IASB | Stripping Costs in the Production Phase of a Surface Mine

www.ifrs.org

The IFRS Interpretations Committee of IASB, published proposed guidance on the accounting for stripping costs in the production phase of a surface mine.

The committee was asked to consider how to account for the process of removing waste from a surface mine in order to gain access to mineral ore deposits given the divergence in practice that exists. The committee has proposed that costs associated with a “stripping campaign” should be accounted for as an additional component of an existing asset, and that this component should be written down over the reserves that directly benefit from the campaign.

The full proposal (DI/2010/1) is open for comment until November 30 and can be accessed under the “Comment on a Proposal” section of www.ifrs.org

SEC | Progress in IFRS Update

JournalofAccountancy.com

A Securities and Exchange Commission staff report detailed research and analysis still to be done as the SEC considers whether, when and how to allow U.S. domestic issuers to use IFRS. The report, issued on Friday, describes progress under its IFRS work plan.

In the recently released IFRS Progress Report , the SEC staff details its progress thus far and remaining research and analysis to be done as the commission considers whether, when and how to allow domestic issuers in the U.S. to use IFRS.

The SEC staff’s first update draws no major conclusions. It highlights concerns among regulators that now rely on U.S. GAAP as a basis for their reporting regimes about the impact of a shift to IFRS and worries over the funding mechanism for the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB).

The 44-page report details staff efforts and its list of to dos across six major areas the commission is weighing.

• Development of IFRS for the U.S. domestic reporting system
• Independence of standard setting
• Investor understanding and education regarding IFRS
• Examination of the U.S. regulatory environment that would be affected by a change in accounting standards
• The impact on issuers, such as changes to accounting systems and contractual arrangements
• Human capital readiness

Earlier this year, the commission signaled that it would make a determination in 2011 about the use of global standards by U.S. public companies following completion of the SEC’s IFRS work plan and the convergence projects agreed to by FASB and the IASB.

The SEC has stressed the importance of having a well-funded standard setter with a governance structure to support the independent development of global standards for the “ultimate benefit of investors.” According to the progress report, the SEC staff is analyzing how the IASB and its parent organization, the IFRS Foundation, are funded through review of “publicly available data and outreach to foreign regulators.”

The assessment will involve current, planned and proposed funding mechanisms. The staff is also in the process of considering a range of possibilities with respect to contributions to the IFRS Foundation and the IASB from the United States.

“Based on current existing funding commitments, the IFRS Foundation has indicated that it could be in an operating deficit for fiscal year 2010,” the progress report states. “In addition, the IFRS Foundation indicated it could expect a $4 million funding ‘gap’ with respect to its self-determined contribution target for the United States.”

Read more on Journal of Accountancy : Download the Report

IFRS Returns to the Front Burner

by Marie Leone, CFO.com

Leading the charge to convert the world to International Financial Reporting Standards, David Tweedie says many of the problems opponents cite are being addressed and resolved. Is he right?

The debate over whether U.S. companies should be forced to use international accounting standards took on new life last month when the Securities and Exchange Commission assured investors, companies, and accountants that the project is still active. Once the SEC announced it hadn't lost sight of the project, criticism of International Financial Reporting Standards bubbled up again, with opponents making the same arguments they did when the SEC released the IFRS roadmap in 2007.

The main criticisms: training U.S. accountants and auditors by the proposed 2014 deadline would be impossible; the SEC would cede its regulatory power to a global regulator; the standard-setter that wrote the rules — the International Accounting Standards Board — would buckle under political pressure; and compared with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, IFRS is weak and would therefore invite accounting abuse.

But IASB chairman, David Tweedie, says those old complaints don't conform to current realities. He contends there won't be many differences, in fact, between U.S. GAAP and IFRS by the year 2015 if the current project to converge the two sets of rules continues at its current pace.

The agenda and time line for the convergence project, which was launched seven years ago by the IASB and its U.S. counterpart, the Financial Accounting Standards Board, will be updated at the end of the month during a three-day joint board meeting. As of today, the time line does not extend past 2011 — the year the SEC expects to vote on whether to move forward with mandatory adoption of IFRS, or to abandon the project.

Speaking to reporters at a Deloitte client conference in New York this week, Tweedie said obstacles regarding U.S. education have already fallen. For one thing, IFRS textbooks are already available in English from publishers in the United Kingdom and Australia.

What's more, by mid-2008 each of the Big Four accounting firms — who are major supporters of IFRS — had begun working with colleges to revamp curricula to include IFRS. (The American Accounting Assn., whose members are accounting professors, created a task force two years ago to develop IFRS curricula that could be rolled out to colleges.)

