Benford’s Law and Digital Analysis: Application on Turkish Banking Sector

Business and Economics Research Journal, Volume 4, Number 1, 2013, pp. 29-41.

14 Pages Posted: 8 Nov 2012 Last revised: 24 Jan 2013

See all articles by Gökhan Özer

Gökhan Özer

Gebze Technical University

Burak Babacan

Kapsam CPA LLC

Date Written: October 3, 2012

Abstract

We investigate the effectiveness of Benford’s Law through an digital analysis of the off-balance sheet account disclosures made by Turkish Banks during the 1990-2010. We found that off-balance sheet account disclosures of the fiscal term 1999 doesn’t comply with Benford’s Law. Our finding is consistent with the Turkish Banks’ practices. We also provide evidence on 'The Law of Anomalous Numbers'. Our results indicate a link between economic policy and deviation from frequencies of Benford’s Law.

Keywords: Benford’s law, digital analysis, banking sector, fraud investigation

JEL Classification: G21, M42

Suggested Citation

Özer, Gökhan and Babacan, Burak, Benford’s Law and Digital Analysis: Application on Turkish Banking Sector (October 3, 2012). Business and Economics Research Journal, Volume 4, Number 1, 2013, pp. 29-41. , Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2156485

Gökhan Özer (Contact Author)

Gebze Technical University ( email )

Cayirova-Gebze
Kocaeli, Istanbul 41400
Turkey

Burak Babacan

Kapsam CPA LLC ( email )

Eski Üsküdar İçerenköy Yolu, Bodur İs Merkezi, No:
İçerenköy Atasehir
Istanbul
Turkey

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