New lease accounting standards come into force at the start of next year which will fundamentally change how companies can report off-balance sheet financing.  How will the new rules affect finance leaders? To read the full article in Accountancy Age, click: Lease Accounting Standards: Are Multinationals Sitting on a “Leaseberg” of Huge Proportions? ...

Under the new FASB rules, financial statement preparers are provided an option to reclassify stranded tax effects within accumulated other comprehensive income in each period in which the effect of the change in the U.S. federal corporate income tax rate in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (or portion thereof) is recorded. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: FASB Addresses Stranded Incom ...

New rules from the FASB regarding how entities will have to measure certain equity investments  may lead to increased earnings volatility and additional fair value complexities.  Lucas Parris, senior member of Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Valuation Group, discusses five things to know about the new rules and some questions to consider. To read the full article in Mercer Capital's Financial Reporting ...

Following FASB’s issuance of its new leases standard, the first step in compliance for many companies is an evaluation of whether they possess all the data they need to report under the new rules.  Ken Tysiac, editorial director of JofA, explores four key considerations recommended for companies as they work to comply with the new leases standard. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, clic ...

A recent survey of investment professionals in the CFA Institute reports investor concerns about the use of different accounting standards and rules for SMEs under IFRS and private companies under GAAP.  Karolina Grabowicz, a financial analyst with Mercer Capital, reports how the use of different standards adds complexity and costs to financial reporting.  Issues also arise over the loss of information due ...

Should Losses Trigger an Immediate Charge or Later Write Down? The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is engaged in an interesting discussion with the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) regarding how quickly bad loans need to be recognized by banks. Here’s the essence of the dispute. ...

Study:  More Deals Occur in Countries That Follow Similar Financial-Reporting Standards   At CFO.com Kathleen Hoffelder reports that dissimilar national accounting standards and the lack of adherence to international financial reporting rules seem to be a major deterrent to companies eyeing targets beyond their borders, according to a recent academic study. Moreover, cross-border acquisitions by companies o ...