The notion that auditors are unprepared for the change also is a stretch, argued Tweedie. By his lights, any accounting firm that works with big or small multinationals already deals with financials prepared using IFRS. Further, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, which develops audit standards for privately held firms, has launched www.ifrs.com, a website aimed at providing its 300,000 members with training, resources, and updates on lobbying efforts on behalf of CPAs.

Last year, the AICPA also recognized the IASB as a standard-setter, which in effect allows U.S. auditors to express opinions on financial statements prepared using IFRS.

"The AICPA put IFRS on the same plane as U.S. GAAP"says Barry Epstein, a CPA and partner with litigation consultancy Russell Novak & Co.

"David Tweedie is right: the Momentum for IFRS is there; it is like a snowball rolling down a hill."

Epstein says the "watershed" event that fueled the creation of the SEC's IFRS roadmap — the proposal to move U.S. companies to IFRS by 2014 — was the 2007 SEC rule that waived the reconciliation requirement for foreign private issuers. As a result, foreign companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges were no longer required to reconcile their IFRS results with U.S. GAAP.

By giving permission "to the visiting team" to use IFRS, the SEC created an outcry among companies and investors for a level playing field that included a plan to allow American companies to file financial results in IFRS, says Epstein, adding that:

"... investors and companies must face the reality that IFRS is here to stay."

But opponents who contend that U.S. GAAP is the global gold standard for transparent and robust financial reporting say the lack of rules and guidance in IFRS invites accounting abuse. Critics taking that view include the New York State Society of CPAs, which, with its 30,000 members, is one of the country's largest groups of accountants.

In a comment letter filed with the SEC about the roadmap, the NYSSCPA panned the proposal, finding the quality of IFRS lacking and the conversion costs too hefty, and claiming that "carve-outs" — the exceptions to IFRS that different countries develop — impair the comparability and consistency of financial statements that investors rely on.

The group also echoed a common complaint heard among IFRS opponents: the IASB caved in to political pressure last year when it allowed companies to retroactively reclassify assets so they could "cherry-pick" those with significant losses and remove them from net-income calculations. Tweedie's retort is that if the IASB hadn't acted to control the rule change, the European Commission would have passed a law that changed the rule in a less desirable way.

The handful of comment letters that CFOs filed with the SEC about the roadmap reveal mixed reactions to IFRS. For instance, C. Bradford Richmond of Darden Restaurants wrote:

" The large majority of U.S. public companies, like Darden, serve primarily domestic customer bases and are adequately capitalized without tapping overseas capital markets. Rather than mandating IFRS for all companies, we believe it would be more appropriate to allow large multinational organizations to adopt IFRS on a voluntary basis."

Similarly, Elyse Douglas of The Hertz Corp. noted:

" In our opinion, there has been no groundswell of public opinion promoting a conversion to IFRS. In fact, we have never heard an investor in our company, any stock analyst covering Hertz, or any lender with which we do business suggest to us that they would prefer we report our results in IFRS."

Conversely, Martyn Webster of XenoPort Inc. wrote:

" If the U.S. remains outside of the IFRS framework, then we will somewhat compromise our ability to participate in, and influence, important matters related to the overall operations of global capital markets."

A new Deloitte survey that polled 150 corporate finance executives concluded that:

- 51% - of the respondents would support the SEC's roadmap for adopting IFRS, if the regulator considered pushing back the mandatory deadline a year, to 2015
- 19% - said they supported the roadmap "as it is"
- 15% - rejected the proposal.

The remaining executives said they were unsure how the SEC should proceed.

Tweedie contends that while some critics claim the SEC will lose power if American companies switch to IFRS, the opposite is true. "The SEC will increase power" if the U.S. moves to IFRS, he says. "The beauty of the SEC is that it is one of the world's most effective regulators, and that puts peer pressure on others."

That pressure will extend to private companies as well, noted D.J. Gannon, a Deloitte partner and the firm's IFRS expert, who also took part in the press briefing. He said that once the SEC acts to require public companies to file results using IFRS, larger private companies will follow in order to keep up with the competition. In addition, lenders to smaller private companies will demand it from their borrowers. "It will take time; we are not going to go from zero to 60 in three months," noted Gannon, who thinks that over the next few years, momentum to use IFRS will grow.

It wasn't until recently that the SEC weighed in on the progress of its own roadmap. Since becoming SEC chair in late January, Mary Schapiro had remained quiet on the subject of the roadmap, a project her Republican predecessor, Christopher Cox, launched during his term. Schapiro's silence led some observers to believe the SEC was backing off from IFRS altogether.

But recent public statements made by Schapiro and James Kroeker, the SEC's chief accountant, assured constituents that the IFRS project had a green light. Schapiro's silence was a way of "establishing her territory [and] showing she was not doing the bidding of the previous Administration," contends Epstein. "I don't think it is possible to stop [the move to IFRS] or delay it. It costs money to keep companies in limbo."

