BANKING SECTOR: INTERNAL CONTROL IN A COMPUTERIZED ACCOUNTING SYSTEM

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
When banks suddenly collapse, the often resounding question is “what went wrong”. A breakdown in the internal control system is the usual cause. Internal control is a process that guides on banks and other companies towards achieving its objectives. These objectives include operational efficiency and effectiveness, reliability of financial reporting, and compliance with relevant laws and regulations. Absence of these variables often results in banks failures.

            Thus, in managing and implementing an internal control system of a banking industry, computerization of accounting system is crucial. An important question in the field of accounting and management decision making concerns the fit of accounting information system (AIS) with the banking requirements for information , communication and control (Nicokou, 2000). The strength of accounting information system can be evaluated by its impact on improvement of banking decision-making, quality of accounting information, performance evaluation, internal controls and facilitating banks transactions (Sardy, Dastgir and Negad, 2008). Therefore regarding the above characteristics, the effectiveness of accounting information system is important for banking performance.


            Computerized accounting used computer to replace manual, achieve accounting afterwards, reimbursement and auditing accounts and to replace part of the human brain need to be completed by the accounting data, statistics analysis as well as provide the decision-making process. Thus, development of accounting request is to develop requirements while internal control in the banks is to protect the security of banking assets, ensure complete and accurate data to facilitate the effective implementation of management policies, improve operational efficiency, control operational risks, prevent fraud from occurring and the achievement of organizational goals and a key management system.

            In recent years, Access bank attaches great importance to internal control and issued a series of specifications and guidance to promote management decisions, protect the property, integrity, security and accounting data that will ensure banks carrying out various policies and implementation in order to improve economic efficiency by taking all the systems, methods and ensure management procedures as part of the accounting internal control. In other words, a computerized accounting directs the management guidelines to ensure the realization of double entry book keeping accounting and loan balance of the basic principles and methods.

      However, the strengths and weaknesses of accounting information, processing computer automation has brought challenges to the banks accounting system. The computerized accounting system has brought to the bank, faster and efficiency in processing data, automatic generation of accounting documents like invoices, cheques and statement of accounts, more timely information, no more manual processing of the data-all automatically been posted to the various ledger and generate useful reports for management to make decisions. Equally, weaknesses from the computerized system has brought power failures, computer viruses, garbage- in garbage- out, and danger of computer fraud if proper level of control and security whether internal or external are not properly been instituted.

            Furthermore, with the larger reductions in the cost of hardware, software and availability of user friendly accounting software package, it is relatively cheaper than maintaining a manual accounting system. In other words, accounting system not properly set up to meet the requirement of the business due to badly programmed or inappropriate software or hardware or personnel problems can cause more havoc.

            Indeed, a computerized accounting system to strengthen the internal control is imperative. Computer use has changed the banking environment and accounting documents in the form of a computerized accounting system. Since e-banking, online transactions, the implementation of paperless transactions as each transactions occurs, the relevant data relating to the transaction by the banking staff entered into the computer and the computer automatically records each transaction.

            Indeed, Without the authorized personnel the use of computer and all the files, copy, forgery, destructions of critical banking data will be rampant in the banking industry. Therefore, computerized accounting system of internal control is not only difficult, complex but also a variety of means to control the computer technology.

            Prior researches have shown that accounting information system adoption does increased banks performance, profitability and operations efficiency in sub-Saharan Africa. In Nigeria, information society and the new computer tools have allowed the Access bank to make better use of her accounting system in her relations with customers. In the same way, the development of electronic banking allows the bank to save a lot of time in her transaction. Thus, the present study attempts to provide some clarification of the relationship between banks internal control, accounting system and performance of accounting information system (AIS) especially on Access bank performance and performance management. The structure of section 2 reviews the relevant literature, gap in literature and theoretical framework of analysis, section 3 describes the empirical methodology, section 4 present results from the statistical analysis of hypotheses, section 5 presents the discussion of the finding from the statistical analysis and section 6 presents the summary and conclusion of this study, provides limitations of the current study and points out some recommendations for further research.


