Emerging Technologies and Accounting Functions in Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria

The integration of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, blockchain, and robotics is redefining accounting functions and processes. To keep up with the current trends and maintain their competitiveness, Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in Nigeria have had to adopt new technologies. However, the extent to which the deployment of the technologies is needed, useful, and improves accounting functions in Nigeria's context remains an area to be fully explored. This study, therefore, examines emerging technologies and accounting functions in DMBs in Nigeria. A cross-sectional survey design was adopted for the study. Primary data were sourced through the administration of a questionnaire. A convenience sampling technique was used to select 50 respondents from among the staff of the top seven DMBs. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were used to analyze the data. The findings of the study showed that emerging technologies can be deployed for accounting functions at any level in DMBs. Also, routine data entry tasks improved at an advanced level, reconciliation improved at an average level, and financial reporting preparation improved at an advanced level, respectively, with the deployment of emerging technologies in DMBs. The study recommends that DMBs should expand the use of emerging technologies across all accounting functions and should create measures that will ensure the smooth implementation of technological solutions.