Abstract
Financial reporting is a branch of accounting which involves presenting the financial information of a company to the stakeholders so that they can be in a position to evaluate its financial performance and make an informed decision based on the information. There are two general sets of standards governing financial reporting in the major economies across the world. They include the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) regulated by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP) governed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). The following academic paper seeks to analyze the debate that has been ongoing on whether the US limited companies should adopt the use of IFRS in their financial reporting as proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in August 2008.
Accounting standards are guidelines for valuing and reporting every item in the financial statements. US GAAP is a rules-based accounting framework. This type of framework follows a strict set of rules that are to be followed when accountants are preparing financial statements. IFRS are principle-based standards which provide a framework for decision making rather than provide specific guidelines as the US GAAP. It is not clear on the possibility of the IFRS evolving into rules-based standards until they are thoroughly scrutinized by both practitioners and the judicial system. IASB
U.S GAAP refers to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, which is a standard accounting principle mandated for private and public organizations in the United States. On the other hand, International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) is an accounting standard designed for companies operating internationally. While there are several similarities between the two accounting principles, there are still major differences. A valuation technique is one of the major differences between the US GAAP and IFRS.
On February 26, 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued an Accounting Standards Update (ASU) which revised the standards on leasing. The intent for this revision was to improve how leases are being reported on the financial statements. The consensus is that the classification tests in current use for making this determination fail to provide a faithful and accurate representation for leasing transactions in general. In 2005, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had also made recommendations which indicated this need for change in regard to how leases were being reported. Overall, it is believed that this change would ensure greater transparency in the financial statements concerning these type transactions.
This paper provides detailed information about the aspect or revenue recognition as compared to the US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and International Financial Reporting Standards as the standards that are used in accounting (Ammons 45). The diverse differences that exist when either of the standards is used can be clearly noted as the paper illustrated the major variations in applications. Financial statements made using the right standards and procedure such as US GAAP and IFRS usually provides relevant, understandable, comparable and reliable financial statements that show a true and fair financial position of a company to all the users of financial statements
Through this course we have been taking a closer look into the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The book lays out the major similarities and differences between the two separate but equal accounting methods. I say, “Equal”, in the sense that the IFRS and GAAP accounting methods are two different ways that the any company that could come to the conclude the financial statements for any such accounting period. The differences that have apparent between the two methods, GAAP is only used in companies that have been started in the United States, whereas internationally IFRS has been adopted by those prospected companies.
In the global business arena, there are two main institutions whose accounting standards are used for financial reporting, Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The IFRS, whose rules are established and maintained by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), is the most widely used of the two institutions but the primary choice for the United States continues to be GAAP, whose standards are established and maintained by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). Although both systems have many similarities, there are a variety of significant differences that have a great impact on how reporting amounts are calculated and reported to the general public.
The Financial Accounting Standard Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standard Board (IASB) have been working jointly toward the convergence of the U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and the international financial reporting standards (IFRS). However, several arguments still exist as to whether or not U.S. companies should adopt or converge with IFRS. This qualitative study identified the differences noted between rules-based and principles-based accounting, and discussed the impact of these accounting standards on financial reporting. Additionally, several resources were analyzed to understand the path to convergence and the future state of IFRS. The examination of information regarding the transition towards one single set of accounting standards led to the
The International Accounting Standards Boards (IASB) and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) are making an effort to converge to develop International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by gathering accounting standards that can be used in financial reporting whether it is in the home country or in the host country. Both the International Accounting Standards Board and the US FASB have proven to be vital promoters of the globalization of international financial accounting standards (Kirsch, 2012). These efforts have focused on a cohesive setting that will eliminate the controversy that revolves around accounting standards. I will present to you the facts and differences between the two, state the facts and identify
Inventories constitute a major portion of current assets of an entity. A primary issue in accounting for inventories is the amount of cost to be recognized as an asset and carried forward until the related revenues are recognized.
During Transnet’s 2015 financial year they recognised revenue under IAS 18: Revenue. During the same financial year a new standard to account for revenue was issued namely IFRS 15: Revenue from contracts with customers. The reasons for issuing a new standard was because IAS 18 was broad and therefore lead to confusion and inconsistencies in the treatment of similar transactions. The new standard results in different accounting implications in the annual financial statements of Transnet. To evaluate the accounting implications of IFRS15 it must be compared with IAS 18. One major implication is the change from recognising revenue from services rendered by using the percentage of completion method that is stated in IAS 18. IFRS 15 recognises revenue either over-time or at a point in time.
The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) are a global language for business affairs that was established in 2001 in order to develop a single set high quality and globally accepted reporting standards. ("IFRS - Organisation history", 2016). The point of the IFRS was main stability and transparency in the
Through the analysis of these studies and journal articles, we will examine the different aspects of IFRS, the purpose of IFRS and overall whether it has provided an increase or decrease in accounting qualities within firms’ financial reporting.
The objective of this paper is to deliberate the concerns regarding implementing International Financial Reporting Standards in United States. There is no scope that IFRS standards would be fully implemented in the United States. The main reasons are two regulatory bodies Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) are unable to integrate on the concept of convergence. Due to current economic conditions, FASB and IASB came together to reduce the differences between U.S. GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) and IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards). Furthermore, Security and Exchange Commission has
Financial reports are either guided by the rules and principles of US GAAP or by the accounting standards of IFRS. IFRS being more flexible comparing to US GAAP, is seen to be increasing in its popularity as accounting standards adopted by businesses. Nevertheless, their underlying assumptions have been the same. And
The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) enforced the harmonization of the accounting standards into a single set of accounting standards that is to be used globally in the preparation of financial statements and is called the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). This essay will discuss the benefits of developing the IFRS, which is to enhance and increase the quality of the companies’ financial statements through transparency and comparability, value relevance, timely loss recognition by presenting evidence from Spain and Bahrain. Other benefits include facilitating cross-border investments; reducing equity cost, and decreasing earnings management. Hence, this allows companies to provide information that will be
The (IASB) International Accounting Standards Board published International Financial Reporting Standard 8 (IFRS 8) Operating Segments on 30 November 2006. The standard superseded IAS 14 Segment Reporting, which was applicable pursuant to Regulation 1606/2002/EC (IAS Regulation).