scholarly journals Regulatory Arbitrage in the Intersection of Accounting Standards and Tax Laws: The Case of Synthetic Leases

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Friedrich
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Balance Sheet ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Regulatory Arbitrage ◽  
Regulatory Changes ◽  
Tax Laws ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Tax Benefits ◽  
Sophisticated Instrument ◽  
Us Gaap

AbstractThis paper focuses on the interplay between accounting standards and tax laws in the context of regulatory arbitrage by examining the development of synthetic leases especially in the USA. In a synthetic lease, the lease remains off balance sheet for financial reporting by the lessee, while depreciations and interest expenses can be deducted for tax purposes. Exploring the evolving structures of synthetic leases over the last 30 years, the paper demonstrates how financial engineers have been able to perpetually re-structure this sophisticated instrument to keep it off-balance sheet instrument notwithstanding regulatory changes. Specifically, it shows that the most recent revision of lease accounting standards in 2016 – that intended to mark the end of off-balance sheet leases under IFRS and US-GAAP – resulted in reviving the demand for synthetic leases as the tax benefits outweigh the structuring costs. Contributing to the debate on the shift towards international accounting convergence (including US-GAAP and IFRS), the paper argues that attempts to limit regulatory arbitrage may also consider the reciprocal linkages between accounting standards and tax laws. For instance, tax laws should be considered as a means to limit regulatory arbitrage in financial reporting.

Ambiguities in Accounting and their Impact on Regulatory Arbitrage: A Study on the Anchoring of the Rights and Obligations Approach in the IASB’s Conceptual Framework

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tessa Kunkel
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Balance Sheet ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
International Accounting ◽  
Regulatory Arbitrage ◽  
Reporting Standard ◽  
International Financial Reporting Standard ◽  
Conceptual Foundation ◽  
Playing Field

AbstractThe revision of the asset and liability definitions is at the core of the International Accounting Standards Board’s (IASB) efforts to reflect more truthfully the economic substance of the underlying business transactions. In the IASB’s revised Conceptual Framework (CF) from 2018, the board redefined assets and liabilities in terms of rights and obligations, thereby explicitly abstaining from a notion of indivisible balance sheet items. This alteration lays the conceptual foundation for carving out pieces of an item in accounting standards, enabling the removal of arbitrary bright line tests, and, eventually seeks to tackle regulatory arbitrage. Drawing upon 18 expert interviews as well as a document analysis, this study sheds light on the process that led to the anchoring of the rights and obligations model in the IASB’s CF. Using literature on ambiguities in accounting as a theoretical frame, this study goes on to show that removing ambiguities in the asset and liability definitions creates new ambiguities and additional discretionary leeway in turn. The paper argues that the perpetual cycle of ambiguity reduction and creation in accounting (Davie, 2000) also includes ambiguity shifting between the conceptual basis of financial reporting and accounting standards. By comparing the previous International Accounting Standard (IAS) 17: Leases, which followed a physicalist, ownership-based notion of assets, with the revised International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 16, the paper demonstrates that the explicit anchoring of the rights and obligations approach does not fully solve the issue of regulatory arbitrage. Instead it shifts the playing field for structuring activities from the evasion of precise rules to the bending of interpretations.

Accounting Standards and Earnings Quality — Evidence from Registered ADRs

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (04) ◽  
pp. 1850022
Author(s):  
Yaseen S. Alhaj-Yaseen ◽  
Kean Wu ◽  
Leslie B. Fletcher
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Securities And Exchange Commission ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Reporting Standard ◽  
International Financial Reporting Standard ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Gaap

This paper examines the changes in earnings quality of registered American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) as a result of switching accounting standards. We aim to shed light on the potential impact of International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) adoption on US firms. A suboptimal approach to achieve this goal is through examination of US firms’ surrogates such as ADRs. Unlike previous studies, we made a distinction between registered and unregistered ADRs and affirmed that registered ADRs are the closest surrogates with which to conduct our analysis because they are exclusively required to adhere to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s stringent disclosure requirements. When cross-listing their equity on the US exchanges, foreign issuers can file their financial reports with the SEC using IFRS, US GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles), or their domestic GAAP with reconciliation to US GAAP. An improvement in earnings quality is documented when ADRs adopt US GAAP or IFRS versus domestic GAAP. However, when the comparison is made between US GAAP and IFRS, no difference in earnings quality is documented. These results indicate that switching to high-quality accounting standards is likely to improve earnings quality. This improvement is maximized when the difference between reporting standards is high and minimized if otherwise. Our conclusion is that the adoption of IFRS in the US is unlikely to change earnings quality of local issuers. Moreover, we drew a distinction between reconciliation with and adoption of high-quality accountings standards and find that while the former can enhance earnings quality, the latter can further improve it.

scholarly journals Adoption of IFRS in Ecuador and Colombia 2010-2016

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (1-1) ◽  
pp. 178-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Villanueva García ◽  
Carmen Cordova Román ◽  
Maria Teresa Cuenca Jiménez
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Research Work ◽  
Balance Sheet ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Nonparametric Test ◽  
Financial Information ◽  
International Accounting Standards ◽  
Financial Reporting Standards ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Mandatory Adoption

