Application of forensic accounting in predicting the financial performance growth of MTN mobile communication in Nigeria.

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how forensic accounting may be used to predict the financial performance and growth of MTN mobile communication in Nigeria in the future. To emphasize the importance of fraud reporting, fraud prevention, and litigation as forensic accounting instruments, it is necessary to address the issue of financial performance growth in every consistent manner for any company in Nigeria to avoid a collapse in financial performance. The ordinary least square (OLS) regression model was used in this paper, and the results show that the model is statistically significant, indicating that there is a significant relationship between forensic accounting instruments and growth in financial performance. According to the coefficient of determination (R-squared), forensic accounting indicators can explain approximately 73 per cent of the variation in financial performance growth. This indicates that the fitted model is adequate for predicting the growth of financial performance in the future. A long-term relationship exists between forensic accounting and the financial performance growth of MTN mobile communication in Nigeria, according to the results of the Johansen cointegration test, which was conducted recently. Furthermore, if fraud is not controlled, it has the potential to devastate the financial performance of telecommunication companies. The regression analysis conducted for this paper reveals that the number of fraud cases reported and the rate of fraud prevention, both of which are forensic accounting indicators, are statistically significant and have a positive significant impact on financial performance growth. Therefore, MTN and other telecommunication companies must put in place a policy within their respective organizations that will continuously fund the cost of forensic accounting so that they can maintain a sustainable level of financial performance growth.