Regulatory changes and audit fees: the moderating effect of overlapping directorship and financial reporting quality

Purpose This study examines the contemporaneous changes in the reporting regime in Nigeria by investigating the effect of regulatory changes on audit fees as well as the moderating effect of overlapping directorship and financial reporting quality. Design/methodology/approach This study utilises a longitudinal sample of 409 firm-year observations, from 2008 to 2013, of nonfinancial companies listed on the Nigerian stock exchange. The study uses the general method of moments (GMM) to control for endogeneity concerns. Findings The results reveal that, without the moderating effect of overlapping directorship and financial reporting quality, the relationship between regulatory changes and audit fees is positive but weak, which suggests that regulatory changes drive cost. Similarly, the interaction of overlapping directorship did not reverse the positive relationship, which suggests the perceived risk associated with overlapping directorship. However, the improvement in financial reporting quality reverses the relationship, as evidenced by the negative and significant coefficient on the interacted terms. Practical implications This study provides useful insights about committee membership overlap to regulatory authorities concerning the weakness of the monitoring ability of such committees. Originality/value The results of this study contribute to the growing literature on regulatory reform, audit fees and corporate governance. Specifically, the study provides empirical evidence on the effect of committee overlap on audit fees, which, to the best of the researchers' knowledge, has received no empirical attention in the Nigerian context.