Financial reporting

We can see a bigger picture and look further out into the future than those of you who fight your daily battles down in the trenches.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Deutsche Bank AG with filing misstated financial reports during the height of the financial crisis that failed to take into account a material risk for potential losses estimated to be in the billions of dollars, and Deutsche Bank agreed to pay a $55 million penalty to settle the charges.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has released a proposed accounting standards update to clarify the guidance on performance obligations and licensing contained in the new revenue recognition standard.

The Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland, also known as CPA Ireland, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Association of Certified Accountants and Auditors of Belarus, further extending the Institute’s international network and influence in Europe.

Securities and Exchange Commission chief accountant James Schnurr is rethinking a proposal he made last December that the SEC allow U.S. companies the option of providing some information, such as revenues, using International Financial Reporting Standards as a supplement to U.S. GAAP without requiring reconciliation.

The Securities and Exchange Commission, which polices public companies’ financial reports, lacks internal controls over its own accounting, a government watchdog said Thursday.

Thomson Reuters has introduced PPC’s Guide to SSARS Preparation Engagements to explain the new financial statement preparation service introduced by the American Institute of CPAs’ Accounting and Review Services Committee.

PricewaterhouseCoopers’ latest Trendsetter Barometer—a quarterly survey of top executive officers at privately held U.S. businesses—has something positive in it for everyone, according to Ken Esch, the PwC Private Company Services partner who conducted the survey.

Many large privately held companies are more profitable and are growing revenues faster than publicly traded companies in the U.S., according to new data.

The Securities and Exchange Commission voted Wednesday to propose rules to require companies to disclose the relationship between executive compensation and the financial performance of a company.

The International Federation of Accountants has convened the first meeting of a coalition of major accounting firms, civil society groups and international organizations to develop strategies to encourage high-quality public sector financial reporting, greater government transparency and accountability, and empowered citizen engagement.

Practical tips for when and what to disclose

While the number of financial restatements has leveled off in recent years, there was an increase in restatements by large public companies known as accelerated filers for the fourth consecutive year.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has agreed to pay $65 million to settle claims over its audits of the failed investment company MF Global.

Ernst & Young LLP agreed to pay $10 million to settle New York’s lawsuit accusing it of helping Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. hide financial problems in the years leading to its 2008 collapse.

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Institute of Management Accountants have published a report examining the future function of the CFO in the finance department of tomorrow.

Last year saw a rise in accounting-driven federal class action lawsuits, according to a new report from Big Four firm PwC.

Toshiba Corp. fell the most in more than a year after the company said it would appoint a committee to investigate possible problems with its accounting.

You manage what gets measured: Penny-wise but pound-foolish financial reporting

Filings of securities class actions with accounting-related allegations increased 47 percent in 2014, according to a new study.