Role and Evolution of The International Accounting Standards Board
The International Accounting Standards Board, (IASB), began life as the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) in the 1973. The IASC was created in June 1973 as a result of an agreement by the accountancy bodies of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Ireland and the United States. These countries constituted the Board of IASC at that time.
The international professional activities of the accountancy bodies were organized under the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) in 1977. In 1981, IASC and IFAC agreed that IASC would have full and complete autonomy in setting international accounting standards and in publishing discussion documents on international accounting issues. At the same time, all members of IFAC became members of IASC. This membership link was discontinued in May 2000 when IASC's Constitution was changed as part of the reorganization of IASC.
The main objective of the IASC was the development of International Accounting Standards, in an effort to reduce the differences in accounting practices across countries. Harmonization is the name given to the process of reducing differences in financial reporting practices and increasing comparability of financial statements in various countries. As such the intent of the IASC was to create a set of accounting rules that would be relevant and consistent to all countries ...
According to the FASB Accounting Standards Codification, goodwill is “An asset representing the future economic benefits arising from other assets acquired in a business combination or an acquisition by a not for profit entity...” (glossary). Goodwill is measured by the premium price we pay for a company; we calculate premium price by subtracting the amount we paid by the estimated price (Fair value) of the company and if we paid more goodwill is created. Goodwill is an intangible asset so it has an indefinite life because it cannot lose value over a specific amount of time. We test for impairment to find out if goodwill has kept its value or if it has declined and we test for impairment on an annual basis. However, goodwill in FASB Accounting Standards
Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). Accounting Standards Codification TM. Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), 2010. Web. 16 May 2014.
The goal of the Codification is to simplify the organization of thousands of authoritative U.S. accounting pronouncements issued by multiple standard-setters. To achieve this goal, the FASB initiated a project to integrate and topically organize all relevant accounting pronouncements issued by the U.S. standard-setters including those of the FASB, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), and the Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF)
To help accounting professionals easily navigate through 50-plus years of unorganized US generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and standards the Trustees of the Financial Accounting Foundation approved the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) Accounting Standards Codification (Codification.) By codifying authoritative US GAAP, FASB will provide users with real-time and accurate information in one location. Concurrently, FASB developed the FASB Codification Research System; a web-based system allowing registered users to electronically research accounting issues. Since 2009, the codification became the single source of nongovernmental authoritative GAAP.
What is IFRS, and what is its significance in the world market? In 2001 the International Accounting Standards Board, or IASB, was created to develop a set of standards by which global financial statuses could be reported. According to financialstabilityboard.org, this set of standards, known as the International Financial Reporting Standards, or IFRS, falls under the jurisdiction of the IFRS Foundation, which is a non-profit, private and independently run entity that exists for the public interest, is based on four principle objectives. The first is to develop a single set of international financial reporting standards (IFRS). This set would be high in quality, readily understandable, easily enforceable, and acceptable world-wide. The second objective is to encourage the use of this set of standards in the international business world. Thirdly, the ISAB would like to monitor the needs of different sizes and types of businesses in different settings. The fourth objective is to promote the adoption of the IFRS by converging national accounting standards wit...
The convergence project between the United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (U.S. GAAP) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)/International Accounting Standards (IAS) started in 2002. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) met to discuss a joint commitment to develop a set of high quality standards that could be compatible internationally. The commitment was called the Norwalk agreement. The thinking behind the agreement is that it could improve international business relationships and allow financial statements to be compared across the world (IFRS, 2016).
Private and public accounting has long been discussed and disputed in regards to financial reporting. Since the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) was created in 1973, accountants have called for different accounting regulations for private and public accounting sectors, as private companies do not have the resources to meet the complex requirements of public companies. Private companies currently are not required by law to issue annual or quarterly financial statements (James, 2012). Private companies do, however, have the option to apply the U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), cash basis, or accrual accounting to their financial statements (James, 2012).