1.2       Statement of the problem
            The issue of internal control system is topical following global fraudulent financial reporting and accounting scandals in our banking industry. A proactive preventive approach to the problem requires a critical evaluation of existing internal control structures in banks to determine their capacity to ensure that the banks activities are carried out in accordance with established goals, policies and procedures.
            The problem of the study emerges that the used accounting system in Access bank is a very conventional one and must operate a new computerized system so as to keep abreast of development and technical progress. (Elaiwi, 2009) confirmed that using information technology has become the target of Access bank which encouraged competition and technological progress on the computerization of information system where the system helps to plan, organize, control and supervise.
            The research found through personnel interviews and previous studies some of the obstacles to include, the inadequate internal framework of checks and balances to ensure operational efficiency and effectiveness in Access bank, while some of the studies such as (Eke, 2009, Madumelu, 2011) took some of the obstacles that leads to power failure, computer viruses, accounting scandals, in a computerized accounting system in the Access bank to include human resource and administrative inefficiency.
            If accounting information system (AIS) design can be linked to financial performance and financial performance linked to banking performance, the analysis shows that infrastructural affect on the computerization of accounting system in the Access bank affects the internal control of the bank. 


1.3       Objectives of the study
            The study aims to know the followings;
1.         To ascertain whether internal controls provide adequate internal framework of checks and balances to ensure operational efficiency and effectiveness Access bank.
2.         To ascertain whether internal controls provides adequate documentation and updates of changes even as computer virus and power failures occur in Access bank.
3.         To ascertain whether accounting scandals is as a result of the incompetence of human resource in the computer operations Access bank.
4.         To ascertain whether infrastructure affects the administrative efficiency of the Access bank operations.
1.4 Research Questions
The following research questions will be used in solving the problems of the study. They includes,
1.         Does the management of internal control provide adequate internal framework of checks and balances that ensure operational efficiency and effectiveness in Access bank?
2.         Are internal control system in the Access bank adequately documented and regularly updated as changes occur due to computer viruses and power failures?
3.         Does the human resources affect on the computerization of the accounting system in the Access bank leads to accounting scandals?
4.         Does the infrastructural affect on the computerization of the accounting system occur as a result of administrative inefficiency in Access bank?
1.5       Statement of Hypotheses
Based on the questions raised in the problem of the study the following hypotheses have been formulated.
Ho 1.   Internal control does not provide adequate internal framework of checks and balances that ensure operational efficiency and effectiveness in Access bank.
Ha 1. Internal control provides adequate internal framework of checks and balances that ensures operational efficiency and effectiveness in Access bank.
Ho 2. There is no significant impact of human resource control on the computerization of the accounting system as regards virus and power failures in Access bank.
Ha 2. There is a significant impact of human resource control on the computerization of the accounting system as regards virus and power failures in the Access bank.

Ho 3. There is no significant impact of infrastructure in the computerization of the accounting system as a result of administrative efficiency in Access bank.
Ha 3. There is a significant impact of infrastructure in the computerization of the accounting system as a result of administrative efficiency in Access bank.

1.6       Significance of the study
            The significance of the study came from theoretical and practical contribution through revealing the importance of using the computerized accounting system of internal control in the banking industry, so the decision makers keep pace with technological development in the financial institutions within the global village. The development of information technology helped banking staff to achieve operational efficiency and effectiveness, financial reliability and accounting balance. The contribution of this study is to encourage the decision makers in the banking industry that using the computerized accounting system will lead to a transition from scarcity of information to the state of abundance of information, as well as to the quality of appropriate information that gives objectivity and integrity.
            While the theoretical contribution of this study used new variables that the previous studies didn’t use in measuring the dependent variables such as time, cost administrative performance and decision for change. This study will also help in having the possibility to implement a computerized accounting system in the banking industry because of the savings of time, effort and cost. It will also help to correct the obstacles that hinder the computerization of the accounting system in the banking industry. The importance of this study also is to keep pace with the technological developments in accounting as considered a system of information specialized in generating the information data of an economic nature. It will also serve as a reference point to academia’s and researchers.

1.7       scope and limitations of study
            The scope covers the entire Access bank plc, Abakaliki branch. It will cover the periods 2001-2011, a period of ten (10) years.
            In the course of the study, the researcher employed his best to ensure a genuine and accepted research report that will be generally accepted. However, there were some constraints that are met along the line, some of which were finance. The researcher hadn’t enough money to carry on the project and the government and university management was not willing to provide any assistance.
            Time also contributed to the delay of the work. This is because the time frame required to complete the work was small, however, in spite of these numerous constraints, I was able to make reasonable progress.

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