News

IFAC (International Federation of Accountants) (lt gray) Image

IFAC guide to strengthening accountancy bodies

13 Dec 2005

The Developing Nations Committee of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) has released a guide entitled Establishing and Developing a Professional Accountancy Body to assist governments and others seeking to build accountancy capacity in various countries, and to help strengthen IFAC's current and future member organisations.

The guide is essentially a toolkit with Internet hyperlinks to access additional information. The guide addresses the following areas:
  • Establishing a professional body;
  • Roles and responsibilities of a professional accountancy body;
  • Education and examinations; and
  • Capacity development.
The guide is copyright 2005 by the International Federation of Accountants and is posted here with IFAC's kind permission. Click to Download the IFAC Guidance (ZIP, 2,561k). Inside the ZIP file is an executable (.EXE) file that runs the guide. Click here for Press Release (PDF 83k).
European Union (old) Image

EU intepretive body not needed

12 Dec 2005

Charlie McCreevy, the European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services, spoke last week on Recent Developments in the Internal Market for Financial Services and Financial Reporting before the Association of Corporate Treasurers in Belgium.

Here are two excerpts from his comments on financial reporting:

Consistent application of IFRS in the EU. While CESR, auditors, and preparers of financial statements all have responsibilities in this area, "what is absolutely clear is that we do not want any EU body, formal or informal, providing EU interpretations and guidance. Where interpretations need to be done, this must be the job of the responsible body of the IASB, namely IFRIC."

Equivalence between third country GAAP and IFRS. "Making IFRS work in the EU puts us in a position to be able to claim an even bigger prize: greater access of EU companies to global capital markets. This should include removal of the reconciliation requirement to US GAAP for companies which list in the US. The US SEC agreed to a Road-map in April 2003 with the aim of working towards this at the earliest in 2007 and at the latest in 2009. In the EU we are, of course, also looking into the use of third country GAAP in order to establish whether these might be considered equivalent with IFRS. For the moment, my view is that the best way to proceed is for the EU to defer an equivalence decision and prolong the status quo, rather than taking any decision now. This option would align the EU's equivalence agenda with the US Roadmap for dropping the reconciliation requirement for foreign issuers in the US. It would mean we could work in parallel towards common agreed objectives."

Click to (PDF 83k).
SEC (US Securities and Exchange Commission) (dark gray) Image

SEC 'Current Accounting and Disclosure Issues'

11 Dec 2005

The Division of Corporation Finance of the US Securities and Exchange Commission has published its latest list of (PDF 250k) as of 1 December 2005. This first section of the list is a review of recent and proposed rules and interpretations from the Commission.

The second section is staff guidance and comments on current accounting and disclosure matters based on the Division's reviews of the filings of the 15,000 SEC registrants. The list is divided into the following sections:

I. RECENT RULES, PROPOSED RULES, INTERPRETIVE BULLETINS, AND OTHER COMMISSION ACTIVITY

  • A. Final Rules Regarding Securities Offering Reform
  • B. Regulatory Relief and Assistance for Hurricane Katrina Victims
  • C. Employee Stock Options
  • D. Final Rule regarding IFRS First-time Adopters
  • E. Final Rules Regarding Use of Form S-8, Form 8-K, and Form 20-F by Public Shell Companies
  • F. Final Rules Regarding Asset-Backed Securities
  • G. Final Rules and Concept Release Regarding the Use of Tagged Data
  • H. Accelerated Filer
  • I. Management's Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting and Certification of Disclosure
  • in Exchange Act Periodic Reports
  • J. Management's Discussion and Analysis
  • K. Rule Proposals Related to Proxy Materials
  • L. Public Release of Comment Letters and Responses
  • M. Recent Enforcement Actions Involving MD&A;
  • N. Recent Enforcement Actions Involving GAAP II. OTHER CURRENT ACCOUNTING AND DISCLOSURE ISSUES
  • A. Dividend Policy Disclosures
  • B. Classification and Measurement of Warrants and Embedded Conversion Features
  • C. Statement of Cash Flows
  • D. Oil and Gas
  • E. Leasing
  • F. Revenue
  • G. Business Combinations
  • H. Investments
  • I. Contingencies and Loss Reserves
  • J. Pension, Post Retirement, and Post Employment Plans
  • K. FIN 46 and Deconsolidation
  • L. Segment Disclosure
  • M. Issues Associated With SFAS 133, Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities
  • N. Market Risk Disclosures
  • O. Allowance for Loan Losses
  • P. Loans and Other Receivables
  • Q. Materiality Assessments and the Use of Sampling
  • R. Independent Registered Auditors III. OTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE DIVISION OF CORPORATION FINANCE AND OTHER COMMISSION OFFICES AND DIVISIONS
News default Image

Model IFRS financial statements for UK

09 Dec 2005

Deloitte & Touche LLP (United Kingdom) have developed iGAAP 2006 Financial Statements for UK Listed Groups, which has been published by CCH.

The major part of this publication comprises model financial statements, accompanied by detailed commentary, to illustrate the typical disclosures required of a listed group reporting under International Financial Reporting Standards. A 'facing page' format is used so that the model disclosures can be viewed simultaneously with the relevant Deloitte commentary on the disclosure requirements. iGAAP 2006 Financial Statements for UK Listed Groups can be purchased through CCH Online or by phone at +44 (0) 870 777 2906 or by email: customerservices@cch.co.uk.
China Image

China requires internal control reports by listed companies

08 Dec 2005

The China Securities Regulatory Commission – China's securities regulator – is requiring that a company listed on a Chinese stock exchange must (a) perform a self-assessment of its internal controls and (b) engage an external auditor to evaluate its internal controls and comment on its self-assessment report.

