Differences in earnings management between firms using US GAAP and IAS/IFRS

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunhui Liu ◽  
Chun Yip Yuen ◽  
Lee J. Yao (posthumously) ◽  
Siew H. Chan

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the relatively rules-based US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the more principles-based International Accounting Standards/International Financial Reporting Standards (IAS/IFRS) provide different opportunities for earnings management (EM). Such an examination is critical as the world moves toward principles-based standards. Design/methodology/approach – Financial information for the fiscal years 1999-2004 from the annual reports of firms listed under the Prime Standard on the Germany Frankfurt Stock Exchange is analyzed. Data from the German Frankfurt Stock Exchange are used to resolve the difficulty in comparing accounting standards across different markets and countries with different institutional factors and corporate governance issues. The unique feature of dual listing in the German Frankfurt Stock Exchange allows firms listing shares under the Prime Standard to report in accordance with either the US GAAP or the IAS/IFRS before the IFRS adoption by the European Union in 2005. Strong legal enforcement in Germany ensures that reporting under each standard is in close compliance to the standard under comparison. Extending extant IFRS vs US GAAP EM research with discretionary accruals, this research contributes to a more comprehensive understanding by also examining EM through deferred tax expense and EM through research and development investment. Findings – The findings reveal that EM through research and development investment is significantly higher for the IAS/IFRS firms. Similar to prior findings, EM through accruals is not found to be significantly different between US GAAP and IAS/IFRS firms. Originality/value – The findings of this study advance the understanding of differences between US GAAP and IFRS with data from Germany where legal enforcement of standards is strong. In particular, this study reveals that principles-based standards with imprecise rules like IAS/IFRS may encourage structured management due to the expectation of error costs and compliance uncertainty. The results inform regulators considering IAS/IFRS adoption. In addition, this research highlights the importance of considering real EM in US GAAP vs IAS/IFRS studies.

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 415-436
Author(s):  
Michela Cordazzo ◽  
Paola Rossi

PurposeFollowing the mandatory IFRS adoption in 2005, the Continental European accounting systems changed. This study investigates if it influenced the value relevance of intangible assets in Italy.Design/methodology/approachTo measure the value relevance of intangible assets of non-financial firms listed on Borsa Italiana from 2000 to 2015, this study isolates the impact of several classes of intangible assets on stock prices and then classifies firms according to intangible asset intensity.FindingsGoodwill, intellectual property and other rights, start-up costs or other intangible assets are significantly correlated with stock prices when Italian accounting standards were applied prior to 2005, whereas research and development expenditures are not associated with stock prices. The mandatory IFRS adoption has exerted positive effects only for goodwill and research and development expenditures, and it is negative for start-up costs. Further, when intangible-intensive firms are considered in the post-IFRS adoption period, declining value relevance exists relative to intellectual property and other rights or research and development expenditures; goodwill and other intangible assets increase in value relevance.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is subject to country-specific determinants and firm-specific characteristics. It treats accounting standards as exogenous, and the classification reflects the concentration of intangible assets in an industry. By relying on investors’ assessments of risk, it does not sufficiently explore the risk conveyed by future abnormal earnings and earnings volatility.Practical implicationsThis study offers insights for measuring and reporting intangible assets, by specifying that their value relevance depends on their level and aggregation.Originality/valueThis study investigates the value relevance of intangible assets in the post-IFRS period, in reference to intangible-intensive firms. It also divides intangible assets into several classes to specify the value relevance of goodwill.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-108
Author(s):  
Sirada Nuanpradit

