Finance Dissertation Topics & Accounting Topics

Choosing a great topic for your finance or accounting dissertation may seem incredibly challenging, especially since the subject can cover such a wide range of different areas. It is important to find a topic that you are passionate about and find genuinely interesting, but is also relevant, manageable, and potentially helpful with regards to your future career path. Plus, you want a topic that will impress your dissertation advisor and fall within their area of expertise. There are clearly a lot of things to consider, so to give you some inspiration and help get you started, we have come up with several lists of potential topics in all sorts of areas within the subject of finance and accounting.

Covid-19 and its Impact on Financial Services Dissertation Topics
Cryptocurrency Dissertation Topics
Audit in Financial Services Dissertation Topics
Risk Management – Capital, Liquidity, ALM, Models Dissertation Topics
Internet Banking & Digital Journey for Banks Dissertation Topics
Ethics in Accounting Dissertation Topics
Microfinance Dissertation Topics
Retail and Commercial Banking Dissertation Topics
Financing in Emerging Market Dissertation Topics
Alternative Investment Dissertation Topics
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) of Banking Industry Dissertation Topics
Accounting Standards Dissertation Topics
Education, Perception and Gender Bias in Accounting Dissertation Topics

Covid – 19 and its Impact on Financial Services Dissertation Topics

Covid 19 has been a global pandemic and it has been seen to have grave impact on the overall world economy. The global and far reached impacts of the Covid 19 pandemic have made it an interesting topic of research. Some of the related topics for accounting and finance domain are:

Does Covid-19 open an opportunity for digitization?
Impact of covid on ecommerce industry.
Covid and the rise in NPAs in Banks.
The consequences of the Corona pandemic for future financial statements: A case Study.
Are the companies becoming conservative in their forecasts after Covid 19?
Digitalization in auditing and modified audit opinions in the post covid world.
Do companies need to account for a better insurance policy after Covid 19?
Provisioning and impairment by Banks and financial institutions. What impacts will it have on the balance sheet?

Cryptocurrencies Dissertation Topics

Recently in last couple of years, cryptocurrencies have gathered the attention of all investors and they have emerged as a lucrative asset class for investment. However, it is equally important that the topic is well read and well researched. The information on crypto currency is very fragmented and there is little academic research available on the topic. Some of the dissertation titles proposed are:

Does crypto market follow the technical analysis?
How to measure the risk and returns in cryptofinance market.
Are crypto market returns sustainable?
Under the supremacy of Bitcoin and Ethereum, what is the investment potential of other alt coins?
Are cryptocurrencies a good asset for swing trading?
Using a derivative strategy, is it possible to make cryptocurrencies less volatile?
Comparison on cryptocurrencies with other asset classes.
Asset pricing for cryptocurrencies. Do the regular theories work in this case?
What is the scope for derivative products in crypto currencies?
Cryptocurrency: Are we ready to demonetize the world?
Why banks oppose digital currency so fiercely?

Audit in Financial Services Dissertation Topics

Audits have always been an interesting topic for the regulators and the stakeholders. They are always seen as a cost centre for the companies but invariably end up strengthening the controls for them. Also there have been a lot of new trends and technologies emerging in the field. Some of the topics for audits and their contribution to financial services are:

Audits and their contribution to corporate houses.
The Effectiveness of Internal Audit and Internal Control Systems in UK financial system.
Are the BASEL rules successful to enhance the liquidity and controls for the banks?
Role of Automation and RPA in the audit industry.
Can auditors play the role of risk managers within a Bank or they are just cost centers?
Effect of Internal Audit on financial performance of companies.
Role of Auditors in financial reporting. A case study of Enron and WorldCom.
Effectiveness of audits in the financial system of UK.
The effect of risk-based audit approach on the enterprise risk strategy of the financial institution.
The changes brought to Auditor-client relationships in the UK due to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
Audit Committees and agency problems with the UK Corporate Governance Code.

Risk Management – Capital, Liquidity, ALM, Models Dissertation Topics

The Federal Reserve System has established a banking risk framework that consists of six risk factors: credit, market, operational, liquidity, legal, and reputation risks. All of the above-mentioned factors are an integral part of any financial institution’s risk management policies and the compliance mechanism which ultimately has a significant impact of the cusses of the institution.

