The Extent and Forms of Voluntary Disclosure of Financial Information on Internet in Nigeria: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

This study determined the extent and form of internet financial reporting by quoted companies in Nigeria. The study employed secondary data. One hundred and fifty-five financial and non-financial firms quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) were purposively selected for analysis. These comprise 49 financial firms and 106 non-financial firms between 2009 and 2010. Data relating to financial reporting on the internet were obtained from the websites of the sampled companies. Content and descriptive analyses were employed to analyse data. Findings revealed that 139 companies which constitute 90% of the listed companies have websites while 16 (10%) have no website. Ninety-eight percent of the financial sector comprising of Banking, Insurance, Mortgage and other Financial Institutions have websites. Out of the total of the 139 companies with website, only 77 (55%) disclosed financial information on their web pages while the remaining 62 (45%) did not. The study recommends that Government and stock market regulators should put in place regulatory framework for internet financial reporting and companies should release both the online report and hard copy promptly.