Others, including Charles Niemeier, a member and former acting chair of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, have criticized the "rush" to deploy IFRS in the United States. For his part, Niemeier would like to see the IASB-FASB convergence project finished before requiring U.S. companies to file in IFRS. That, he thinks, would ensure that the combined standards remain stringent.

A precipitous exit from GAAP undermines the U.S. regulatory system and places "in jeopardy the thing that gives the U.S. a competitive advantage," he noted at an industry meeting in 2008.

" All research shows that the U.S. is unique in its regulation. No country is as effective.... We have the lowest cost of capital in the world. Do we really want to give that up"?

Additional reporting by: David McCann & Jason Karaian.

Updated IFRS and IAS Summaries (2009)

International Accounting Standards Board

Framework : Technical Summary
The IASB Framework was approved by the IASC Board in April 1989 for publication in July 1989, and adopted by the IASB in April 2001.

IFRS : International Financial Reporting Standards

• IFRS 1 First-time Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards
• IFRS 2 Share-based Payment
• IFRS 3 Business Combinations
• IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts
• IFRS 5 Non-current Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations
• IFRS 6 Exploration for and evaluation of Mineral Resources
• IFRS 7 Financial Instruments: Disclosures
• IFRS 8 Operating Segments

IAS : International Accounting Standards

• IAS 1 | Presentation of Financial Statements
• IAS 2 | Inventories
• IAS 7 | Statement of Cash Flows
• IAS 8 | Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors
• IAS 10 | Events After the Balance Sheet Date
• IAS 11 | Construction Contracts
• IAS 12 | Income Taxes
• IAS 16 | Property, Plant and Equipment
• IAS 17 | Leases
• IAS 18 | Revenue
• IAS 19 | Employee Benefits
• IAS 20 | Accounting for Government Grants and Disclosure of Government Assistance
• IAS 21 | The Effects of Changes in Foreign Exchange Rates
• IAS 23 | Borrowing Costs
• IAS 24 | Related Party Disclosures
• IAS 26 | Accounting and Reporting by Retirement Benefit Plans
• IAS 27 | Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements
• IAS 28 | Investments in Associates
• IAS 29 | Financial Reporting in Hyperinflationary Economies
• IAS 31 | Interests in Joint Ventures
• IAS 32 | Financial Instruments: Presentation
• IAS 33 | Earnings per Share
• IAS 34 | Interim Financial Reporting
• IAS 36 | Impairment of Assets
• IAS 37 | Provisions, Contingent Liabilities and Contingent Assets
• IAS 38 | Intangible Assets
• IAS 39 | Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement
• IAS 40 | Investment Property
• IAS 41 | Agriculture

SEC to refocus on IFRS Roadmap

by Emily Chasan, New York, Reuters.com

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will make it a priority in the coming months to refocus on a proposed roadmap to move U.S. companies to international accounting standards.

"Turning back to the roadmap will be an important priority for us this fall," Jim Kroeker, the SEC's new chief accountant said in remarks to a New York State Society of CPAs conference in New York.

Last November, in one of the last major projects of the SEC under former Chairman Christopher Cox, the SEC staff released a proposed roadmap that would have U.S. companies filing financial results under International Financial Reporting Standards, or IFRS, by 2014, with the option for some companies to adopt the rules earlier.

Kroeker, who took up his post last month, said on Thursday that in the more than 200 comment letters the SEC has received on the proposal, it was "resoundingly clear" that people agree there should be a single set of global high-quality accounting standards, but there were striking differences in how different groups wanted to accomplish that goal.

Kroeker said the SEC staff, as "an important next step," would work on how to put into place various pillars and milestones to reach that goal.

IFRS is written by the London-based International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), while the traditional U.S. accounting rules - known as U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) - are written by the Norwalk, Connecticut-based Financial Accounting Standards Board.

Kroeker noted two accounting rule-makers have been working to align both sets of rules over the past few years and recently accelerated certain projects to promote convergence.

But he urged those working to try to align U.S. and international accounting standards to avoid "a race to the bottom," where in a rush to converge the rules, accounting standard setters are urged to adopt the least controversial version of the rules, rather than the one that would best represent economic reality.

"A race to the bottom is an absolute concern I have," Kroeker said. "If we engage in a race to the bottom ultimately there will be no winner in that race."

Editing by Maureen Bavdek

IASC: New Editions: "Guide through IFRS" & "IFRS Taxonomy Guide Illustrated"

www.iasb.org

The IASC Foundation will soon publish the "Guide through IFRS" and the "IFRS Taxonomy Illustrated".



The printed publications will be soon available to the public. In order to receive notification, or to pre-order and receive a pro-forma invoice, please click on the images.

