Abstract

IJLTEMAS

International Journal of Latest Technology in Engineering, Management & Applied Science (IJLTEMAS)

IJLTEMAS

2278-2540

IJLTEMAS

162

10.51583/IJLTEMAS.2026.150700156

Education

Effect of Audit Committee Financial Expertise and Diligence on Related Party Transactions of Listed Financial Services in Nigeria

Ekpeyo DANSON

Akpan

Nasarawa State University, Keffi. Nigeria Jacob Ojobo AME

Prof.

Nasarawa State University, Keffi. Nigeria Johnbest Churchill OLOGHODO

National Open University of Nigeria, Abuja. Nigeria

15 7 2032 2042 14 08 2026 19 08 2026

26 08 2026

Audit committee financial expertise diligence related party transactions corporate governance Nigeria.

Abstract

This study examined the effect of audit committee financial expertise and diligence on related party transaction (RPT) disclosure among listed financial service firms in Nigeria. An ex-post facto research design was adopted using secondary data obtained from the annual reports of all 45 financial service companies listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) as at 31 December 2024. A census sampling technique was employed, while logistic regression was used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that audit committee financial expertise has a positive and statistically significant effect on RPT disclosure (OR = 0.3425, p = 0.001), indicating that financially competent audit committees enhance transparency and strengthen financial reporting. Conversely, audit committee diligence exhibited a positive but statistically insignificant effect on RPT disclosure (OR = 0.0122, p = 0.564), suggesting that meeting frequency alone does not improve disclosure quality. Among the control variables, leverage had a significant positive effect on RPT disclosure (p = 0.030), whereas firm size showed no significant influence (p = 0.781). The study concludes that audit committee financial expertise is a key determinant of transparent related party transaction disclosure. It recommends strengthening financial expertise requirements for audit committee members, improving the quality of committee oversight, and enhancing regulatory monitoring of highly leveraged firms to promote corporate transparency and accountability.

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