This requirement, which is effective for 2005 calendar year-end audits, is similar to that in Section 404 of the US Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Here is the new (PDF 169k, Chinese only).
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FASB Chairman Herz speaks on complexity

08 Dec 2005

We have posted the (PDF 46k) on complexity in the financial reporting system, presented at the AICPA 2005 National Conference on Current SEC and PCAOB Developments in Washington on 6 December 2005. In our news story of 6 December 2005, we had posted the remarks of eleven US SEC representatives, including Chairman Christopher Cox.

An excerpt from Mr. Herz's comments:

Long touted by some as a strength of our reporting system, the detail and volume of accounting, auditing, and reporting guidance now pose a major challenge to maintaining and enhancing the quality and transparency of financial reporting to investors and the capital markets. Many, including some members of the FASB, believe that the current system has engendered a check-the-box, form-over-substance approach to accounting, auditing, and reporting by preparers, auditors, and regulators, sapping professionalism and increasingly necessitating the involvement of technical experts to ensure compliance. It has also provided fertile ground for those attempting to structure form-over-substance arrangements to obtain desired accounting outcomes. This complexity has also added to the costs and effort involved in financial reporting, which often fall disproportionately on small and private companies and their auditors. It has also created a black box view of financial reporting by many who are not familiar with the intricacies of the underlying accounting, auditing, and reporting requirements. For professional investors and analysts, it results in a lack of transparency and significant analytical complexity in using reported financial information. And it is viewed as a contributory factor to the unacceptably high and increasing number of restatements of financial reports by public companies.

United States & European Union (old) Image

US-EU agreement on international cooperation

07 Dec 2005

In March 2002, the United States (represented by the SEC, the Federal Reserve Board, and the Treasury Department) and the European Union (represented by the European Commission) launched a Financial Markets Regulatory Dialogue with the goal of ongoing mutual cooperation and regulatory convergence in the areas of corporate governance and further integration of the Transatlantic securities markets.

Accounting Roundup Image

November 2005 Accounting Roundup posted

07 Dec 2005

We have posted the (PDF 244k) published by Deloitte & Touche LLP (USA).

Topics covered in this issue include:
  • FASB developments, including final FSPs on calculating the APIC pool under FAS 123R, minimum revenue guarantees, a QSPE's ability to hold derivatives, and investment impairment; and a new FASB project on pensions and other postretirement benefits.
  • GASB developments, including Q&A; on post-employment benefits.
  • AICPA developments, including a series of Technical Practice Aids on lease accounting and a request for comment on independence in compilation engagements.
  • SEC developments, including amendments to requirements for asset-backed securities and Q&A; on securities offering reform.
  • PCAOB developments, including ethics and independence rules regarding tax services and a report on implementation of AS2.
  • International developments, including IFRIC 7; discussion paper on measurement bases; User's Guide to Financial Instruments Standards; and summaries of recent IASB and IFRIC meetings.
You will find past issues of Accounting Roundup Here.
IFRIC (International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee) (blue) Image

Issues not added to IFRIC agenda - new web page

07 Dec 2005

The IFRIC Agenda Committee considers potential projects for the IFRIC agenda and makes recommendations to the IFRIC.

IFRIC's normal procedure is:
  • Agenda Committee makes recommendation that an item not be added to the IFRIC's agenda, and recommends the wording for IFRIC's public explanation.
  • IFRIC discusses the Agenda Committee recommendation and, if it agrees, it publishes the proposed explanation in the IFRIC Update newsletter. The newsletter indicates that if constituents disagree, they should email the IFRIC.
  • At a subsequent meeting, the IFRIC decides not to add the item to its agenda and agrees on the final wording for its explanation. IFRIC's final decision and explanation are published in IFRIC Update.
We have created a new IASPlus web page with a comprehensive Summary of Issues Not Added to IFRIC Agenda - Sequenced by IFRS. That page lists each item not added to IFRIC's agenda (back to 2002), the date the decision not to add was made, and IFRIC's public explanation of the reasons for not adding the item to its agenda. We believe that those who are responsible for preparing IFRS financial statements will find the information on our new web page useful. We will keep the page up to date after each IFRIC meeting.
AICPA (American Institute of CPAs) (lt green) Image

Speeches at AICPA SEC conference

06 Dec 2005

The American Institute of CPAs is holding its 2005 National Conference on Current SEC and PCAOB Developments in Washington on 5-7 December 2005, simulcast in three other cities.

Eleven US SEC representatives, including Chairman Christopher Cox, spoke at the first day of the conference, which is quite popular among SEC registrants and their auditors because the SEC representatives provide insights on important issues for calendar year-end reporting. Here is a list of the broad areas addressed by various SEC speakers, with links to their presentations:

Other speakers at the conference include PCAOB board member Charles D. Niemeier and its Chief Auditor Douglas R. Carmichael; representatives from the FASB including Chairman Robert H. Herz and board member G. Michael Crooch; and James J. Leisenring, IASB board member.

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