"A Guide through IFRS" Price: £90

Available in hard copy soon and online in Q4 2009, A Guide through International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs), includes the full consolidated text of the Standards and Interpretations and accompanying documents-illustrative examples, implementation guidance, bases for conclusions and dissenting opinion-issued by the IASB as at 1 July 2009, with extensive cross-references and other annotations. The book, A Guide through IFRS July 2009 - (ISBN 978-1-907026-20-1), approximately 3,008 pages, is priced £90 each (plus shipping).
Discounts are available for multiple copies, students/academics and residents of middle and low income countries. IASB Comprehensive Subscribers will automatically receive a copy of the new "Guide through IFRS July 2009" when it becomes available.

" IFRS Taxonomy Illustrated " Price: £15

Physically, the IFRS Taxonomy consists of a set of electronic XBRL files and, therefore, it can be difficult for those not familiar with XBRL to understand the structure of the Taxonomy without the use of software. The "IFRS Taxonomy Illustrated" presents a simplified view of the IFRS Taxonomy in an easy to read, visual format that does not require knowledge of XBRL. It has been specially prepared for accountants, auditors and those wanting a comprehensive overview of the structure and content of the IFRS Taxonomy, in order to promote understanding of the Taxonomy and assist with preparing IFRS financial reports in XBRL format.

The "IFRS Taxonomy Illustrated" sets out the hierarchy of the Taxonomy and the elements within it (which represent IFRS disclosure requirements), the required format of these elements (such as text, monetary values, etc), and the IFRSs and IASs that these elements relate to. To meet the needs of preparers, the "IFRS Taxonomy Illustrated" has been released in two versions - the Taxonomy organised according to financial statements, and the Taxonomy organised by IFRSs (i.e. in the same order as the Bound Volume of IFRSs).

Registered IFRS website subscribers can also access HTML versions in Arabic, English (organised by financial statements or IFRSs) and Spanish, with translations into other key languages are to be made available over the coming months.

IAS 39 : IASB Update : Classification and Measurement

Financial instruments: Replacement of IAS 39

The International Accounting Standards Board met in London on 22 September 2009 for an additional Board meeting, to continue work on the project to replace existing requirements for financial instruments. The Board continued its discussions on responses received to its previous exposure draft, published in July.

IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement has an exception that requires an entity to measure at cost investments in equity instruments that do not have a quoted market price and whose fair value cannot be reliably determined (as well as derivatives that are linked to such equity instruments and which must be settled by delivery of them). The exposure draft proposed to remove that exception and require that such investments be measured at fair value.

The Board tentatively decided to provide guidance for when entities can use a simplified current measurement for equity instruments if determining fair value is impracticable. In addition, the Board tentatively decided to amend IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting to allow an entity to carry forward that measure if there is no evidence of a significant change in that measure since the last reporting date.

Impairment of financial instruments

The Board also continued its discussions on impairment of financial instruments. Regarding the drafting of an exposure draft (ED) on impairment the Board tentatively decided:

• that the ED should provide principle-based guidance regarding cash flow estimates on a collective (portfolio) and an individual basis (including the interplay between those bases) that focuses on two aspects:
1. using the approach that provides the best estimate; and
2. ensuring that if entities switch between approaches that does not result in double counting.
• that the ED includes concise application guidance for forecasting cash flows and the treatment of trade receivables.
• to use the Expert Advisory Panel (EAP) as a forum to explore further some other issues (determination of the initial expected spread, practical aspects of applying the effective interest method and interaction with Basel II requirements).
• that the ED clarifies aspects in relation to the measurement objective (point-in-time versus through-the-cycle-estimates, expected value versus most probable value and the use of entity specific versus market data).

Regarding transition proposals the Board tentatively decided not to propose either full retrospective or full prospective application. The Board asked the staff to explore further an alternative transition approach for financial instruments that were recognised before the date of transition. This approach would involve determining on transition a new effective interest rate on the basis of the expected cash flows over the remaining life of the financial instrument that would be subject to a floor (the risk free interest rate) and a ceiling (the contractual interest rate).

IASB Conceptual Framework Project:
Objectives and qualitative characteristics
http://bit.ly/b0XLH

PCFRC Eyes Global Standards for Small Business

By Michael Cohn, WebCPA

The Private Company Financial Reporting Committee took a close look at the International Accounting Standards Board’s new “IFRS for SMEs” standards at its meeting last week.

The committee, a joint effort of the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the American Institute of CPAs, spent the bulk of the two-day meeting examining the IASB’s stripped-down set of International Financial Reporting Standards for Small and Midsized Entities (see International Accounting Standards Issued for SMBs)

Various members of the committee were assigned different sections of the standards, and will discuss what might work for U.S. companies and what might not, but the committee did not reach any conclusions on adopting the standards.

