Assessment of the Adequacy of External Auditing in Disclosing Fraud in Nigerian Commercial Banks

Abstract

The primary purpose of auditing is to determine the true and fair view of the financial statements and investigation relates to checking of particular record for a specific purpose. The investigations launched by the financial regulators and other stakeholders into the cases of distressed banks revealed that accountants and auditors have not done their work properly. As a result of that, this study aims at assessing the adequacy of audit in disclosing fraud in commercial Banks of Nigeria. To achieve the objectives of the study, primary and secondary data were used. One hundred (150) questionnaires were administered to the study respondents that were purposively selected from eleven (11) commercial banks in Yola, auditing firms and shareholders. Guided interviews were also conducted with some of the respondents. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was employed to test the research hypothesis. The analysis of responses gathered revealed that the external audit is not adequate in revealing fraud. Based on the finding, the study recommended that an interim audit should be made mandatory in the commercial banks by the regulatory authority along side forensic audit as it will reduce the gravity of frauds in commercial banks. Keywords: Assessment, Auditors’ report, Fraud, Management, Nigeria, Commercial banks