Debt Disclosure Problems

Posted by & filed under Accounting Information Systems, Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized.

According to the New York Times, Greensill Capital promised a win-win for buyers and sellers, until it all fell apart, igniting concerns about opaque accounting practices. Questions: How much was Greensill valued at less than 2 years ago? Explain how Greensill’s problems extend to the U.S. Explain Mr. Greensill’s position in the firm as the… Read more »

The Aftermath in Japan

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized, Video Updates.

The Tokyo Electric Power Co. on Friday reported a net loss of 1.2 trillion yen ($15.4 billion) for the fiscal year that ended March 31. Tokyo Electric also announced it will decommission reactors Nos. 1-4 at Fukushima Daiichi and has also canceled plans to build two other reactors at the site. In addition to the… Read more »

Research and Development (R & D): Does This Indicate a Crack in the Foundation of IFRS Convergence?

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting.

When the IASB and FASB began the convergence process in 2002, they considered R & D as a high-priority project, where differences between US GAAP and IFRS were seen as particularly straightforward. However, as this article notes, still no consensus has been reached because IASB’s R&D treatment  appears to defeat comparability in the eyes of… Read more »

Convergence Delayed

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting.

The head of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, which sets U.S. accounting rules, said June 1, 2010, that he does not expect FASB to meet a June 30, 2011 deadline for convergence with international accounting rules, as requested by the G20 group of industrial and emerging countries. According to FASB chairman, Robert Herz, changes that… Read more »

The Costs and Benefits of Simultaneous Audits for Multinational Companies

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting.

Simultaneous audits mean two separate exams, conducted by different governments, in which those governments share with each other some of the taxpayer’s information.  Even though you may not have heard of them, they have existed since the 1970s, but are becoming more common today as government tax agencies race to match the level of global… Read more »

What’s the Diagnosis – Accounting Fatigue Syndrome (AFS)?

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, All Articles, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting.

At a recent conference in Orlando, financial executives discussed one of the top reasons for employee fatigue – a continuous stream of regulatory and accounting standard-setting guidance that has been issued in recent years and the promise of more to come over the foreseeable future. Questions: 1. Although the article provides little detail, what accounting… Read more »

The Effects of Converting to IFRS

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting.

The Effects of Converting to IFRS The primary question raised in this article is:  “What effects would switching to IFRS have for companies, if forced to switch by the SEC?” Based on a panel of four executives from four major companies, most agreed that there will be almost no material effects in areas that investors… Read more »

Politics in Accounting, Really?

Posted by & filed under All Articles, IFRS, International Accounting.

A member of the International Accounting Standards Board, James Leisenring, told attendees at the Standard & Poor’s Accounting Hot Topics conference in New York on December 10, 2009, about possible abuses and accounting arbitrage that may result from IASB’s recently issued standard for recognizing and measuring financial instruments. In his remarks, he acknowledged that political… Read more »

Japan’s Big Accounting Move

Posted by & filed under All Articles, Financial Accounting, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting.

During the week of December 7, 2009, Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) announced that it is moving to the formal adoption of International Accounting Standard (IAS) reporting by 2015. Up until now, the FSA has allowed Japanese companies to file consolidated statements using U.S. GAAP, but in 2015 this may end. The agency will make… Read more »

What Will the Future Bring for Lease Accounting?

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CEOs and CFOs are cautiously eyeing the limitations that convergence of FASB and IFRS standards may bring to lease accounting. Predictions are that a new global lease standard, anticipated in 2011, will require many traditionally classified operating leases into the capital lease status. QUESTIONS: What are the current FASB criteria for classifying leases as either… Read more »