Financial reporting

Firm News -- March 23

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has added a new item to its agenda to revise the accounting standards for repurchase agreements in response to the problems that led to the collapse of MF Global.

The International Federation of Accountants has published a paper calling for enhanced financial management transparency and accountability in the public sector, especially in the midst of the sovereign debt crisis.

The Financial Accounting Foundation has published a learning guide for the FASB Accounting Standards Codification system to help accountants learn their way around the relatively recent system for organizing U.S. GAAP standards.

The accounting scandal at snack maker Diamond Foods in recent months may have shocked shareholders and some California walnut farmers.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has decided against undertaking a separate project to revise a controversial standard to account for uncertainty in income taxes.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board has released a revised standard for compilation engagements, specially enhanced for the needs of small and midsized entities.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board has proposed new financial reporting standards for state and local governments to help them account for government combinations such as mergers, acquisitions and transfers of operations, along with disposals such as sales and transfers of government operations.

Firm News - March 16

LinkedIn has recently launched a special group for accountants that is already attracting a growing group of accountants.

The March edition of Accounting Today’s Accountants Confidence Index reveals that the profession has lowered its expectations for growth in the next three to six months.

Check out the digital edition of the March 2012 issue of Accounting Today.

Firm News -- March 9

Grant Thornton has released a new paper calling for an overhaul in the current thinking of the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board on lease accounting standards, instead advocating the use of two different lease accounting models.

International Accounting Standards Board chairman Hans Hoogervorst told attendees at a financial conference in Mexico City that the board plans to give accountants a period of relative stability to give them time to adjust to all the new standards.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has added a new project to its agenda to re-examine the definition of a “nonpublic entity,” as part of its efforts to reach out more to private company constituents.

The Institute of Management Accountants and cloud-based financial and ERP product provider NetSuite Inc. have released a 23-page report, offering insights into the greatest challenges faced by today’s finance organizations, along with the steps that companies are taking to overcome them.

Guarini Takes Helm at GH•D

Michael Andrew, the chairman of KPMG International, sees a variety of audit risks arising in the global financial markets.

A new study suggests that using online video to announce a financial restatement can lead to an erosion in investor trust if not handled properly.