Finance dissertation topics in risk management could include:

Liquidity risk management in the UK banking industry in the wake of the financial crisis.
An evaluation and analysis of the risk/return profile of selected UK banks.
Operational risk & business continuity plans in the UK Banking Industry.
Risk management aspects of international banking activities in Europe: nature, scope, and analysis.
Foreign exchange risk management within financial institutions in the UK.
The liability management of two local leading banks in the UK in the past five years: A comparative analysis.
Advantages of using options for the management of risk in the banking industry.
A stress testing approach towards evaluating credit risk of a financial institution.
Case study on growth, liquidity, turnover, risk and return of a financial institution: Analysis and discussion.
The potential impact of the loss of passporting after Brexit on the UK financial services industry.
The potential impact of Brexit on the ability of UK banks to attract the most talented individuals.
The impact of international risk exposures on the financial performance of UK banks.
The effectiveness of the UK’s stress testing regime in preventing future financial crises in banking.
Study of credit risk management in Banks.
Role of Liquidity Risk Management and the best practices being followed in Banks.
Do Capital management rules for financial institutions is a risk management strategy or a loss of opportunity?
A study of risk management in the banking industry in the UK. What are the best practices for the other countries to follow?
Analysis of Risk Management in Banking Activity – An Enterprise Risk Framework based approach.
Asset liability management in commercial banking: Theoretical and practical aspects.
Is operational risk management the next big thing in the risk management industry?
IFRS9 related provisions provide cushions to financial service industry.
Importance of Model risk management in financial industry.
Importance and relevance of latest regulatory guidelines – FRTB and BCBS 239.
Are banks ready to replace LIBOR?

Internet Banking & Digital Journey for Banks Dissertation Topics

Internet banking offers personal and business clients the ease of managing banking and financial enquires from the comfort of their home or office. Online banking has become a lifeline for those who cannot leave the house, live in rural areas where access to banks can be limited, or simply have no time to visit their nearest bank. Moreover, the evidence suggests that internet banking services have a significant impact on customer satisfaction, enhance demonetisation of the economy and contribute towards improved flow of funds within the economy.

Your dissertation could be based on the following dissertation topics:

Future developments in Internet banking in the UK.
Internet banking services across the UK vary widely: A comparative study.
Security in electronic banking transactions.
The marketing of internet banking services in the UK banking industry: Analysis, discussion, and recommendations.
The economic and financial implications of online banking.
Digital innovation in the banking industry in Europe and the UK: A comparative study.
Use of banking services and internet banking: Is there a relationship?
Digitalization and the related changes in the Banking Industry.
Is digitalization disruptive in the banking sector?
Impact of digitalization in the transaction banking.
Will Fintechs survive in the longer term?
Financial Inclusion, Digital Payments and Their Impact on Income and Tax Revenue across the globe.
Best security practices for online banking and online transactions.
How internet and mobile banking have changed the business landscape?
Internet banking usage: Youth versus elderly population comparison.

Ethics in Accounting Dissertation Topics

Accounting as a profession has always been seen as a very skill based and respectable. Owing to the nature of the profession, it is highly based on trust and ethical code of conduct which ultimately leads to better financial reporting and decision making by the management. The increasing number of scandals in recent times has raised several questions regarding ethical practices in accounting. The issue not only requires further studies to understand the existing practices and the scope of improvement, but also a culture of adapting the ethical practices within the organisations serving citizens of the nations. Ethics is quite an important subject in modern society and would be a good idea for your finance dissertation topic. Some illustrative topics for your dissertation could be:

