreporting andinvestmentdecisionsofquoteddepositmoney banks in Nigeria. Data were sourced from the annual reports and accounts of the sampledbanks for the period of 2012 to 2023.The timely disclosure of accounting information is critical for financialreportingquality the drives the investment decision of the relevant stakeholders. The OLS result shows that timeliness of financial reporting has a negative and statistical significant relationship with investment decision dynamics of money deposit banks in Nigeria 1% level and financial reporting quality has positive and statistical significant relationship with investment decision dynamics of money deposit banks in Nigeria 5% level. Recommendations Based on the empirical results, the study therefore recommends that: i. The stakeholders of depositmoney banks in Nigeria should set a time limit of 90 days for the managing director to present the financial report and accounts for the external auditors to report timely since timeliness of financial reporting has adverse effect on investment decision dynamics. ii. Shareholders are always interested in financial reporting quality as a mechanism for recording accurate, realistic, complete and timely reports and accounts that become the driving force of investment decisions for positive wealth maximization. References Abiahu, M.C., & Amahalu, N.N. (2017). Business combination and key performance of quoted deposit money banks in Nigeria. Paper presented at the 3rd Annual Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), University of Lagos, Nigeria. Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 164 Abiloro, T.O., & Lodikero, O. (2023). Financial reporting quality and investment decision of listed deposit money banks in Nigeria. African Journal of Business and Economic Development, 3(8), 1-15. Ajayi-Owoeye, A. O., Akinwunmi, A. J., Olayinka, I. M., & Pelemo, M. A. (2022). Financial reporting quality and invest decisions: Evidence from listed manufacturing companies in Nigeria. Archives of Business Research, 10(9). 185-201. Amahalu, N. N., Abiahu, Mary, F.C., Obi, J.C., & Nweze, C.L. (2023). Effect of accounting information on market share price of selected firms listed on Nigeria stock exchange. International Journal of Recent Advances in Multidisciplinary Research 05(01), 3366- 3374. Amahalu, N.N., Egolum, P.U., & Obi, J.C. (2022). Effect of auditors’ rotation on audit quality of quoted deposit money banks in Nigeria. Faculty of Management Sciences, 2021 International Conference Proceedings, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Anambra State, Nigeria, 467-479. Amahalu, N.N., Okoye, P.V., & Obi, J.C. (2019). Forensic accounting and Corporate Fraud: Evidence from Deposit Money Banks in Awka, Anambra State. Faculty of Management Sciences, 2019 International Conference Proceedings, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Anambra State, Nigeria, 450-466. Escaloni, S., & Mareque, M. (2021). Audit report lag. Differential analysis between Spanish SMEs and non-SMEs. Sustainability, 13, 12830. Ezechukwu, B.O., & Amahalu, N.N. (2016). Effect of international financial reporting standards adoption on cost of equity capital of banks quoted on Nigeria Stock Exchange. Research Journal of Financial Sustainability Reporting, 1(2). IASB (2008). Exposure draft on an improved conceptual framework for financial reporting: The objective of financial reporting and qualitative characteristics of decision-useful financial reporting information. London. Jensen, M.C., & Meckling, W.H. (1976). Theory of the firm: Managerial behaviour, agency costs and ownership structure. Journal of Financial Economics, 3 (4), 305 -360. Kapellas, K., & Siougle .G. (2017). Financial reporting practices and investment decisions. A review of literature. Industrial Engineering and Management (6)4, 1-9. Kariuki, G., & Jagongo, A. (2023). Institutional investors’ perceptions on quality of financial reporting in Kenya. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 3(21), 144-54. Lashgari, Z. & Moghaddam, R.R. (2022). Effect of dividend policy on investment decision. Journal of applied Environmental and Biological Sciences, 5(11), 415-420. Mahmoud, I. (2023). Financial reporting quality reported by oil listed firms in Nigeria; An empirical investigation. International Journal of Science Research in Educational Studies and Social Development, 1(1), 150-162. Marshall, H. (2022). Return on equity. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/returnonequity.asp. Retrieved 01/10/2024. Gusau Journal of Accounting and Finance, Vol.6, Issue 2, April, 2025 165 McNicholas, M.F., & Stubben, S. (2019). Does earnings management affects firms’ investment decisions? The Accounting Review. 82(6), 1571-1603. Nwaobia, A. N., Kwarbai, J. D, Jayeoba O.O., & Ajibade A,T (2016). Financial reporting quality on investors’ decisions. International Journal of Economics and Financial Research. 2(70), 140-147. Nyor, T. (2013). Financial reporting quality of Nigeria firms: Users’ perception. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 4(13), 273-79. Ozer, G., Merter, A. K., & Balcioglu, Y.S (2023). Financial reporting timeliness: A scope review of current literature. Press Academia Procedia (PAP), 17, 87-91. Pawitri, N. M., & Yadnyana, K (2015). Pengaruh audit delay, opini audit, reputasi auditor dan pergantian manajemen pada voluntary auditor switching. E-jurnal Akuntansi Universitas Udayana, 214-228. Paananen, M., & Lin, H. (2019). The development of accounting quality of IAS and IFRS over time: The case of Germany. Journal of International Accounting Research, 8 (1), 3-9. Pandy .I.M. (2023). Financial management, 9th Edition, Indian, Vikas Irish Publication Ltd. Ryan F. (2021). How to calculate return on equity. https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers//how-do-you-calculate-return-equity- roe.asp Totok, E.A., (2017). The effect of financial information on investment in shares. International Journal of Business and Commerce, 3(8), 176-206. Yopie, S., & Elivia, E. (2022). The effect of corporate social responsibility, family ownership on tax avoidance: the effect of audit quality moderation’, Indonesian Journal of Economics,Social, and Humanities, 4 (1), 29–40. Zayol, P.I., Agaregh, T., & Eneji, B.E (2017). Effect of financial information on investment decision making by shareholders of banks in Nigeria. IOSR International journal of Economics and Finance (8)3, 20-31.