PurposeThe readability of annual reports is an important feature that determines the quality of communication between a firm and its stakeholders. Extant literature has demonstrated that readability characteristics of annual reports are crucial in facilitating the investor's ability to process and analyze information, resulting in higher firm performance and lower agency costs. This study examines the relationship between annual report readability, agency costs and the firm performance of listed financial sector companies in Oman.Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of 150 firm-year observations of listed financial sector companies on the Muscat Securities Market (MSM) over the period 2014 to 2018, a panel regression analysis is used, along with the system generalized method of moments (GMM) estimation to address endogeneity concerns. The readability of annual reports is proxied by the length of the annual report, the Flesch reading ease and the Flesch–Kincaid index.FindingsThe ordinary least squares (OLS) results suggest that readability proxied by the length of the annual report has no significant relationship with agency cost, return on assets (ROA) or stock returns. The OLS results are confirmed through the system GMM estimation model for agency costs, Tobin's Q and stock returns. Easier-to-read annual reports measured by the Flesch reading ease demonstrate high asset utilization ratio and Tobin's Q. These results emphasize Flesch reading ease measure in explaining the economic significance of agency cost and Tobin's Q. In contrast, difficult-to-read annual reports are observed for firms with high ROA.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited to the financial sector. Its generalizability could be extended to a similar sector or countries with features similar to Oman. Future studies on readability could be extended to other sectors of Oman, and financial firms with easier-to-read annual reports show a high Tobin's Q, which reflects the confidence of investors in the stock market. These findings may encourage policymakers to regulate the readability features of annual reports and influence the reporting quality of financials and disclosures also including cross-country comparisons.Practical implicationsFinancial firms with easier-to-read annual reports show a high Tobin's Q, which reflects the confidence of investors in the stock market. These findings may encourage policymakers to regulate the readability features of annual reports and influence the reporting quality of financials and disclosures.Originality/valueWhile the study extends prior literature on readability, agency costs and firm performance, it is also one of the first to examine the financial sector of an emerging country, namely, Oman. The study supports the obfuscation hypothesis through the association of readability measure with agency cost. Unlike prior research that has focused on common computational linguistic literature, this study uses three proxies for readability to assess information quality.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to identify the effectiveness of risk management and corporate governance (CG) practices followed in Islamic banks (IBs) of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Hence, they are considered as critical performance indicators for financial institutions and IBs. Though the IBs are growing, there are still challenges associated with their operations because of Shariah noncompliance risks, governance, capital adequacy ratio and other risks. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a mixed-method approach, gathering qualitative data from senior risk managers of chosen IBs via semi-structured interviews and quantitative data from selected IBs financial reports using capital IQ resources. The information was gathered for a considerable time (2013–2019), and the CAMELS rating system was used to analyze it. Findings The results showed that GCC IBs manage their business risks well through effective CG except in certain areas like asset quality management and liquidity. Practical implications The result of this study can provide support to the banks’ top management, chief executives, regulators and government, in all practices related to risk assessment, management and mitigation. Originality/value This study contributes to the existing knowledge in risk management and CG practices. Furthermore, this study is a new attempt in knowing the risk management and CG practices followed in IBs in GCC countries using the mixed-method approach.

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The purpose of this study is to understand the importance of personal finance planning to be financially sound and well equipped for the uncertainty. According to the findings of this study, the ignorance of personal finance is to the pinnacle. This isn't just to set up family spending plan yet additionally to save, contribute as well as plan for our retirement. The meaning of financial management, its significance, the steps that each person can take to plan and manage their finances, and the awareness of financial management are all discussed in this writing. In addition to educating readers on how to plan and manage each individual's finances for their benefit today and in the future, which indirectly contributes to the development of the nation, the purpose of this writing is to raise awareness of the significance of personal finance planning and management. The impact of personal finance education on financial knowledge, attitudes, and actions is the subject of much debate. Our research also reveals that discussing money with friends, income, work experience, year/field of study, and family financial socialization were all important factors in influencing financial knowledge, attitudes, and behavior. We're not saying that formal financial education isn't important; rather, we're saying that its role in changing people's attitudes and behaviors should be carefully considered if that's its goal. The objective was to describe the financial knowledge, attitudes, and experiences of residents to inform the design of a personal finance curriculum.

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