주기적 감사인 지정제도를 통해 교체를 앞두고 있는 감사인의 협상력 (The Bargaining Power of Auditors Prior to be Changed through Periodic Auditor Designation System)

서지정보

· 발행기관 : 한국회계학회
· 수록지 정보 : 회계저널 / 31권 / 1호 / 85 ~ 128페이지
· 저자명 : 임유니, 염승훈

초록

본 연구에서는 주기적 감사인 지정제도를 통해 감사인 교체를 앞두고 있는 기업들의 해당 감사인이 감사보수 산정에 미치는 영향력(bargaining power of auditor)에 대해서 분석을 시도하였다. 선행연구에 의하면, 산업전문감사인이 감사를 수행하는 경우 감사보수 산정에 영향을 미치는 기업의 협상력(bargaining power of company)은 종속변수인 감사보수와 음(-)의 관계를 나타냈다. 이는 규모가 큰 기업일수록 감사인에게 할인을 요구하는 것을 의미한다. 또한 해당 선행연구의 분석표본 중에서 자산총액이 평균 이상에 해당하는 기업에서 더 유의하게 감사보수 할인이 발생하는 것으로 확인되었다. 이는 기업의 자산규모가 클수록 감사보수 산정에 미치는 기업의 영향력이 더 강하다는 것을 의미한다. 본 연구에서는 감사보수 협상 시 감사인의 영향력을 새로운 변수로 설정하여 연구하였다. 본 연구의 결과를 통해 주기적 감사인 지정제도를 앞두고 감사인이 교체되는 기업의 감사보수 협상 과정에서 전반적으로 감사인이 미치는 영향은 제한적임을 확인하였다. 그렇지만, 감사인 교체 직전 기간을 연도별로 구분하여 분석을 수행한 분석에서는 교체 직전 년도인 2019년도에서 감사보수 협상 시 감사인의 협상력이 강화되는 것을 확인할 수 있었다. 이처럼 감사보수 협상에서 전반적으로 감사인의 협상력은 낮았다가 교체 직전 연도에 반전되어 감사보수 할증이 나타나는 현상은 산업전문감사인에서도 동일하게 발견되었음을 확인하였다. 이러한 결과는 해당 기업에 대해서 경쟁을 통한 자유수임을 당분간 할 수 없음을 충히 인지하고 있는 전기 감사인들이 차기 감사인들과의 전기 재무제표에 관한 의견불일치를 발생시키지 않고, 소송위험 등으로부터 자신들을 보호하기 위한 것으로 그 원인을 분석해볼 수 있다. 본 연구를 통해서 감사인의 협상력이라는 새로운 변수를 활용하여 주기적 감사인 지정제도 시행 3년 전에는 전반적으로 감사보수 협상 시 감사인이 미치는 영향력이 제한적이었으나 교체 직전 년도인 2019년도에 감사인의 협상력이 높아졌음을 확인할 수 있다. 이는 산업전문감사인에서도 동일하게 관찰되는 바이다. 그러므로 본 연구의 결과를 통해서 주기적 감사인 지정제도에 의하여 교체를 앞두고 있는 전기 감사인이 해당 기업과의 감사보수 산정에 영향력이 발휘되는지를 확인해 볼 수 있다.

영어초록

This study tried to analyze the bargaining power of auditors to the audit fee of companies that are about to change auditors through the periodic auditor designation system. According to the previous studies, the bargaining power of company showed a negative relationship with their audit fees, when an industry professional auditor conducted an audit. This means that larger firms are more likely to ask auditors for a discount of audit fees.
Korea enacted the Act on External Audit of Stock Companies in 2017. In order to secure the independence of auditors and improve the quality of audit, the periodic auditor designation system was implemented through the Act on External Audit of Stock Companies which was amended in 2017 to ensure auditor independence and improve audit quality. A periodic auditor designation system was introduced for unlisted companies. The periodic auditor designation system is a regulation for designating auditors for the three business years to the stock-listed corporations (excluding KONEX) who have freely appointed auditors for six consecutive business years. In this research, the influence of auditors when negotiating audit fees was newly set. It was confirmed that the overall effect of auditors in the bargaining process of audit fees in companies where auditors are replaced prior to the periodic auditor designation system. However, in the analysis performed by dividing the period by yearly, it was confirmed that the auditor's bargaining power was strengthened only in 2019, the year immediately before the change of regulation on the periodic auditor designation. Therefore, It was confirmed that the phenomenon that the auditor's bargaining power was generally low in the bargaining of audit remuneration. However, it was reversed in the year immediately before the auditor replacement. This means that the audit fees were seen of audit fees premium for the periodic auditor designation system. And this phenomenon was also found in the case of professional auditors. It was confirmed that the bargaining power of auditors was strengthened when negotiating audit fees only in 2019, the year immediately before the periodic auditor designation system. According to the study results, it was found that the auditor's bargaining power was limited as the result of the auditor's bargaining power on the audit fee showed a significant negative (-) in general. This is a fact that confirms that the structural “relationship between the company and the auditor” is still worked. However, in 2019, the direct before year of periodic auditor designation system, it could be confirmed that the auditor's bargaining power is reversed.
This result was also found in the audit fee and hourly audit fee, and even in the case of an industrial professional auditor, the auditor's bargaining power increased in the year immediately before the periodic auditor designation system. As a result of this, auditors who are fully aware that they will not be able to free the company through competition for the time being can protect themselves from litigation risks without causing disagreements with future auditors on financial statements. Therefore, through the results of this study, it is possible to check how the auditor who is about to be replaced by the periodic auditor designation system exerts influence on the audit fee with the relevant company. The contribution points of this study are as follows. First of all, through the periodic auditor designation system, real samples of companies whose auditors are replaced were used to promote timeliness and accuracy in the analysis. Secondly, through the selection of a new variable called the bargaining power of auditors(apower), the influence of auditors whose auditors are replaced by the periodic auditor designation system on the calculation of audit fees before replacement was examined with the negotiation about the audit fees. Finally, the influence of auditors on the calculation of periodic auditor designation system for each period was confirmed. In 2017 and 2018, the influence was not significant. However, in 2019, the year just before the periodic auditor designation system, the auditor's influence was strengthened and an audit-fee premium was also found.

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