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Assessment of the information content of the legal audit report by the credit officers of commercial banks in the Cameroonian context

Author

Listed:
  • Alain Gilles Foka Tagne

    (University of Dschang)

  • Alain Takoudjou Nimpa

    (University of Dschang)

  • Léopold Djoutsa Wamba

    (University of Maroua)

  • Depores Woutabo Ngankwe

    (University of Mons)

Abstract

The audit report, which is the culmination of the statutory audit assignment, has been the subject of several reforms, both in Africa and worldwide. These reforms have provided an opportunity to take a closer look at the role of the audit report in decision-making. The objective of this paper is to reveal the opinion of credit officers on the role of the information content of the statutory audit report in the decision to grant credit in Cameroon. Semi-structured individual interviews with loan officers at six commercial banks yielded three main findings. First, loan officers attach little importance to the audit report issued by the “non-Big Four” firms. They place more importance on the audit report certified by the Big Four firms because they need to preserve their reputation. Secondly, credit officers have a good knowledge of the different types of audit opinions. They are more scrutinizing of the audit report when it comes to a denial of certification of accounts. Thirdly, the loan officers think that despite the June 2017 reform, the current form of the audit report does not provide enough information on the management of the company. They need details on audit procedures, corporate governance, the auditor’s working methodology, and information on the composition of the audit team and the future of the company.

Suggested Citation

  • Alain Gilles Foka Tagne & Alain Takoudjou Nimpa & Léopold Djoutsa Wamba & Depores Woutabo Ngankwe, 2023. "Assessment of the information content of the legal audit report by the credit officers of commercial banks in the Cameroonian context," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 3(11), pages 1-23, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:snbeco:v:3:y:2023:i:11:d:10.1007_s43546-023-00576-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s43546-023-00576-4
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Statutory audit report; Auditor; Bank; Credit officers; Decision-making; Signal theory;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G20 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - General
    • M41 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Accounting
    • M42 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Auditing
    • Z23 - Other Special Topics - - Sports Economics - - - Finance

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