The Role Of Internal Auditors In Fraud Prevention
[CASE STUDY OF NIGERIA BANKS]

Fraud has been identified as one of the major challenges to the entire business world. It`s devastating effect manifests itself in the deteriorating performance of the bank as well as in economic backwardness. As a result, measures to curb fraud in the banking sector become a major focus of the management and internal auditors.

It was against this backdrop that this thesis was aimed at providing empirical evidence on the role of auditors in prevention of fraud in the banking industry. In or- der to achieve the objective of the thesis, materials like related reports, articles, and textbooks about fraud and the auditor`s role were examined.

In evaluating the role of the auditor in fraud prevention in the case study bank, data were obtained from the bank website, internal control department and through personal interviews. The data obtained were analyzed qualitatively.

The study confirmed that internal controls were observed to be generally effective in the case study bank, but there are still some loopholes which are clear indications of failures in some of the control process.   Based on the findings of this study, it was recommended that antifraud seminars should be conducted on regular basis; job rotations within the bank should be planned by auditors and other senior officers to ensure effectiveness, division of responsibility as regards employees who handle financial transactions, and a viable internal audit to evaluate and oversee everyday transactions.

It was concluded that the bank`s internal controls if reviewed regularly and followed accordingly will help in reducing the occurrence of fraud.