Now more than ever it is important to know what IFRS is and what AICPA and IMA are, especially pertaining to their ethical standards. IFRS or the International Accounting Standards Board is a group of highly experienced professionals in the accounting field. They deal with the setting of standards, as well as preparing, auditing or using financial reports, and educating future accountants. The AICPA or the American Institute Of Certified Public Accountants is a non-profit organization of American Certified Public Accountants (CPA) who create
It is highly essential for accountants and business professionals to maintain a standard of ethical conduct in the workplace as the nature of their work places them in position of trust. (Senarante, 2011). Accountants have the responsibility to ensure that their duties are performed in accordance with the five fundamental principles set out in the Code of Professional Ethics such as integrity, objectivity, professional competence and due care, confidentially and professional behaviour (Cunningham et al. 2014). Accountants are expected to be reliable and trustworthy. Thus they are required to act ethically in relation to their clients, employers and the general public in order to provide quality services in the best interest of the society (Eginiwin & Dike, 2014). The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) have established a code of ethics for accountants, allowing each specific country to add their own national ethical standards to the code to reflect cultural differences. The code provides emphasis on the five fundamental principles as well as resolution of ethical conflicts. In Australia, professional accounting bodies such as CPA Australia, Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICCA) and the Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) adopt the Australian Professional and Ethical
It is worth noting that no one nation has a set of accounting rules which
AASB, Australian Accounting Standards Board, Statement of Accounting Concepts SAC4 ‘Definition and recognition of the elements of financial stat
The globalization of business has resulted in the need for compatible accounting standards that can be used internationally for financial reporting. As a result, the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) were developed by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) to unify the various financial reporting methods and create a single accounting standard which can be applied to any financial statement worldwide (Byatt). The global standardization of financial reporting will increase the readability and enhance comparability of globally traded companies’ financial statements, without the need of conversion or translation. There are a few main differences between the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and the U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (U.S GAAP). The increasing recognition and acceptance of the International Financial Reporting Standards by accounting professionals in the United States, will affect the way in which the U.S will record financial statements in the future.
According to business, or any organization, Accounting plays a major role in developing and growth of the business. Financial standards of the organization expected as the complexities of business growth and expansion. Hence determining the implementation of the standards can vary according to the type of industry, business or organization.
What is it exactly that makes a business thrive? Is it the popular line of production being sold? The quality of customer service? The manner in which the industry is organized? Indeed, these attentions have a significant role in a corporation, but most importantly just how well is a company running. Hence, the financial statements are the key element in any business. This provides information to shareholders, investors, and more especially to its managers, because these individuals are the ones to understand and communicate the performance of the company. Investopedia comments that “accounting standards are crucial in an efficient market, as information must be transparent, credible, and understandable.” Therefore, the FASB (Financial Accounting Standards Board) has a mission to improve accounting practices in a corporation by enhancing guidelines for accounting reports, to distinguish and solve issues in a suitable manner, and create a fair standard across the financial markets that all those who are busineess affiliated, must pertain.
In 1887, the American Association of Public Accountants was formed with the first standardized tests coming out about a decade later (Zeff, 2003, pg. 2). In 1896, New York State passed the first law for Certified Public Accountants (CPA), which Zeff (2003) “marked the beginning of an accredited profession of accounting in the United States” (pg 2). In Canada, the first association began in 1902 with the Dominion Association of Chartered Accountants (Buckstein, part 1 pg 2). Buckstein quoted John L. Carey, the author of a paper outlining the history of the accounting profession worldwide stated “the reason for creating a full-fledged professional organization was to distinguish skilled accountants of integrity from self-styled accountants whose competence had not been demonstrated” (pg. 2) As Zeff (2003) stated with the passage of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 all publicly traded companies were now required to have their financials audited by independent CPA’s (pg. 4). This showcased the importance of having skilled and knowledgeable individuals produce verifiable and accurate information that the public (in all its forms) could rely upon. The combination of having professional accounting bodies and government legislations have attempted to establish