The effect of IFRS non-audit consulting services on cost of debt: Evidence from Korea

Abstract

Korean listed firms have been required to disclose their financial statements based on the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) since 2011. Using pre- and post-IFRS reporting periods, we investigate the relation between IFRS non-audit consulting services provided by incumbent auditor and the cost of debt of its client for firms in the Korean Stock Market. We find evidence that IFRS non-audit consulting services are related to the decrease in cost of debt only during the post-IFRS period. In particular, receiving non-audit consulting services is positively associated with a client’s bond credit rating and negatively associated with interest rate. The result generally holds when we use alternative proxies of IFRS non-audit consulting services. Finally, our results are robust to potential endogeneity issues in selecting non-audit services.