scholarly journals Trust in Fair Value Accounting: Evidence from the Field

Author(s):  
Clarence Goh ◽  
Chu Yeong Lim ◽  
Jeffrey Ng ◽  
Gary Pan ◽  
Kevin Ow Yong

We survey stakeholders in the financial reporting process to examine trust in fair value accounting. Though respondents demonstrate high confidence in financial statements, they believe that fair value accounting decreases trust in financial reporting and that preparing fair value numbers is costly but beneficial. They also strongly believe in the Conceptual Framework underlying standard setting. Using multivariate regression analyses, we find that perceiving fair value accounting as beneficial is positively associated with trust in it, consistent with the theory of reasoned action that people engage in behavior (e.g., trust) based on expected positive outcomes of that behavior. We find that this positive association increases with stronger beliefs in the Conceptual Framework. Our paper contributes to the fair value literature by providing general insights on trust in fair value accounting and a specific and novel assessment of how the perceived benefits of fair value accounting increase stakeholders’ trust in it.

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 63
Author(s):  
Ката Шкарић Јовановић

Резиме: Финансијско извештавање већ више векова с правом се означава као конзервативно. Начело опрезности чија премена генерише конзервативизам, а које се одликује временском асиметријом у признавању губитака и добитака, не само да је једно од најстаријих, већ и једно од најутицајнијих правила у финансијском извештавању. Означавање инвеститора, поверилаца и осталих зајмодаваца као примарних корисника финансијских извештаја довело је до тога да се у Концептуалном оквиру финансијског извешавања неутралној презентацији финансијских извештаја даје апсолутни примат у односу на опрезност, која је означена као непожељна. Бројна емпиријска истраживања, у великој мери изазвана и оваквом радикалном променом, показала су да су користи од примене конзервативизма у финансијском извештању и у данашњим околностима такве да се увелико надилазе његове слабости. С дуге стране, неутралност се може постићи у презентацији појединих позиција финансијских извшетаја али не при постојећим околностима и финансијских извештаја у целини. Заменом опрезности са неутралношћу нарушена је конзистентност која је нужна између Концептуалног оквира за финансијско извештавање и МРС/МСФИ. У многим од МРС/МСФИ садржани су захтеви за признавање и вредновање који су засновани на опрезности. Испуњавање ових захтева неминовно води конзервативизму у презентацији финансијских извештаја. Како су МРС/МСФИ изграђени на мешовитој основи коју чине: концепт историјског трошка, с којим је чврсто повезана опрезност, и концепт фер вредности, за који се везује неутралност. Стога се сасвим основано у презентацији финансијских извештаја могу очекивати и неутрално и конзервативно презентиране информације. Враћањем опрезности у Концептуални оквир финансијског извештавања осим што би била отклоњена неконзистност која постоји између њега као основе на којој се ревидирају постојећи и доносе нови стандарди, био би потврђен допринос конзервативизма заштити интереса поверилаца и инвеститора.Summary: For many centuries financial reporting has been rightfully labeled as conservative. The principle of prudence whose application generates conservatism, which is characterized by time asymmetry in the recognition of gains and losses, is not only one of the oldest but also one of the most influential rules in financial reporting. Determining the investors, creditors and other lenders as primary users of financial statements has led to the fact that in the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting the neutral presentation of financial statements has the absolute precedence over prudence, which is marked as undesirable. Numerous empirical studies largely caused by such a radical change have shown that the benefits of application of conservatism in financial reporting and in the present circumstances are such that they greatly surpass its weaknesses. On the other hand, neutrality can be achieved in the presentation of certain positions in financial statements but not under the existing circumstances and financial statements in general. Substituting prudence with neutrality violates consistency, which is necessary between the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting and IAS/IFRS. Many of IAS/IFRS contain requests for recognition and validation that are based on the prudence. Meeting these requests will inevitably lead to conservatism in the presentation of financial statements. Since IAS/IFRS are built on a mixed basis consisting of the historical cost concept, which is tightly linked with prudence, and fair value concept, which is linked with neutrality, then it is quite reasonable to expect both neutrally and conservatively presented information in the presentation of financial statements. By restoring prudence in the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting, besides eliminating inconsistence that exists between it as a basis for revising existing and adopting new standards, contribution of conservatism to protecting the interests of creditors and investors would be confirmed.