“As a committee, we did not come up with any specific recommendations on that, other than that we believe the issue of private company accounting should be on FASB’s agenda at some point,” said PCFRC chair Judy O’Dell. Most of the committee believes there should be differences in accounting between public and private entities, she noted.

One issue that needs to be addressed in the “IFRS for SMEs” standards is that last-in-first-out accounting is not permitted for inventory. “That’s a real sticking point in the United States,” said O’Dell. On the other hand, the committee liked some of the simplifications in the standards, especially one that allows accountants to simply amortize goodwill, rather than do costly impairment evaluations. O’Dell recommended that accountants should visit a section of the AICPA’s IFRS.com site that provides a set of questions and answers on the “IFRS for SMEs” standards.

The committee also discussed the state of several other projects, such as revenue recognition and financial statement presentation, but O’Dell noted there has not been a great deal of movement on those. However, a document on FIN 48-d, “Application Guidance for Pass-through Entities and Tax-Exempt Not-for-Profit Entities and Disclosure Modifications for Nonpublic Entities,” should be issued fairly soon.

The PCFRC is also likely to write letters commenting on the applicability of proposed loan-loss disclosure standards to private companies, and the flexibility of EITF 08-01, which covers revenue arrangements with multiple deliverables.

IASB response to G20 recommendations

An update to the comprehensive overview of measures undertaken by the IASC Foundation and the IASB in response to the G20 conclusions is now available.

Download the updated summary at:
http://www.iasb.org/NR/rdonlyres/971252E2-B90C-48CC-A4F7-08A2A3B36E0E/0/AprilG20responseupdatedAug09.pdf

IASB : Fair Value Measurement Round Tables

International Accounting Standards Committee Foundation
www.iasb.org

In November and December 2009 the IASB will hold round table discussions on its proposals for fair value measurement. Round tables will be held in North America, Asia and Europe.

An audio recording of the round table discussions will be made available on the website shortly after each round table.

About the round table topics

The IASB has a project to define fair value and to provide guidance on measuring fair value in IFRSs. The round tables will discuss the IASB's proposals (as reflected in the exposure draft Fair Value Measurement).

Location, Dates and Times

Each round table will last 2 hours. Depending on the interest in the round tables, a second session on the same topics may be held in each location.

Note that although we aim to admit every interested party to the round tables, there may not be room for all those who wish to attend.

In the interest of admitting as many interested parties as possible, only one participant per organisation is permitted in the round tables (others may attend as observers).

If you are interested in participating in a round table meeting, please indicate in your comment letter which location you prefer.

2 November in Norwalk
The Financial Accounting Standards Board
401 Merritt 7, Norwalk, CT 06856-5116
United States of America

27 November in Tokyo
The Accounting Standards Board of Japan
Fukoku Seimei Building 20F, 2-2
Uchisaiwaicho 2-chome, Chiyodaoku
Tokyo 100-0011
Japan

11 December in London
The International Accounting Standards Board
First Floor, 30 Cannon Street, London EC4M 6XH
United Kingdom

ASBJ and IASB Reaffirm their Ongoing Cooperation in Achieving Convergence in Accounting Standards

07 and 08 September 2009, London
Sir David Tweedie, Chairman, IASB www.iasb.org
Ikuo Nishikawa, Chairman, ASBJ www.asb.or.jp

The Accounting Standards Board of Japan (ASBJ) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) have held their 10th meeting to accelerate convergence of Japanese generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs).

As part of the meeting, representatives of the IASB provided an update on their ongoing project work, in particular on those projects that form part of the convergence programme between the IASB and the US Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and on the measures that are being undertaken by the IASB in response to the financial crisis.

Representatives of the ASBJ reported that good progress is being made towards convergence of IFRSs and Japanese GAAP. As outlined in the Tokyo Agreement these efforts extend to all projects on the IASB’s agenda. Representatives of the boards also exchanged views on the recent IASB exposure draft Financial Instruments: Classification and Measurement and the following important items, including cross-cutting issues among IASB projects.

Other comprehensive income, and recycling/non-recycling: Cross-cutting issues among Financial statement presentation, Financial instruments (Classification and measurement), and Post-employment benefits

Measurement of liabilities: Cross-cutting issues among Financial liabilities and Non-Financial liabilities (IAS37) , including own credit risk

In addition, the representatives of the ASBJ provided an overview of the Interim Report Opinion on Application of International Financial Reporting Standards in Japan issued by the Business Accounting Council (BAC), an advisory body to the Commissioner of the Japan Financial Services Agency (FSA) in June this year.

The roadmap permits early adoption of IFRSs by listed companies for fiscal years beginning 1 April 2009 and proposes mandatory adoption of IFRSs from 2015 or 2016, with a final decision on the mandatory element being taken around 2012.

