In recent years, financial institutions especially universal/commercial banks across Africa have been faced with forceful mergers and acquisitions. These occurrences impede the level of financial inclusion and reduces public confidence in the financial system as a whole. This study assessed the effect of credit and operational risk on the financial performance of universal banks in the context of the structural equation model (SEM). Data were collected from all the 24 universal banks in Ghana without missing variables and using the PLS-SEM, the results showed that credit risk influences financial performance negatively contrary to the empirical study but in line with the information asymmetry tenant of the lemon theory. It was also found that operational risk influences the financial performance of the universal banks in Ghana negatively. Furthermore, the study indicated that bank specific variables measured by (asset quality, bank leverage, cost to income ratio and liquidity) significantly influence credit risk, operational risk as well as the financial performance of the universal banks positively. We recommend that banks ABOUT THE AUTHORS

The study sought to ascertain the level of tax planning of firms and to explore the relationship between tax planning and firms' market performance. The study used 22 non-financial companies listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange over a twelve year period from 2000. The longitudinal correlative designed was used. The results indicate that that firms' tendency to engage in intensive tax planning activities reduces when tax authorities maintain low corporate income tax rates. Secondly, tax planning has a neutral influence on firms' performance. This finding challenges the general perception that every cedi of tax savings from tax planning reflect in the pocket of investors. It is concluded that investors must institute systems to ensure tax planning benefits reflect significantly in their pockets.

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This study departs from focusing on the level of tax relief utilization by focusing on the factors contributing to the low trends and how utilization of personal tax relief can influence tax evasion from the premises of the Allingham-Sandmo (A-S) theory. This study considered respondents working within the formal sector of Ghana. Data was collected through the use of questionnaire after the stratified sampling technique was used to select 136,131 respondents across service, industry and agricultural formal sectors in the country. The study identified a low level of awareness of the personal tax reliefs and the factors that contributed to this were ignorance of the existence of personal reliefs; frustration in filling the tax relief/returns forms; the cost of assessing the reliefs which outweighs the benefits and avoidance of contradictory personal information. It was also identified that, utilization of the tax relief can result in the prevention of tax evasion. It is recommended that, a sound education of taxpayers in focal areas of the tax system is needed especially in the various HR units during the initial stages of employing staffs. Also, the reliefs should be simple to claim through the use of computerized systems and finally, there should be an upward review of the reliefs to motivate taxpayers.

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