Financial Planning

Credit Suisse has reached an agreement with German prosecutors to pay 150 million euros, or approximately $204 million, to resolve a tax dispute stemming from secret accounts at the Swiss bank belonging to German citizens.

The Internal Revenue Service granted tax filing and penalty relief Tuesday to large estates of people who died in 2010, saying their heirs will have until early 2012 to file the necessary tax returns and pay any estate taxes owed.

Regional CPA and business advisory firm Wipfli has formalized its Public Company Services Practice, a unit that will serve emerging growth and midsized publicly held companies as well as those considering initial public offerings.

The Internal Revenue Service has posted the instructions for the estate tax form for people who died in 2010, the year the estate tax was not in effect for many taxpayers.

A bipartisan trio of senators has introduced legislation that would foster the growth of S corporations owned by Employee Stock Ownership Plans, or S-ESOPs.

The Texas Society of CPAs has issued some tips for self-employed business owners for funding their retirements.

A new study from Fidelity Investments found that 401(k) investors who pulled out of the equities market during the 2008-2009 economic downturn experienced only 2 percent growth, while those who maintained their investment strategy eventually saw growth of 50 percent by the second quarter of this year.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board have updated the computer-readable tags for their accounting standards and exposed them for public comment.

SEC ADOPTS 'LARGE TRADER' REPORTING RULE

The family office was frequently a separate entity, with employees ranging from a chief executive or chief financial officer, to a staff of bookkeepers and personal assistants who could do everything from monthly financial statements to booking travel and personal-care appointments.