Corporate financial crimes in Pakistan – a review and analysis
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JFC-10-2021-0233 |
| Published date | 21 December 2021 |
| Date | 21 December 2021 |
| Pages | 1064-1077 |
| Subject Matter | Accounting & finance,Financial risk/company failure,Financial crime |
| Author | Anam Yasir,Alia Ahmed,Leena Anum |
Corporate financial crimes in
Pakistan –a review and analysis
Anam Yasir and Alia Ahmed
School of Business Administration,
National College of Business Administrationand Economics, Lahore, Pakistan, and
Leena Anum
Department of Management Sciences, Lahore Garrison University,
Lahore, Pakistan
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to highlight those factors which involve elite class criminals in
corporate financial crimes. This research implies the fact that the study of criminal behavior is pivotal for
finding out thereasons behind such crimes.
Design/methodology/approach –By describing theories of criminology,researchers assess the nature
of financialcriminals in Pakistan from a theoretical perspective.
Findings –Elite-class peoplecommit crimes upon perceiving high benefits and lesspunishment. Moreover,
the social environmentcontributes greatly to inducing criminal behavior.
Research limitations/implications –Explanation of criminalbehaviors provided in the study will be
helpful in providingdirections for the prevention of such criminal actions in the future.
Originality/value –This researchexamines the criminal behavior of elite class crimes from the theoretical
perspectivewhich will be significant in the prevention of such behaviors.
Keywords Financial crimes, Rational choice theory, Social learning theory
Paper type Viewpoint
1. Introduction
Financial crimes date backto early history of criminology, somewhere since the 1600s. This
category of crimes includes all the illegal activities which occur in the context of financial
institutions. Financial crimes are classified in a separate category from white collar crimes
as they specifically involve financial stakes and damage the economy of a country
(Friedrichs, 2010). These crimes are not aimed at physicalharm or violence rather they aim
at violating the trust or deceiving the information pertaining to financial aspects. Financial
crimes affect all economiesregardless of their developmental stage (Ocansey, 2017).Some of
the most popular examples of financial frauds are money laundering, banking frauds,
embezzlement, Ponzi schemes, currency trading, mortgage frauds and insider trading
(Sudjianto, 2010;Kadoya, Khan and Yamane, 2020). Top financial scams of the world
include Enron Scandal, WorldCom Bankruptcy, HealthSouth fraud, Ponzi scheme of
Bernard Madoff and Wells Fargo unauthorizedbanking. These scams occurred at the cost
of billions of dollars.
Frauds of financial statements include intentional misrepresentation of financial
statements such that they mislead the readers and create a false image of company’s
financial records (Mcmahon etal.,2016).Global financial crisis of 2007–2008 was a result of
such illegal financial activities from past years (Cresswell and White, 2008) and were
considered most serious after the great depression of 1930s. Deregulations pertaining to
JFC
29,3
1064
Journalof Financial Crime
Vol.29 No. 3, 2022
pp. 1064-1077
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1359-0790
DOI 10.1108/JFC-10-2021-0233
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