Role of Managers’ discretion in financial reporting.
Ethics or profits – Dilemma for accountants.
An Exploration of the State of Ethics in UK Accounting Education.
The Perception of the Ethics of Tax Evasion in the United Kingdom.
Whistleblowing vs profits in the company. What is the right approach?
The Perception of the Ethics of Tax Evasion in the United Kingdom.
Reducing tax liabilities by using accounting practices. How ethical is that?
Tax evasion and transfer pricing. Effective ways to teach ethics to university accounting students.
Ethical guidance: is adequate support available?
Audit risk: rhetoric of rationality?
Banking on Ethics: An Insight into ethics and the banking profession.
The effect of auditor’s liability on the accounting profession and organisations in UK.
Does accounting for the brand matter?
Engaging contradiction: An expansion of Corporate Social Responsibility discourse.
Accounting, ethics, and the links missing between them: a case study in the UK.
Sustainability reporting and the public sector in the UK.
Is independence of an auditor just a perception or a reality?
The teaching of ethics to accounting students: An unnecessary and difficult goal?
Accounting ethics, education, and professional legitimacy in the banking industry.
To what extent are accounting rules and regulations sufficient to ensure ethical behaviour by accountants?
Can accounting control systems ever prevent all cases of fraud and unethical behaviour in businesses?
How can auditors maintain their independence whilst also working with managers to ensure effective auditing processes and controls?

Microfinance Dissertation Topics

Microfinance attracts significant attention from individuals, small to large international development organizations and non-governmental organisations. Efforts have been made to increase growth in microfinance throughout the banking and corporate sector. These topics investigate the ways in which microfinance institutions have revolutionised the financial sector in the United Kingdom.

Assessing the rapid development of international micro-finance.
The growth of microfinance in the UK banking industry.
Assessing the demand for collective investment schemes in the UK; A strategic analysis, discussion, and recommendations.
What are the constraints to the development of a fully-fledged microfinance market in the UK?
A study on the impact of microfinance in developing economies.
How important is access to credit and other financial services to growth and investment?
The impact of micro-finance on poverty alleviation and economic growth.
How has the partnership between the public and private sectors impacted micro-finance?
Access to financial services for the poor, including through microfinance and microcredit: An empirical study in the Eurozone.
Assessing the impact of micro-finance on SMEs.
Determinant factors that lead to the success of microfinance institutions.
Is Microfinance empowering the women across the globe?

Retail and Commercial Banking Dissertation Topics

Although their relative importance is on the decline, retail and commercial banks are still the most important financial intermediaries in the banking industry. Both the retail and commercial banks have played a crucial role in reaching rural and semi-urban populations and provided much needed financial services to the mass population. These topics seek to understand how the banking sector has changed over time to accommodate the dynamic financial demands and further highlight the impacts of banking on various economic segments.

Forces for change in the European Retail Banking Sector: Analysis and implications for local commercial banks.
Recent developments in the asset-liability management framework in the banking industry: A comparative study.
An investigation into how Information Technology has transformed banking services in the UK.
What is the relationship between equity, price, and performance in the UK banking industry?
Financial services to the rural population: a study on the challenges of retail banking in the UK.
The evolution of retail banking: Changes and preferences occasioned by consumer demands.
How have banks impacted the growth of SMEs in the UK?
Assessing the impact of financial regulation on modern banking systems.
How have commercial banks adapted to the changing demands of corporate entities?
A study on inventory management for mobile banking: The case of developing countries.

Financing in Emerging Market Dissertation Topics

With stronger fundamentals and better scope for investments, the financial prospects in emerging markets such as Russia, China, India, and Brazil have increased significantly in recent times. All major organisations across the world are trying to develop their footprints in these markets to get a share of the emerging pie and expand their scope of business. These topics evaluate the emerging market environment with respect to the financial investment opportunities it brings forth.

A study of UK investors’ attitudes and perceptions towards investing in emerging markets.
The evolution and implementation of investment banking in emerging markets.
What factors contribute to financial stability in the banking system in emerging countries?
FDI strategies in Europe and Asia: A comparative study.
What is the relationship between population and economic growth: The case of China.
Assessing the impact of trade blocks on financial institutions: The case of BRIC countries.
What is the impact of foreign direct investment on emerging economies?
The challenges of financial institutions in emerging economies.

Alternative Investment Dissertation Topics

Volatility in the financial markets is prompting more and more investors to buy up alternative investments such as mutual funds, hedge funds, private equity and SEIS/EIS funds. Recent studies have confirmed the fact that increasing numbers of investors are opting to buy into the sector due to its huge return and comparatively less volatile nature of market. However, it is equally important to understand that alternative investment options typically do not correlate to the stock market, and thus are more complex than traditional investment vehicles.