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the individual and interaction effects of chief executive officers (CEO)-chairman leadership structure (CEO duality) and CEO-serviced early years (the first three years in office) on real earnings management (REM) through sales activities of listed firms in the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET). Design/methodology/approach The longitudinal data on CEO and chairman names of 3,825 firm-year observations were manually gleaned from the SET market analysis and reporting tool and the annual reports from 2001 to 2015. Multiple regressions were utilized to analyze the effects. Findings The findings show a positive relationship between CEO duality and sales-driven REM. However, the CEO-serviced early years have no association with sales-driven REM. The CEO duality/serviced early year interaction effect is positively correlated to sales manipulation. In addition, firms with the CEO duality engage in upward or downward sales-driven REM, while firms with newly appointed CEO adopt only the upward sales-driven REM. In firms which their newly appointed CEO concurrently serves as chairman, either upward or downward sales-driven REM strategy is introduced. Practical implications The findings provide some grounds for capital market and regulators to exercise caution when it comes to firms with the newly appointed CEO and/or the CEO duality, given a high tendency to manipulate sales revenues. Originality/value This study is the first to investigate the relationship between the CEO duality/serviced early years on sales-driven REM. The findings are expected to complement existing publications on REM.


Author(s):  
Kadek Trisna Dwiyanti

Abstract This study examines the effect of IFRS adoption and family ownership on earnings management. This study also extends the current literature by examining the interacting effect between IFRS adoption and family ownership on earnings management. Data are obtained from Bloomberg database and Malaysia stock exchange for the period 2010-2013. Using multiple regression analysisis, this study found that firms exhibit less earnings management after IFRS adoption. This finding is consistent with the argument that IFRS are claimed to be high-quality accounting standards. However,this study find no evidence to support that family ownership and interaction between IFRS and family ownership negatively affect earnings management. Keywords: IFRS adoption, family ownership, earnings management.


2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 2027-2051
Author(s):  
Philippe Touron ◽  
Peter Daly

PurposeThe paper analyzes four cases of IAS adoption (Aérospatiale in 1989; Usinor in 1991; Coflexip in 1993; and Péchiney in 1995) to better understand the instructional logics behind the use of alternative or additional standards by French companies in the early 1990s.Design/methodology/approachThe study employs multiple case studies to explain how and why the heterogeneity of adoption (IAS versus US GAAP) is a response to institutional complexity.FindingsThis research shows that French companies adopted IAS as long as they were not required to use US GAAP by their financial backers. The results highlight how the companies combine logics to respond to the complexification of the field. The authors outline how endorsement of logics by outside carriers (auditors, financial analysts, stock exchange commissions) and framing of logics by managers evolve in time and space within this complexification process.Research limitations/implicationsThis study contributes to the institutional complexity literature in that it focuses on distinct organizational responses to multiple institutional logics. More precisely, the choice of standards in primary consolidated accounts are viewed as an organizational response to compatible and conflicting demands from several levels: home countries, transnational areas and host countries with the aim of raising funds in the US.Originality/valueThis research makes a distinct link between institutional complexity and international accounting standards and US GAAP.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 45-53
Author(s):  
Richard Fosu Amankwa ◽  
John Kweku Mensah Mawutor ◽  
Eric Boachie Yiadom

This study examined the effect of IFRS adoption on the quality of financial statements of selected firms on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The study used the extent of management practices as a metric for financial statement quality. The audited annual reports of the selected firms from the GSE were analyzed using a panel regression model over the period 2001-2006 and 2007-2014. The study finds the adoption of IFRS to be significantly and negatively affect earnings management practices and, thus, improves financial statement quality. On the extent of earnings management practices, the study finds a decrease in the post-adoption era as opposed to the pre-adoption era, signifying an improvement in accounting quality. The panel regression results show that adopting IFRS significantly decreases the extent of earnings management.  


2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nelson M. Waweru ◽  
Ntui Ponsian Prot

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine whether compliance with corporate governance (CG) requirements has constrained earnings management (EM) for companies listed in Kenya and Tanzania. Design/methodology/approach The sample comprises of 48 companies listed on the Nairobi Stock Exchange and the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange. The data are collected from annual reports over the period 2005-2014, a total of 480 firm-year observations. Panel data models are used in the analyses. Findings The results show that discretionary accruals (DAs) average about 11.3 per cent, whereas audit quality is negatively and significantly related to DAs. However, board independence, board gender diversity and director share ownership were positively and significantly related to DAs suggesting that CG may not have constrained EM in eastern Africa. Research limitations/implications The findings should be understood within the context that only annual reports and audited financial statements that were filed with Capital Markets Authority (Kenya) and Capital Markets and Securities Authority (Tanzania) are used as source of information. Originality/value The study potentially contributes in three main ways. First, this is the first cross-country analysis that has examined the effect of CG structures on EM in an African context. Second, literature on CG and EM has been extended. Finally, the authors have extended research by observing the limitations of CG in reducing EM in an environment that is experiencing weaknesses in CG structures.


