International Journal of Banking, Accounting and Finance (5 papers in press)

Regular Issues

• Stock market manipulation: a systematic literature review on prominent aspects and guidance for future research  
  by Collins Ntim, Erhan Kilincarslan, Jiafan Li, Thi Kim Chi Nguyen 
  Abstract: This paper provides a comprehensive and up-to-date systematic review of the empirical literature on stock market manipulation by analysing and synthesising the findings from 94 peer-reviewed articles published between 2000 and 2025. Our results show that the current empirical studies focus on the: 1) motivations and consequences; 2) strategies and techniques; 3) detection methods; 4) regulation and prevention methods of stock manipulation. Given that stock market manipulation has various detrimental effects on capital markets worldwide, our in-depth systematic review sheds light on the prominent aspects in this area to help all market stakeholders better understand the relevant reasons, issues and consequences of stock manipulation. Our study also offers promising directions to researchers for the on-going stock manipulation research and further advancement in interdisciplinary studies. We further provide all market stakeholders and regulators with practical insights into detecting and preventing stock manipulation.
  Keywords: stock market manipulation; systematic literature review; trade-based manipulation; information-based manipulation; call auction mechanisms.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJBAAF.2025.10074745
   
  
• Do CDS affect labor markets? Evidence from impacts on labor investment efficiency  
  by Paulo Pereira Da Silva 
  Abstract: This study addresses the impact of credit default swap (CDS) contracts on labour investment efficiency. We postulate that by changing the incentives of managers, shareholders, and creditors, CDS weighs on employment growth. The empirical analysis covers a large set of listed US firms, subdivided into CDS-referenced firms and control firms (i.e., not exposed to CDS trades). By means of a difference-in-differences approach, we find that labour investment inefficiency is alleviated in the wake of initiating CDS trade. That impact is economically material: abnormal labour investment goes down by at least 4.4% in the wake of CDS onset. A subsample analysis shows that the impact is akin to the reduction of overinvestment. Our interpretation is that the higher bankruptcy risk propelled by CDS onset exerts a disciplinary role on the firms managers. That is, it dissuades empire building and investment in underperforming projects, thereby fostering the efficiency of resource allocation.
  Keywords: credit default swaps; CDS; agency conflicts; corporate investment; labour efficiency.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJBAAF.2025.10074863
   
  
• Misusing the value relevance of accounting information for manipulation  
  by Radim Procházka, George Emmanuel Iatridis 
  Abstract: This study examines how the value relevance of accounting information affects both real activities manipulation and accrual earnings management. Several studies have shown that the relevance of financial data in valuation varies among firms with differing levels of intangible and tangible assets. The value relevance in earnings management could be a double-edged sword since manipulating one specific item may reduce the overall valuation effect for a firm. Thus, we focused on the effect of intangible intensity on different types of performance manipulation as a motivation in the context of value relevance by deploying three types of real activities manipulation and accrual earnings management models. We found evidence that managers manipulate financial items to achieve the highest value relevance, particularly in relation to performance-related information. The results show that managers exploit knowledge about accounting informations value relevance to opportunistically affect stock prices.
  Keywords: real earnings manipulation; real activities manipulation; accrual earnings management; value relevance; intangibility; new economy.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJBAAF.2025.10075533
   
  
• The impact of uncertainty on banks  
  by Bert Smoluk 
  Abstract: As liquidity providers, banks are essential in ensuring the flow of funds to the economy, especially during periods of uncertainty. Their effectiveness in this role depends on their resilience to economic shocks and their ability to remain financially viable. This paper explores the impact that uncertainty shocks have on the financial condition of banks using VAR methodology. Our findings reveal that banks respond to uncertainty shocks by widening spreads to offset elevated lending risks and bolstering liquidity through increased holdings of securities. However, after an initial surge in loan growth, lending plateaus as equity declines, making it more difficult for banks to extend credit due to risk-based capital requirements. Productivity, an indicator of a banks long-term health, along with its underlying drivers investment and employment tends to decline following an uncertainty shock. By analysing shifts in loan spreads, we find evidence suggesting that banks continue to pursue a relationship lending strategy, even amid heightened uncertainty.
  Keywords: uncertainty shocks; banks; VIX; monetary policy uncertainty; financial regulatory uncertainty; financial intermediation.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJBAAF.2025.10075534
   
  
• Sentiment and banks performance: evidence from Musks tweets  
  by Nicholas Apergis, Lorenzo Calò, Pierluigi Toma, Valeria Stefanelli 
  Abstract: This study aims to examine the relationship between sentiment and bank performance by considering a sample of 225 US-listed banks during the period 20172021. The analysis uses RoBERTa (a pre-trained transformer model) to extract emotions from Elon Musks tweets and then apply the GMM model to assess the impact of sentiment on banks profitability. The findings suggest that the overall sentiment has a negative impact on ROA, with negative emotions-such as, anger and sadness-having a statistically significant negative impact on ROA, while positive emotions appear to be insignificant. Moreover, sentiment has no effect on ROE, but negative emotions negatively affect ROE. The findings survive geographical and political regimes. These results carry certain implications for banks, enabling more informed decision-making regarding risk management, loan approval processes, and customer engagement strategies. Additionally, policymakers should consider social media sentiment as a potential source of economic volatility and its implications for financial stability.
  Keywords: sentiment; bank profitability; Musk’s tweets; US banks.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJBAAF.2025.10075535