The IUP Journal of Accounting Research and Audit Practices
Focus
The agency theory discussed in the accounting and finance literature emphasizes
that the higher the gap between the information related to corporate decisions,
the higher will be the risk, while the firm value in the market will be less. The uncertainties for the investors would be higher in the case of not having free flow of information. Hence, all the firms listed make every attempt to communicate as much as they can to the investors to maintain the value of the firm in the market. In the first paper, “A Study on the Disclosure Practices of Banks in India with Reference to Indian Accounting Standards”, the authors, B G Poornima, Swizel Jesslin Alphonso and Y V Reddy, inspect the various disclosures required under the Indian Accounting Standards. They also evaluate the compliance in disclosing as per the standards prescribed to the participants in the market, and try to comprehend the factors that determine the disclosure practices of the banks operating in India.
In the second paper, “A Study on GST and Its Probable Impact on the Sales Tax Revenue of Kerala”, the author, T Benix Kanjiravila, with focus on the government revenue, evaluates the impact on the sales tax revenue of Kerala with the introduction and application of Goods and Services Tax (GST) by the central government in India. The author also attempts to understand the impact of GST on the Gross State Domestic Product at current prices of Kerala and enumerates the challenges that the state would face in the process of implementing GST. The author also makes recommendations to the administration of Kerala to implement GST and administer it smoothly.
Auditors in their reports of the financial statements presented by the company certify the fairness and truthfulness of the figures presented in the financial statements in the annual report. In the last paper, “An Empirical Investigation of Readability and Communicative Performance of Auditor’s Report Post ISA 700”, the author, Mondher Fakhfakh, using the reference model for the independent auditors, investigates the comprehensiveness of the illustrations provided by the International Standard on Auditing and the terms and conditions for preparing the report. The author also discusses the necessity of compliance and the level of compliance by the international auditors’ reports with the linguistic rules, which in turn influence the decisions of the users of financial statements. The author observes that the results are not satisfactory to make the financial standards understandable to the users of financial statements and are not accommodative with more than a few linguistic set of laws.
Automated Teller Machines (ATMs): The Changing Face of Banking in India
Bank Management
Information and communication technology has changed the way in which banks provide services to its customers. These days the customers are able to perform their routine banking transactions without even entering the bank premises. ATM is one such development in recent years, which provides remote banking services all over the world, including India. This paper analyzes the development of this self-service banking in India based on the secondary data.
The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is playing a very important role in the progress and advancement in almost all walks of life. The deregulated environment has provided an opportunity to restructure the means and methods of delivery of services in many areas, including the banking sector. The ICT has been a focused issue in the past two decades in Indian banking. In fact, ICTs are enabling the banks to change the way in which they are functioning. Improved customer service has become very important for the very survival and growth of banking sector in the reforms era. The technological advancements, deregulations, and intense competition due to the entry of private sector and foreign banks have altered the face of banking from one of mere intermediation to one of provider of quick, efficient and customer-friendly services. With the introduction and adoption of ICT in the banking sector, the customers are fast moving away from the traditional branch banking system to the convenient and comfort of virtual banking. The most important virtual banking services are phone banking, mobile banking, Internet banking and ATM banking. These electronic channels have enhanced the delivery of banking services accurately and efficiently to the customers. The ATMs are an important part of a bank’s alternative channel to reach the customers, to showcase products and services and to create brand awareness. This is reflected in the increase in the number of ATMs all over the world. ATM is one of the most widely used remote banking services all over the world, including India. This paper analyzes the growth of ATMs of different bank groups in India.
International Scenario
If ATMs are largely available over geographically dispersed areas, the benefit from using an ATM will increase as customers will be able to access their bank accounts from any geographic location. This would imply that the value of an ATM network increases with the number of available ATM locations, and the value of a bank network to a customer will be determined in part by the final network size of the banking system. The statistical information on the growth of branches and ATM network in select countries.
Indian Scenario
The financial services industry in India has witnessed a phenomenal growth, diversification and specialization since the initiation of financial sector reforms in 1991. Greater customer orientation is the only way to retain customer loyalty and withstand competition in the liberalized world. In a market-driven strategy of development, customer preference is of paramount importance in any economy. Gone are the days when customers used to come to the doorsteps of banks. Now the banks are required to chase the customers; only those banks which are customercentric and extremely focused on the needs of their clients can succeed in their business today.
