조세회피 및 재무위험이 횡령 및 배임에 미치는 영향

초록

This study examines the relationship between tax avoidance and embezzlement, and empirically analyzes whether financial risk moderates this relationship. Despite ongoing efforts to enhance corporate accounting transparency and implement integrated risk management, embezzlement continues to occur, undermining the credibility of capital markets. Tax avoidance—manifested as reduced tax burdens or aggressive tax strategies such as the use of tax havens—is generally considered closely associated with, or intertwined with, embezzlement and breach of trust. However, prior empirical studies have reported inconsistent findings on this relationship, motivating further inquiry. Using a long-term sample, this study explores the relationship between tax avoidance and embezzlement, and examines how this relationship varies with the level of financial risk. The results reveal a significantly positive relationship between the degree of tax avoidance and embezzlement. Furthermore, this relationship weakens as financial risk increases. These findings suggest that firms facing higher financial risk have stronger incentives to avoid additional risks, which in turn attenuates the relationship between tax avoidance and embezzlement and breach of trust. This study contributes policy implications for regulators and oversight bodies, suggesting that firms exhibiting signs of financial distress should be subject to more rigorous monitoring—not only through standard audits, but also through closer scrutiny of tax avoidance behavior and potential embezzlement.

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