Martin Jacob, Professor of Business Taxation at WHU, is one of the researchers involved in the project. The research project, which is funded by the German Research Foundation [Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)] with around 12 million euros, aims at investigating the influence of accounting and taxation on the transparency of corporations.
"The first funding of a Collaborative Research Center with a business focus with the participation of the Chair of Business Taxation at WHU shows once again that WHU is an excellent research location. The funding of the project for at least four years will further expand WHU's research strength and increase its international visibility," reports Martin Jacob, Professor at WHU and CRC research member.
The team of around 80 scientists will work across locations and compare the different accounting systems around the world. The aim is to gain insights into the influence of regulations on corporate transparency. In addition to WHU, the research members come from the following universities: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, University of Mannheim, and University of Paderborn (as the three leading universities of the CRC) as well as the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, European School of Management and Technology Berlin, Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, and Goethe University Frankfurt.
The research team of the CRC around its spokesperson Professor Dr. Caren Sureth-Sloane (University of Paderborn) is aware of the complexity caused by the increased reporting obligations of companies. Therefore, the CRC aims at providing evidence of the consequences of the voluntary or mandatory disclosure of corporate information, including tax and other information. The project is intended to pursue the social demands for more transparency in the economy and to contribute scientifically sound statements to the public discussion.