Reflection on Firm Value

A Thesis Submitted to
The College board of the College of Administration and Economics – University of Karbala as part of the requirements for obtaining a Master’s of Sciences Degree in Accounting 

By the student
Ahmad Amir Fadil Hussein

Supervised by
Assistant Professor Dr.
Amal Mohammed Salman Al-Tamimi

Abstract
    This research aims to investigate the impact of accounting disclosure of geopolitical risks (GPR) on earnings quality and its reflection on firm value, within the context of the Iraqi banking sector, The research was conducted on ten Iraqi banks listed on the Iraq Stock Exchange (ISX), where the questionnaire was distributed. The questionnaire consisted of three sections, The first section addressed the accounting disclosure of geopolitical risks and included 35 items distributed across 7 dimensions: wars and military conflicts, terrorist attacks, cyberattacks, climate change, subsequent events, internal control of financial reports, and management plans and strategies (with 5 items for each dimension), The second section dealt with earnings quality and contained 15 items, while the third section focused on firm value and also included 15 items, The sample consisted of 117 employees, and data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS software.   

     The research reached several conclusions, the most important of which is that disclosure of geopolitical risks—such as wars, terrorist attacks, and cyber threats—is a vital factor that enhances the quality of accounting profits. This effect positively reflects on the value of firms, based on these conclusions, the research presented several recommendations, including that regulatory and supervisory authorities should issue accounting standards that obligate all companies—particularly banks—to provide detailed disclosure of geopolitical risks and their potential impacts on firms, with an emphasis on both quantitative and narrative disclosure, and the research also offered suggestions for conducting future studies.