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

IFRS Date to Be Proposed, Sort Of

Securities and Exchange Commission chief accountant Conrad Hewitt said SEC staff members planned to propose a date for mandating the use of International Financial Reporting Standards by public companies, but the date would not be confirmed for two years, giving accountants some extra leeway.

June 26
Accounting standards

New IFRS XBRL Taxonomy Released

The International Accounting Standards Committee Foundation has released the IFRS Taxonomy 2008, a complete translation of International Financial Reporting Standards into Extensible Business Reporting Language.

June 25
Audit

SEC to Study Overhauling Financial Disclosures

The Securities and Exchange Commission plans to launch an ambitious project to re-examine how companies and other entities should make financial disclosures to take advantage of the latest technologies.

June 24
Audit

CCH Adds Fair Value Q&A to Research Database

CCH has enhanced the Audit Public Library in its Accounting Research Manager database with a set of questions and answers about Financial Accounting Standard 157 for fair value measurements.

June 23
Audit

NEC Settles with SEC over Accounting Problems

Japanese electronics giant NEC has settled with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over charges that it improperly booked revenue from its customer contracts and did not maintain accurate books and records, causing the company to miss filing financial statements two years in a row.

June 22
Audit

SEC Approves SOX 404(b) Extension for Small Companies

The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved a one-year extension of the compliance date for smaller public companies to meet the Section 404(b) auditor attestation requirement of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

June 22
Audit

Securities Regulators to Monitor IFRS

Financial regulators from around the world are setting up a monitoring group that will work with international accounting standards-setters.

June 18

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.