The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), have been adopted by a large number of countries, since they are considered an international benchmark for obtaining comparable quality financial information. The adoption by Ecuador and Colombia of IFRS as a transition from their previous local regulations based on provisions and decrees, justifies the present research work to provide knowledge of the regulatory reality of both countries. Behind this ambitious adoption of accounting standards, since they are costly processes both financially and in terms of training, there is a need to obtain consistent financial information that should attract investments and facilitate access to other less harmful financial markets. The purpose of this research is to perform an analysis of the effect on the accounting variables of the balance sheet and financial ratios, before and after the application of IFRS on large Ecuadorian and Colombian companies. To do this, Wilcoxon’s nonparametric test of related samples is used, on a total of 204 Ecuadorian companies and 60 Colombian companies. To compare the results of both countries, a non-parametric U Mann-Whitney test is carried out. The results show an impact in both countries on the variables studied after the mandatory adoption of IFRS, although the relative impact is greater in the Colombian case.

scholarly journals Review of accounting for goodwill: Historical to current perspectives

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 233-241
Author(s):  
Yousef Shahwan
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Intangible Assets ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Controversial Issues ◽  
International Accounting Standards ◽  
Financial Regulations ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Uk

Accounting for goodwill is one of the most controversial issues in financial reporting. It has been on the agenda of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) as well as the Accounting Standards Board of Australia, the UK, and the US. IASB has also identified accounting for intangible assets (including goodwill) as a high priority. The objective of the present paper is to review the developments of accounting standards for goodwill made by the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and the IASB. Reference to accounting and financial regulations is made to explore the effect of standard developments in promoting uniformity of practice in accounting for goodwill. Content analysis approach is adopted in this study. It concludes that the current regulations to account for goodwill provide little and further developments are still ahead.

Effect of eliminating mandatory reconciliation requirements for foreign issuers in the U.S.

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-291
Author(s):  
Gaurav Kumar ◽  
Jagjit S. Saini
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Value Relevance ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Accrual Quality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Reported Earnings ◽  
Book Values

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of choice of accounting standards on the value relevance and accrual quality of reported earnings and book values under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) versus US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). Design/methodology/approach The authors examine the effect of choice of accounting standards on the value relevance and accrual quality of reported earnings and book values under IFRS versus US GAAP using 404 firms from 37 countries listed in the USA. They use the modified Jones (1991) model to measure accruals. Findings The authors find that value relevance of the book value of equity is increasing (significantly) when the sample firms use IFRS to prepare their financial statements. They also find some evidence in support of the mediating effect of the choice of accounting standards on the accrual quality of the sample firms. The results of this paper indicate that sample firms with lower accrual quality (larger discretionary accruals) experience higher returns during the fiscal year. However, the authors also find that the positive association between size of discretionary accruals and returns is decreasing in the use of IFRS by the sample firms. Originality/value This paper adds to prior literature on the harmonization of accounting standards and emphasizes the role of accounting standards in the quality of financial reporting. By using the financial data of all foreign registrants listed in the USA, the authors are able to provide deeper and more representative evidence.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TOTALS COLUMN ON THE COMBINED BALANCE SHEET FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS IN THE UNITED STATES DURING THE 20th CENTURY

2016 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randall L. Kinnersley
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Balance Sheet ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
The United States ◽  
Net Assets ◽  
State And Local ◽  
Historical Developments

This study examines the historical development during the 20th century of the totals column reported on the financial statement that reported assets, liabilities, and equity for all funds of state and local governments (SLGs) within the United States. This research documents the evolution of accounting standards that addressed the totals column. SLG accounting professionals and standards-setters debated whether it was appropriate for SLGs to report a combined totals column throughout the century. The totals column was optional or forbidden in some reporting standards. Other SLG standards permitted a totals column, but always with reservation. A consolidated totals column was never acceptable until Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement 34. Statement 34, issued in 1999, required SLGs to report all primary government funds in a single consolidated totals column on a new Statement of Net Assets. The Statement of Net Assets was the first time users were able to assess the financial position of the SLG primary government in a single consolidated column. This study provides the historical developments that led to this major revision in SLG financial reporting.

Cautiousness on convergence of accounting standards across countries

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 246-267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Angeloni
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Corporate Disclosure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ◽  
Financial Reporting Standards ◽  
Financial Communication ◽  
Convergence Process ◽  
The Usa

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an updated picture of the convergence process between International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP), with IFRS clearly emerging as a global financial reporting benchmark. This study is aimed at evaluating the main benefits but also some significant issues arising from the adoption of a single set of accounting standards. Design/methodology/approach – The main examples of theoretical and empirical literature for and against IFRS implementation are reviewed. Findings – Since markets became increasingly global, the comparability of financial statements is required to enable better corporate communication and transparency to the advantage of all stakeholders. The main difficulties of IFRS adoption by the USA are explored. Practical implications – The study’s implications are to emphasize the practical obstacles to resolving the issues of financial communication through a uniform set of standards, by highlighting the importance of taking into account other dynamics in improving the corporate disclosure domestically and globally. Originality/value – The key contribution of this study is to reflect on the best ways to reach global communication without sacrificing the effectiveness and affordability of financial reporting.

