Accounting standards

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has released for public comment a staff consultant paper on standard-setting related to auditing accounting estimates and fair value measurements.

A post-implementation review conducted by the Financial Accounting Foundation of a 2004 accounting standard on share-based payment transaction said that it achieved its purpose and provides useful information to financial statement users.

The International Accounting Education Standards Board has issued a new plan to support the adoption and implementation of the recently revised International Education Standards for accountants.

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants has proposed to strengthen the auditor independence standards in the ethics code to address long associations with audit and assurance clients.

Ian Mackintosh, vice-chairman of the International Accounting Standards Board, described some of the failures of the convergence process with the Financial Accounting Standards Board in a speech Wednesday, insisting that wholesale adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards is preferable to convergence.

The International Accounting Standards Board has released a new document describing some of its most recent tentative decisions from the first half of the year on the standards for lease accounting, including what appears to be an about-face on how leases should be categorized, opening up a new gulf between it and the Financial Accounting Standards Board.

Hans Hoogervorst, chairman of the International Accounting Standards Board, reportedly told an audience in Singapore last week that full convergence is no longer an achievable project.

A roundup of recent audit & attest news

The International Accounting Standards Board has issued the final element of its own long-awaited financial instruments accounting standard after failing to reach a consensus with the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board on key elements related to credit losses and loan impairments.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has released a new paper on how companies can get ready for the newly converged revenue recognition accounting standard.

Lawmakers who are part of a group of current and former CPAs and accountants in Congress are expressing concern about the possibility of the Securities and Exchange Commission allowing U.S. companies a choice of using either U.S. GAAP or International Financial Reporting Standards.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board voted Wednesday to finalize an accounting and financial reporting standard aimed at increasing transparency and consistency of financial reporting about consolidation.

Wholesale adoption in the U.S. of International Financial Reporting Standards seems unlikely to occur in the near future as the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board continue to move away from full convergence of their standards, according to a Fitch Ratings report.

The International Federation of Accountants and the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy have developed a new International Framework for Good Governance in the Public Sector to encourage more effective public sector governance.

The American Institute of CPAs’ Auditing Standards Board has issued two new auditing interpretations in response to the Governmental Accounting Standards Board’s new pension reporting standards.

A new academic study finds that fair value accounting was unfairly blamed for precipitating the 2008-2009 financial crisis, but acknowledges that some investors reacted positively to news that the rules would be relaxed in response to the crisis.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board are taking different approaches to setting standards for rate-regulated utilities, and a FASB board member sees little prospect for an agreement.

The International Accounting Standards Board announced its intention Monday to create a transition resource group that will focus on the upcoming new requirements for impairment of financial instruments under International Financial Reporting Standards.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has issued a new accounting standards update for stock compensation.

The new converged revenue recognition standard from the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board could have an impact on not only financial statement preparers, but on tax practitioners and auditors as well.