2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 111-130
Author(s):  
Nadia Lakhal ◽  
But Dedaj

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of Research and Development (R&D) disclosures on earnings management practices. Design/methodology/approach This study has been conducted by using a longitudinal archival data set of French companies belonging to the CAC All-Tradable index and instrumental variable estimations. Findings The results of the research highlight the moderating effect of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) adoption and the financial crisis in this relationship. It also shows that R&D disclosures are negatively associated with earnings management. The findings also show that the IFRS adoption is complementary in its monitoring role of managerial behavior in reducing earnings management in the presence of R&D disclosures. Furthermore, this study finds that the negative effect of R&D disclosures on earnings management is more prevalent during the global financial crisis. Originality/value This study examined the consequences of the voluntary disclosure of R&D information in the French context. It introduces a measurement for the disclosure of R&D activities in annual reports through the construction of an R&D disclosure index.


2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Dwikky Darmawan ◽  
Weny Putri

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of political connection toward the earnings management of service sector companies with control variables firm size and audit quality. Firm�s political connection measured by using dummy variable. Earnings management is proxied by discretionary accrual which is measured by using Modified Jones Model. The research data applied in this study are the secondary data which are taken from the annual reports of service sector companies that listed in Indonesian Stock Exchange of 2016-2017 periods. There are 330 observations fit as sample, which are taken by using purposive sampling method. Data are processed by applying the multiple linear regression test. The result show that the political connection had positive but not significant influence to earnings management. Firm size had negative but not significant influence to earnings management. Whereas the audit quality had a negative and significant influence to earnings management.


Author(s):  
Yosra Makni Fourati ◽  
Rania Chakroun Ghorbel

This study aims to examine the consequences of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) convergence in an emerging market. More specifically, we investigate whether the adoption of the new set of accounting standards in Malaysia is associated with lower earnings management. Using a sample of 3,340 firm-year observations across three reporting periods with different levels of IFRS adoption, we provide evidence that IFRS convergence improves earning quality. In particular, we find a significant decrease in the absolute value of discretionary acccruals in the partial IFRS-convergence period (2007-2011), whereas this effect is restrictive after the complete IFRS- implementation.


2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 608-625 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amel Kouaib ◽  
Anis Jarboui ◽  
Khaireddine Mouakhar

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to focus on the moderating effect of mandatory International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) adoption on the relationship between chief executive officer (CEO) experience/education and earnings management in European companies. Design/methodology/approach Data from a sample of 302 European firms listed on Stoxx Europe 600 index and 596 CEOs from 2000 to 2014 are used to test the moderation model using moderation regression analysis. Findings Evidence reveals that CEO’s accounting-based attributes are negatively associated with accruals-based earnings management and positively associated with real earnings management (REM). Further, mandatory IFRS adoption significantly moderates the impact of CEO’s accounting-based traits on earnings-management activities. Research limitations/implications A small number of European firms were studied and, given the long study period, many firms with missing data were eliminated. To avoid a small sample size, countries with few observations were included, which leads to an uneven distribution between observations per country. Practical implications Findings from this paper can help: European firms to consider demographic traits when recruiting or promoting executives; the IASB to improve enforcement mechanisms and make IFRS implementation mandatory; and audit committees to effectively monitor REM. Originality/value This study is unique in providing European evidence for the moderating effect of mandatory IFRS adoption on the relationship between CEOs’ accounting experience/education and earnings management activities. This paper is also relevant as it addresses the effectiveness and efficiency of accounting literates.


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