2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 24-37
Author(s):  
Giusy Guzzo ◽  
Massimo Costa

In response to the ‘2011 Agenda Consultation’, the IASB launched in July 2013 a call for a new Discussion Paper on the ‘Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting’. This article aims to offer a contribution to the debate on the effectiveness of the theme of ‘Measurement’, by investigating the use of the current evaluation models in the literature and practice of Financial Reporting. The article proposes at first a historical survey both of the international debate on Fair Value Accounting vs. Historical Cost Accounting and of the Italian theories on the valuation. Later the paper proposes some considerations about the key questions related to Measurement and the possible policy implications of the main research finding, by conceptualising a ‘mixed’ system combining fair value Accounting and historical cost Accounting to try giving a more rational base to the financial reports.


Author(s):  
David J. Emerson ◽  
Khondkar E. Karim ◽  
Robert W. Rutledge

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 27pt 0pt 0.5in; mso-pagination: none;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Historically, there have been many disputes in the area of corporate financial reporting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>However, one of the primary issues of disagreement between practitioners, regulators, and theoreticians is that of valuation of financial statement components. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>The latest twist in the evolution of valuation is the push for (and against) the use of a fair value approach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>The purpose of this paper is to examine the history and evolution of how the most critical elements of an entity&rsquo;s financial statements are valued.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>We provide a history of valuation of financial statement components, and identify the issues involved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>Further, we examine the criticisms of actions taken by the regulatory bodies in their efforts to standardize and advance accounting practices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>Particularly, we focus on the evolution of fair value measurements.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>Arguments both for and against the implementation of fair value accounting are provided.</span></span></p>


2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-141
Author(s):  
Bojan Rupić ◽  
Ljiljana Bonić

AbstractInvestors have become the most important users of financial statements in modern business conditions, and mixed base of financial reporting has been established in order to meet their information needs and it includes elements of the concept of historical cost and the fair value concept, with an increasing shift towards the fair value concept. The primary task of fair value accounting becomes the expression of the fair value of the net assets at the reporting date, while the financial results represent the change in fair value of net assets between the two reporting periods. In our country the application of the "full IFRS" is mandatory for large enterprises and the application of IFRS for SMEs is mandatory for small and medium-sized entities, thus fair value accounting becomes an integral part of the financial statements of domestic companies. However, fair value accounting is not a suitable concept for our country characterized by shallow and underdeveloped financial market, companies whose owners are the company managers at the same time, and low level of economic and technological development. A financial statement audit in terms of the use of the fair value concept becomes much more demanding and complex than the audit of the financial statements based on historical cost accounting.


2006 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary E. Barth

This paper explains why the question is how, not if, today's financial statements should include estimates of the future. Including such estimates is not new, but their use is increasing. This increase results primarily because standard-setters believe asset and liability measures that reflect current economic conditions and up-to-date expectations of the future will result in more useful information for making economic decisions, which is the objective of financial reporting. This is why standard-setters seem focused on fair value accounting. How estimates of the future are incorporated in financial statements depends on the asset and liability measurement attribute, and on financial reporting definitions of assets and liabilities. The present definitions depend on identifying past transactions or events that give rise to expected inflows or outflows of economic benefits and, for inflows, control over the expected benefits. Thus, not all expected inflows or outflows of economic benefits are recognized. Disclosures in the notes can help users understand recognized estimates and can provide information about unrecognized estimates. Including more estimates of the future in today's financial statements would result in an income measure that differs from today's income, but such a measure arguably provides better information for making economic decisions.


