Accounting

Accounting News & Professional Insight

Accounting Today delivers news, rankings, thought leadership, and analysis for accounting professionals so they can navigate change in standards, firm strategy, technology adoption, talent, and the overall business environment.

Accounting professionals are facing rapid transformation, including shifting professional standards, demographic change, technology disruption, practice consolidation, and changing expectations for advisory services. Our coverage surfaces these strategic dynamics and provides insights and analysis for firms, leaders, and the accounting profession.

Accounting standards

FASB updates accounting for cloud computing costs

The Financial Accounting Standards Board released an accounting standards update Wednesday aimed at decreasing the complexity of accounting for costs of implementing a cloud computing service arrangement.

By Michael Cohn
Editor-in-chief, AccountingToday.com

August 29
International accounting

IFAC offers possible solutions to resolve dispute over standard-setting

The International Federation of Accountants is outlining some possible ways forward to resolve a disagreement with the Monitoring Group of financial regulators over the standard-setting process for global auditing and accounting education.

By Michael Cohn
Editor-in-chief, AccountingToday.com

August 29
IFRS

IASB mulls overhaul of goodwill accounting

The International Accounting Standards Board is considering changes in how to account for goodwill under International Financial Reporting Standards, perhaps reintroducing goodwill amortization.

By Michael Cohn
Editor-in-chief, AccountingToday.com

August 29
International accounting

Steinhoff ex-CFO blames finance crisis firmly on former boss

The retailer's former chief financial officer pointed the finger at ex-CEO Markus Jooste and auditors including Deloitte for the company’s accounting scandal.

August 29
Accounting firm services

ICPAS’ Shapiro: The best reason to change is because you haven’t

Accountants need to be disrupters -- or they’ll be disrupted, according to the head of the Illinois CPA Society.

By Daniel Hood
Editor-in-chief

August 28
AT Think As APAC’s boom continues, are businesses ready for expansion?

U.S. businesses face great risk in expansion to APAC without securing local knowledge and expertise to help comply with the region’s complex tax and compliance regulatory framework.

August 28

Shagun Kumar

TMF India
Accounting standards

FASB updates disclosure requirements

The Financial Accounting Standards Board made two changes to its conceptual framework and released a pair of accounting standards updates aimed at making disclosures in notes to financial statements more effective.

By Michael Cohn
Editor-in-chief, AccountingToday.com

August 28

Resources

The latest Accounting Today research and discussion:

Predicting the next 15 years in accounting

Take a look at what the accountant and the accounting firm of the future will look like with AICPA chief Mark Koziel.

Sponsored by BILL
The changing world of government financial reporting

The serious new pressures facing governments of all sizes are changing their financial reporting, says GASB Chair Joel Black.

Sponsored by Intuit Quickbooks
Special Report Technology and CAS

Handling the compliance work that is the foundation of modern CAS while also creating time and insights for the advisory overlay that really drives its value to clients requires the careful deployment of a suite of technology tools — and that suite is constantly evolving, meaning accountants need a strategy to keep up.

Sponsored by Canopy

Accounting: Key Questions & Analysis

What are the key trends and strategies emerging from accounting industry leaders?

Top leaders are focused on structural challenges facing firms, including succession planning, evolving service mix, and long-term sustainability of traditional models.

How are accounting firms positioning themselves for the profession’s next phase?

Firm leaders are redefining and evaluating their strategy for growth. This includes investing in people and systems as well as rethinking how firms deliver value to address changing client needs and competition.

What role does professional identity play as accounting continues to change?

Debate continues over how accounting defines itself. This is due to accounting expanding into advisory, consulting, and technology-enabled services. These changes can raise questions about standards, training, and long-term credibility.

How are accounting firms managing leadership and succession risk?

Demographic shifts are accelerating in accounting. This means more firms are confronting leadership transitions and ownership succession which can create critical strategic risks that influence growth, culture, and valuation.