THE STRUCTURE OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND TIMELINESS OF AUDITED FINANCIAL REPORTS: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS
This paper examined the structure of the board of directors and its role in the timely submission of audited annual reports of listed companies in Nigeria. Critically examined the board structure and compared the companies that could not meet up with the deadline of submission. It was sanctioned by the regulatory agency and those that submitted on time. The objective is to see which board characteristics affect the timely submission of the audited annual report. Levene’s test for equality of variance and the independent samples test were used to determine whether the early or late submission of the yearly audited information is due to chance or the board of directors’ structure. The study found that companies that submit their audited annual report on time had, on average, larger board sizes and more independent NED on their board. Also, more members with financial expertise meet more frequently than the companies that fail to meet the deadline of submission. However, some of these differences turn out to be statistically insignificant. We conclude that delay in submitting the financial statement is less likely due to the board size, board independence, and the number of times they meet and more likely due to the number of board members with financial experience. we recommend that membership criteria of financial expertise should be re-emphasized and enforced
Keywords: Corporate governance, Timeliness, Board structure, Board size, Board independence, Board meeting, Financial expertise, Financial reporting, Annual audited financial report.
