Bridging Financial Integrity and Sustainability

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue delves into the critical intersections of earning quality, earning management, sustainability, environmental impact, board and CEO characteristics, and taxation, offering a comprehensive exploration of how these factors shape contemporary corporate finance and governance.

Earning quality and management are at the forefront, examining how companies ensure the reliability of their financial statements and the implications of manipulative accounting practices. Techniques such as revenue recognition adjustments and accrual manipulations are scrutinized, alongside case studies of infamous corporate scandals that highlight the risks and consequences of poor earning management.

Sustainability and environmental concerns are increasingly integral to corporate reporting. This issue addresses the role of financial disclosures in promoting sustainability, with a focus on best practices for environmental impact reporting. Frameworks like the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) are discussed as benchmarks for effective sustainability reporting.

The characteristics of boards and CEOs are pivotal in influencing financial practices and corporate governance. This section explores how diverse and independent boards contribute to robust financial oversight and how the ethical stances and backgrounds of CEOs impact earning management strategies. Governance mechanisms such as audit committees are emphasized for their role in maintaining high earning quality.

Taxation is examined through the lens of its interplay with earnings quality and corporate strategy. This issue explores tax avoidance strategies, their financial implications, and the regulatory landscape governing tax compliance and reporting.

Finally, this issue advocates for integrative approaches that combine financial performance with sustainability and governance metrics, providing a holistic view of corporate health. Case studies from leading firms illustrate the benefits of comprehensive reporting practices, emphasizing transparency and long-term viability.

This Special Issue serves as a valuable resource for academics, practitioners, and policymakers, offering insights and guidance on enhancing the integrity and transparency of financial reporting in an evolving corporate environment.

Dr. Antonios Persakis
Dr. Ra’fat Jallad
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Risk and Financial Management is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• earnings quality
• earnings management
• sustainability reporting
• environmental impact
• corporate governance
• board characteristics
• CEO attributes
• taxation policies
• financial reporting
• integrative reporting
• ESG (environmental, social, and governance)
• financial integrity
• corporate finance
• regulatory compliance
• tax avoidance strategies
• ethical leadership
• transparency
• long-term viability
• governance mechanisms
• financial disclosure practices