In this context, representatives of the boards also discussed how to address issues relating to the implementation of IFRSs in Japan.

As a result of these discussions, the IASB expressed its willingness to support Japanese constituents and the ASBJ in their work in addressing implementation issues.

Representatives of both boards believe that the ASBJ’s and IASB’s ongoing work towards convergence between Japanese GAAP and IFRSs is essential for a successful adoption of IFRSs. The ASBJ’s continuing participation in the IASB’s standard-setting process will also contribute to the future development of high-quality accounting standards in the medium and long term.

Commenting on the meeting, Ikuo Nishikawa, Chairman of the ASBJ, said:
" The IASB and the ASBJ again had a useful meeting that included a productive discussion on cross-cutting issues. The ASBJ continues to participate actively in the international standard-setting process, including this regular meeting with the IASB. This is also consistent with the Interim Report issued by the Business Accounting Council, which sets out a roadmap towards the application of IFRSs in Japan and recommends that the ASBJ continues and accelerates the convergence of accounting standards ".

Sir David Tweedie, Chairman of the IASB, said:
" The recent approval of a roadmap for the adoption of IFRSs in Japan by the Business Accounting Council of Japan Financial Services Agency has been a milestone in our efforts to establish IFRSs as the single set of generally accepted accounting principles around the world. The joint efforts of both boards to achieve convergence as agreed in the Tokyo Agreement have made an important contribution to making this development possible. The ongoing cooperation of the two boards will also contribute to a smooth adoption of IFRSs in Japan and to creating high quality IFRSs in the future ".

IASB proposes to amend the discount rate for measuring employee benefits

The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has published for public comment, proposals to amend the discount rate for measuring employee benefits. The proposals respond to calls from stakeholders to address a problem that the global financial crisis has made increasingly significant.

IAS 19 Employee Benefits requires an entity to determine the rate used to discount employee benefits with reference to market yields on high quality corporate bonds. However, when there is no deep market in corporate bonds, an entity is required to use market yields on government bonds instead. The global financial crisis has led to a widening of the spread between yields on corporate bonds and yields on government bonds. As a result, entities with similar employee benefit obligations may report them at very different amounts.

To address the issue expeditiously, the IASB proposes to eliminate the requirement to use yields on government bonds. Instead, entities would estimate the yield on high quality corporate bonds. If adopted, the amendments would ensure that the comparability of financial statements is maintained across jurisdictions, regardless of whether there is a deep market for high quality corporate bonds.

In view of the urgency of the issue and the limited scope of the proposals the IASB has set a shortened period for comments on the exposure draft. The IASB intends to permit entities to adopt the amendments that arise from this exposure draft in their December 2009 financial statements.

The proposals are set out in the exposure draft Discount Rate for Employee Benefits (proposed amendments to IAS 19) which is open for comment until 30 September 2009.

The exposure draft is ‘Open for Comment’ at:
http://www.iasb.org/

IAS for Small and Medium Business Entities

The International Accounting Standards Board has published a stripped-down set of International Financial Reporting Standards aimed at small and midsized privately held businesses. www.iasb.org

The 230-page set of standards is the product of a five-year effort. The IASB said it consulted with a 40-member working group of experts on small and midsized entities to develop the “IFRS for SMEs” standards. The standards are much simpler than the full IFRS set for public companies. However, they are designed to provide improved comparability for users of accounts, enhance overall confidence in the accounts of small and midsized entities, and reduce the significant costs involved in maintaining standards on a national basis. The standards take a cost-benefit approach. IASB director of standards for SMEs Paul Pacter will lead a group to support international adoption of the standard.

IASB Chairman, Sir David Tweedie said:
“The publication of IFRS for SMEs is a major breakthrough for companies throughout the world,” ... “For the first time, SMEs will have a common high-quality and internationally respected set of accounting requirements. We believe the benefits will be felt in both developed and emerging economies.”

U.S. accounting standard-setters have also been involved in consulting on the standards as IFRS continues to converge with U.S. GAAP. The American Institute of CPAs commended the release of the standards.

“ The AICPA welcomes the introduction of IFRS for small and medium entities as an alternative accounting and reporting option for private companies,’’ said AICPA president and CEO Barry Melancon in a statement. “It is indicative of a growing trend toward alternatives for private companies in both the U.S. and worldwide, reflecting the fact that users of private-company financial statements have different needs than users of public-company statements.”

To support the implementation of IFRS for SMEs, the IASC Foundation is developing comprehensive training material and working with international development agencies to provide instructors for regional workshops to train people in the use of the training material, particularly within developing and emerging economies.

The training material will be published in a number of languages. The English-language training material will be downloadable free of charge from the IASB’s Web site in late 2009.

