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.

Audit

SEC Looks for Comments on New Audit Standard

The Securities and Exchange Commission is soliciting comments on a new auditing standard for evaluating the consistency of financial statements.

August 21
Audit

Cox Praises PCAOB Decision

SEC Chairman Christopher Cox hailed an appeals court decision that said the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is constitutional.

August 21
Audit

Deloitte Plans to Merge in Ottawa Firm

Deloitte & Touche has signed a memorandum of understanding with Canadian accounting firm Scott Rankin & Gardner for a potential merger.

August 20
Audit

SEC Offers Interactive System for Financial Filings

The Securities and Exchange Commission unveiled its next-generation system for online financial filings, IDEA, the successor to its EDGAR database.

August 19
Audit

Execs Want Private Companies Exempt from FIN 48

A group representing financial executives has written to the Financial Accounting Standards Board asking to exempt private companies from the requirements of FASB Interpretation No. 48, "Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes."

August 19
Audit

SEC to Distribute Funds to Putnam, Janus Investors

The Securities and Exchange Commission said it would distribute millions of dollars to investors harmed by market-timing trading violations in mutual funds managed by Putnam Investment Management and Janus Capital Management.

August 18
Accounting standards

Standard-Setting: Convergence is coming!

Two years ago, Bob Bunting saw the writing on the wall for U.S. GAAP.As former chief executive and chairman of super-regional firm Moss Adams LLP, Bunting established resources to prepare for the reality of International Financial Reporting Standards becoming the future of financial reporting for public companies in the United States.

August 17

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.