Your dissertation could be based on the following dissertation topics:

Hedge Funds: The investing alternative for institutional investors and the advent on the retail market.
Private equity market and the various investors in the UK.
The growth of hedge funds: The reasons for a sustained progress and its effects on the UK investments market.
An evaluation of the role and performance of UK capital markets as an alternative source to banking finance.
The growing popularity of index and mutual funds.
The power of regulatory intervention and enforcement in alternative investment.
Hedge funds: Return enhancers, risk diversifiers or both?
Private equity investment: Future scope in the European Union.
Investment diversification in alternative investment vehicles: Experimental evidence.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Banking Industry Dissertation Topics

The banking industry throws up an interesting conundrum. Unlike the manufacturing industries, it does not cause detrimental effects such as pollution, however, the financial sector impacts almost everyone in the modern world in terms of financial stability. Given that banks are responsible for managing money of depositors, this has wide socio-economic implications for the society through the way they conduct their financial products and services. Therefore, corporate social responsibility becomes an integral part of corporate management strategy in banking industry. Although the key objective of a banking sector is to earn maximum profits for shareholders or owners, it is expected that they conduct their operations in a manner to fulfil their social obligations towards society.

Topics of Corporate Social Responsibility of the banking industry that may be used for a finance dissertation are:

The importance and significance of Corporate Social Responsibility for investment banks in the UK.
Recent developments in CSR activities by the banking industry participants in the UK.
A case study of socially responsible banking.
Bank regimes and practices in CSR.
CSR is now less a choice and more of a necessity for businesses to flourish.
CSR has become a commercial imperative, a differentiator for the city and analysts to judge the progressive nature of an organisation.
Guidance and reporting on a wide range of CSR issues in banking industry.
CSR in banking industry during subprime mortgage crisis: What went wrong?

Accounting Standards Dissertation Topics

With the growing importance of maintaining a standard approach in accounting practices across EU nations and other countries of the world, the emerging accounting standards have raised a number of questions on existing practices across various organisations. It is interesting to see how these emerging standards get adopted by various organisations across the world. Several ideas for your finance dissertation topics could be:

Does the current set of accounting standards live up to its objectives?
International accounting standards: What is convergence and whether there is any likelihood of convergence between the EU and the US?
An investigation into outsourcing accounting overseas from the US perspective.
An investigation into outsourcing accounting overseas from the UK perspective.
The balanced scorecard: “The Holy Grail” for legal firms?
Reporting on sustainability: what is the standard?
The increasing demand for disclosure of social and environmental information: Implications for big organisations.
To what extent does social reporting represent a genuine attempt to promote sustainability, versus a cynical marketing ploy?
How have amendments to the Companies Act and Corporate Governance Code affected the role and responsibilities of UK accountants over the past decade?
An analysis of the potential impacts of Brexit on the accounting standards and regime in the UK.
In the wake of the financial crisis, should fair value remain the primary basis of measurement in global accounting standards?

Education, Perception and Gender Bias in Accounting Dissertation Topics

The awareness of accounting practices is an important issue being dealt with in organisations around the world. The perception around the accounting practices and various biases needs to be investigated and controlled to make the practices more dynamic and responsible for society in general. Accounting topics for your finance dissertation are suggested below:

To what extent does contemporary accounting education provide new accountants with the skills and attitudes they require?

Accounting education: A comparison of EU and UK organisations.
Accounting education: A comparison of Asian and European organisations.
Accounting education: Does ethics get enough attention?
Investigating the effects of gender on women’s experiences with the accounting profession in the UK.
Accounting as art: Representation, truth, and annual reports.
Perceptions of risk in the audit industry in the UK.
Does securing assets or causing insecurities among employees impact internal control?
Do internal controls have an impact on employees? A case study within the banking industry.
How can diversity management be used to improve the performance of accounting firms?
To what extent does gender bias hinder the recruitment, development, and motivation of female accountants?
How can problem-based learning be used to improve the quality of contemporary accounting education?

Finance Dissertation Topics & Accounting Dissertation Topics

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