Discover more on IFRS for SMEs at: http://go.iasb.org/IFRSforSMEs

Σχολιασμός:
Δρ. Δημήτριος Ντζανάτος, Πρόεδρος Grant Thornton

" Το λογιστικό πρότυπο για τις μικρομεσαίες επιχειρήσεις, δεν είναι άλλο ένα πρότυπο που εντάσσεται στα IFRS, αλλά αποτελεί ένα αυτόνομο σύνολο. Αφορά το 95% περίπου του αριθμού των εταιριών, παγκόσμια αλλά και στη χώρα μας.

Είναι ένα κείμενο πολύ απλοποιημένο σε σχέση με τα IFRS , ώστε με μικρό κόστος να μπορεί να εφαρμοστεί από τις ΜΜΕ. Οι διαδικασίες λογισμού και αποτίμησης έχουν απλοποιηθεί, ζητήματα που δεν αφορούν τις ΜΜΕ έχουν παραλειφθεί, οι γνωστοποιήσεις έχουν μειωθεί δραστικά σε σχέση με τα IFRS . Επειδή τα IFRS αλλάζουν διαρκώς και αναθεωρούνται και μία ανάλογη πρακτική για τις ΜΜΕ θα αποτελούσε μεγάλο πρόβλημα, έχει αποφασιστεί οι αναθεωρήσεις να γίνονται κάθε τριετία.

Το πρότυπο, για το IASB , ισχύει με τη δημοσίευσή του. Αυτό φυσικά δεν σημαίνει ότι ισχύει στη χώρα μας ή σε άλλες χώρες, πριν γίνουν οι απαραίτητες νομοθετικές ρυθμίσεις.
Κάθε χώρα μπορεί να ορίσει αυτή το περιεχόμενο της έννοιας «Μικρομεσαίες Επιχειρήσεις» και επομένως το εύρος της εφαρμογής του προτύπου, ενώ μπορεί να υιοθετήσει αυτό το πρότυπο, χωρίς να έχει υιοθετήσει τα IFRS . Το IASB αντιμετωπίζει το πρότυπο για τις ΜΜΕ με έναν ιδιαίτερο τρόπο σε σχέση με τα IFRS . Το διανέμει δωρεάν, επεξεργάζεται διαδικασίες εκπαίδευσης των λογιστών, θα διανείμει εκπαιδευτικό υλικό δωρεάν. Είναι φανερό ότι έχει τεράστια σημασία για αυτό η διεθνής αποδοχή του.

Είναι προφανή τα οφέλη, από την εφαρμογή ενιαίων λογιστικών προτύπων σε όλο τον κόσμο, για τις ΜΜΕ. Θα αυξήσει την αξιοπιστία στους λογαριασμούς αυτών των εταιριών και κατά συνέπεια θα διευρυνθούν οι διεθνείς επιχειρηματικές συνεργασίες. Θα ανοίξει περισσότερο τις πόρτες του πιστωτικού συστήματος σε αυτές τις επιχειρήσεις.

Προετοιμάζει τις επιχειρήσεις για εισαγωγή τους στις κεφαλαιαγορές, αν πληρούν τα κριτήρια και το θέλουν. Θα μειωθεί παγκόσμια το κόστος συντήρησης και αναβάθμισης των λογιστικών προτύπων, αφού θα γίνεται σε κεντρικό επίπεδο.

Παρόλαυτα, υπάρχει και ένα πλήθος ζητημάτων που προφανώς θα αξιολογήσουν τα εθνικά κράτη ή οι υπερκρατικές οντότητες:

1. Το κόστος μετάβασης, το οποίο εκτός της χρηματικής του αποτίμησης, συνεπάγεται μεγάλες αλλαγές στην εκπαίδευση και στην πρακτική των επαγγελματιών.

2. Η πρακτική αποτελεσματικότητα. Η εμπειρία από τα IFRS , όπως άλλωστε διαπιστώθηκε και από το G 20, εμφάνισε πολλές αρνητικές πλευρές και κενά.

3. H ευελιξία αυτών των προτύπων. Κάθε χώρα έχει ιδιαιτερότητες και πρέπει άμεσα να δίνει λύσεις σε ειδικά προβλήματα που αναφύονται. Δεν μπορούν αυτές οι λύσεις να δοθούν κεντρικά.

4. Ο έλεγχος. Το εθνικό κράτος ορίζοντας το λογιστικό πλαίσιο ασκεί πολιτική. Δεν είναι εύκολο να εκχωρήσει αυτή του τη δυνατότητα σε ένα υπερεθνικό και μη ελέγξιμο από αυτό όργανο.

