International accounting

The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed charges against the government technology contractor Computer Sciences Corporation, its former CEO and several finance executives, accusing them of manipulating financial results and concealing significant problems about the company’s largest and most high-profile contract, as well as ignoring basic accounting standards to increase reported profits.

Claire Ighodaro, a board member of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants, sees a need for firms to promote an ethical culture by setting a tone at the top levels of the organization.

Toshiba Corp. named two lawyers and two certified public accountants to a third-party committee that is expanding an investigation started by an internal probe last month over accounting practices.

The International Federation of Accountants has submitted a response to the European Commission regarding a recent green paper on building a stronger capital markets union.

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.

Toshiba Corp. lost $2.8 billion in market value after the industrial and electronics group withdrew its earnings forecast pending an internal probe into improper accounting on infrastructure projects.

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 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.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board issued for public comment Wednesday a proposed accounting standards update that would defer the effective date of its new revenue recognition standard by one year.

The International Accounting Standards Board voted Tuesday to propose a one-year deferral of the revenue recognition standard that the IASB converged last year with the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board.

The recent IFAC Global SMP Survey from the International Federation of Accountants showed that attracting new clients is a top concern for accountants in small and medium practices, with 58 percent of respondents rating it as a high or very high challenge.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board appears to be poised to delay the effective date of its new revenue recognition standard by a year, giving U.S. companies more opportunity to adapt to the changes.

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.

Kara Stein, a commissioner with the Securities and Exchange Commission, appeared to reject the need for convergence with International Financial Reporting Standards in a speech last week.

The International Accounting Standards Board issued an overview of its upcoming lease accounting standard Monday, saying it plans to complete its deliberations on the long-awaited standard this month and to issue the standard later this year.

While the major international accounting firms no longer do business in Iran, the country’s own accounting firms have been faring well, according to a new report.

Compensation for management accounting and finance professionals rose by an average of 7.1 percent last year, according to a new survey, but some specialties received raises while others saw their salaries remain stagnant.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board are considering some changes to their converged revenue recognition standard that could lead to divergence after hearing feedback from the Joint Transition Resource Group that is examining implementation issues.

An organization of Irish accountants has signed an agreement with a Russian accounting organization, to provide education, training, examination, an online certificate in financial reporting and an array of other areas.

Noble Group Ltd. denied inflating the balance-sheet value of contracts as Asia’s biggest commodities trading house published a rebuttal against allegations by Iceberg Research, an anonymous group that’s questioned the company’s accounting methods. Noble’s shares rose.