Commercial Banks and Value Relevance of Derivative Disclosures after SFAS 133: Evidence from the USA

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (01) ◽  
pp. 1350004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dona Siregar ◽  
Asokan Anandarajan ◽  
Iftekhar Hasan
Keyword(s):  
Commercial Banks ◽  
Financial Risk ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Value Relevance ◽  
Balance Sheet ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Financial Accounting ◽  
Omitted Variables ◽  
Sfas 133 ◽  
The Usa

In the last decade there has been a significant increase in the use of derivatives as a vehicle to manage financial risk. The sudden spurt of derivatives has resulted in the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) being forced to develop new standards for quantification and disclosure. The financial standard of interest to this study is Statement of Financial Accounting Standards (SFAS 133). SFAS 133 requires all derivatives, without exception and regardless of the accounting treatment for the underlying asset, liability, or transaction, to be recognized in the balance sheet as either liabilities or assets. SFAS 133 entitled Accounting for derivative activities and hedging (and SFAS 137, which postponed the implementation of SFAS 133 until June 2000) is different from prior standards in that it requires recognition as opposed to mere disclosure in the notes. The justification given for implementing SFAS 133 was to increase transparency to investors. In this study we empirically investigate this issue with particular focus on whether SFAS 133 provides incremental information above that provided by reported earnings, book value, and proxies for omitted variables. We study commercial banks since they are among the most frequent users of large-scale derivative contracts and their use has increased significantly over the last two decades, and in particular over the last five years. Our findings indicate that information regarding total derivative contracts, when disclosed in the financial statements as required by SFAS 133/137, is value relevant to investors. However, investors view this information negatively, perhaps attributing this to higher risk. Losses on holding derivatives are viewed positively and gains are viewed negatively.

scholarly journals ACCOUNTING STANDARDS IN CHURCH FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 1182-1196
Author(s):  
Moni Wehelmina Muskanan ◽  
David B. W. Pandie ◽  
Fredrik L. Benu ◽  
Rahmawati Maukoni
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Balance Sheet ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Indirect Costs ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Literature Study ◽  
Current Application ◽  
The Church

Purpose: This paper aims to assess accounting application in church financial reporting. Methodology: There were two main stages of this research methodology. Firstly, an extensive literature study was to develop the framework of the relationship between religion and accounting and to find the research gap to be fulfilled in theoretical based. Secondly, the technical research method included a case study approach to examine the current application of the church financial report and the PSAK 45 accounting application. Results: There are significant discrepancies between the Treasury Report made by the church and the financial statements made under PSAK 45. The information under PSAK 45 provides more relevant information to the stakeholders to assess how the church actualizes the theology values into its activities. Firstly, the PSAK 45 Activity Report reveals the information for the stakeholders, particularly the management, to evaluate the effect of money proportioned into church activity. Secondly, the reports show how the direct and indirect costs are allocated into services activities to assess, how much direct cost has been allocated to successfully implement the mission through the roles. Thirdly, the reports tell stakeholders how the church manages its activities effectively to serve not only the congregations but also the wider society in order to attain its vision. Finally, the balance sheet reveals the increasing or decreasing value of net assets and how the assets are effectively used – or not. Implications: The benefits of the implementation of the accounting standard to help the church to implement their sacred mission and criticizes the opponent's views that perceive accounting as profane, and irrelevant as well as irreverent. It provides significance that accounting standards should be mandatory in Indonesia for all non-profit groups.

scholarly journals Analysis of Possibilities of Detectnig the Manipulation of Financial Statements in Terms of the IFRS and Czech Accounting Standards

2015 ◽  
Vol 63 (6) ◽  
pp. 1859-1866 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zita Drábková
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Balance Sheet ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Reporting Standards ◽  
Financial Reporting Standards ◽  
Creative Accounting ◽  
Risk Detection ◽  
Accounting Unit ◽  
Comparison Of The Results

The main objective of financial statements is to give information. The diversity of interests and objectives of individual groups of users and creators of financial statements presents the risk of manipulation of financial statements in the context of true and fair view as defined in the national accounting legislation. The paper is concerned with the different possibilities of detecting the manipulation of financial statements in terms of the Czech Accounting Standards and IFRS. The paper analyzes the selected risk detection models of the manipulation of financial statements using creative accounting methods, off-balance sheet financing methods and accounting frauds in specific case studies of selected accounting unit in terms of Czech accounting standards. Based on the analysis and comparison of the results thereof, the paper presents and evaluates the alternatives of users of financial statements to evaluate the risk of manipulation of financial statements beyond the scope of a fair and true view. The evaluation further includes a comparison of uses of these models with respect to the International Financial Reporting Standards.

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