Ειδικά για τη χώρα μας, αυτό το πρότυπο έχει τεράστια σημασία. Η Ε.Ε. ξεκίνησε την κούρσα εφαρμογής των IFRS και είναι προφανές ότι θα το υιοθετήσει. Θα αφήσει σημαντικά χρονικά περιθώρια όπως κάνει συνήθως και ίσως θα αφήσει ευχέρειες στα εθνικά κράτη. Επομένως οι επιχειρήσεις, οι λογιστές, οι ελεγκτές, το εκπαιδευτικό σύστημα και όλοι οι σχετικοί οργανισμοί θα πρέπει να κινηθούν με βάση αυτήν την προοπτική". http://www.dntzanatos.gr/

FCAG publishes wide-ranging review of standard-setting activities following the global financial crisis

http://www.iasb.org/

The Financial Crisis Advisory Group (FCAG), a high level group of recognised leaders with broad experience in international financial markets, today published its recommendations related to accounting standard-setting activities, and other changes to the international regulatory environment following the global financial crisis.

The FCAG was formed at the request of the International Accounting Standards Board and the US Financial Accounting Standards Board to consider financial reporting issues arising from the crisis.

Co-chaired by Hans Hoogervorst, Chairman, AFM (the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets) and Harvey Goldschmid, former Commissioner, US Securities and Exchange Commission, the FCAG met six times from January to July 2009.

The report of the FCAG articulates four main principles and contains a series of recommendations to improve the functioning and effectiveness of global standard-setting.

The chief areas addressed in the report are:

01. Effective financial reporting
02. Limitations of financial reporting
03. Convergence of accounting standards
04. Standard-setters’ independence and accountability

The principles and a summary of the recommendations are set out in the appendix to this press release. The FCAG will reconvene in December to review the progress made on its recommendations.

Commenting on the report, Hans Hoogervorst, Co-Chairman of the FCAG said:
" I urge policymakers around the world to study the report and to take note of its conclusions, especially the importance of broadly accepted accounting standards that are the result of a thorough due process. The report highlights the importance but also the limits of financial reporting. Accounting was not a root cause of the financial crisis, but it has an important role to play in its resolution".

Harvey Goldschmid, Co-Chairman of the FCAG added:
" As our report emphasizes, improved financial reporting will help restore the confidence of financial market participants and thereby serve as a catalyst for increased financial stability and sound economic growth. The independence and integrity of the standard-setting process, including wide consultation, is critical to developing high quality, broadly accepted accounting standards responsive to the issues highlighted by the crisis. It has been a great pleasure to work with Hans Hoogervorst and the other distinguished members of the Financial Crisis Advisory Group". www.fcag.org

Νέα τρίτομη έκδοση για τα ΔΠΧΑ από τη Grant Thornton

www.grant-thornton.gr

Η διεθνής επιχειρηματική κοινότητα και η παγκόσμια αγορά διανύουν μία νέα εποχή στην οποία έχουν διαμορφωθεί καινούργιοι κανόνες που διέπουν τη δράση τους. Στη χώρα μας, η υιοθέτηση των Διεθνών Προτύπων Χρηματοοικονομικής Αναφοράς (Δ.Π.Χ.Α.) αποτέλεσε πρόκληση για τις επιχειρήσεις που κλήθηκαν να μετρήσουν τις δυνάμεις τους στο διεθνές περιβάλλον.

Η Grant Thornton, ανταποκρινόμενη στις ανάγκες της ελληνικής αγοράς και επιδιώκοντας να υποστηρίξει τις επιχειρήσεις στην παρακολούθηση των συνεχών εξελίξεων, παρουσιάζει την αναθεωρημένη έκδοση των Διεθνών Λογιστικών Προτύπων (Δ.Λ.Π.) και των Διεθνών Προτύπων Χρηματοοικονομικής Αναφοράς (Δ.Π.Χ.Α.)

Η αναθεωρημένη τρίτομη έκδοση της Grant Thornton στοχεύει να αποτελέσει ένα χρηστικό εργαλείο στη διάθεση κάθε ενδιαφερόμενου, παρουσιάζοντας και αναλύοντας όλα τα εν ισχύ Δ.Λ.Π (I.A.S.) και τα Δ.Π.Χ.Α. (I.F.R.S.) και εν συνεχεία, συμπληρώνοντας την προηγούμενη έκδοση, ενσωματώνοντας τις αναθεωρήσεις και τροποποιήσεις αυτών καθώς και τις ισχύουσες Διερμηνείες των Δ.Λ.Π. (S.I.C.) και των Δ.Π.Χ.Α. (I.F.R.I.C.) που έχουν εκδοθεί μέχρι την 31η Δεκεμβρίου 2008.

Δείτε online τις αναθεωρήσεις της νέας έκδοσης:
http://www.grant-thornton.gr/0fls/c1.asp?catid=111&subid=232&photoid=136&l=3