2014 ◽  
Vol 89 (6) ◽  
pp. 2115-2149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith Czerney ◽  
Jaime J. Schmidt ◽  
Anne M. Thompson

ABSTRACT According to auditing standards, explanatory language added at the auditor's discretion to unqualified audit reports should not indicate increased financial misstatement risk. However, an auditor is unlikely to add language that would strain the auditor-client relationship absent concerns about the client's financial statements. Using a sample of 30,825 financial statements issued with unqualified audit opinions during 2000–2009, we find that financial statements with audit reports containing explanatory language are significantly more likely to be subsequently restated than financial statements without such language. We find that this positive association is driven by language that references the division of responsibility for performance of the audit, adoption of new accounting principles, and previous restatements. In addition, we find that (1) “emphasis of matter” language that discusses mergers, related-party transactions, and management's use of estimates predicts restatements related to these matters, and that (2) the financial statement accounts noted in the explanatory language typically correspond to the accounts subsequently restated. In sum, our results suggest that present-day audit reports communicate some information about financial reporting quality.


Author(s):  
Laith Abdullah Alaryan ◽  
Ayman Ahmad Abu Haija ◽  
Ali Mahmoud Alrabei

The application of fair value has started early in Jordan, which was a bone of contention among supporters and opponents. This study came to provide empirical evidence on the relationship between fair value and financial manipulation. The study extracted data from 45 companies’ annual reports during a ten-year period (1997- 2006) five years before and after the application of fair value to examine the relationship among the application of fair value accounting and the presence of manipulation in financial statements. The result indicates that the number of firms that manipulated information in the financial statements had increased after applying fair value accounting. The results have policy implications, one of which is that the Jordanian government should either enact new regulations or modify the current regulations in the face of an increasing number of manipulations by firms after the application of fair value accounting. These regulations are needed to increase both the managements’ and accountants’ responsibility towards the firms and to enhance the business ethics of the organization.


Author(s):  
Joseph Kwasi Agyemang ◽  
Owusu Acheampong ◽  
Wiafe Nti Akenten

Nowadays, the relevance of fair value in financial reporting is gaining impetus and recent discussions are moving in the trend of full fair value reporting. Small and medium-sized entities are not ignored in this instance. The move to new reporting standards results in various challenges for different interest groups such as auditors, preparers and regulators. The main objective of the study was to establish the fair value implementation challenges facing SMEs in the agricultural sector with evidence from regulatory bodies in Ghana. The study established that there is lack of methodological relationship between existing local laws and IFRS and absence of involvement of regulatory bodies in financial reporting standards setting. In light of these challenges, the study recommends involvement of regulatory bodies in standard setting and consideration should also be given to local laws when setting international standards.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Deddy Kurniawansyah

This literature study explains and describe the development of the concept of goodwill from the perspective of accounting by observing and describing until the development at this time, discusses differences in accounting standards of goodwill applicable in some countries, and explains the things that contradict the goodwill. This research method used qualitative with literature study. The results of this study are in some countries, the concepts and rules on goodwill accounting have undergone various changes, including international accounting standards issued by the IASC. Initially goodwill is capitalized and amortized over no more than 20 years. But, along with the increasing use of fair value accounting in accounting standards, thetreatment for goodwill also experienced a shift that is eliminated by the amortization method is replaced by doing impairment test to goodwill. The results of this study contribute as add to the treasury of financial accounting literature, especially accounting treatment of goodwill as intangible assets in the financial statements of various countries such as Indonesia, America and the England.Keyword :Goodwiil, Impairment, Financial Accounting Standard


Author(s):  
Thuan Quoc Pham

Financial reporting quality is one the most interesting topics which draw a great deal of attention to researchers and scientists in the field of accounting (Céline Michailesco, 2010). In the review of research on financial information from 1980 to 2016, Pham (2016) found that characteristics of useful financial information are relatively diverse with as many as 15 attributes being identified. In addition, he also found that all research in any period has employed the characteristics published by professional associations such as American Institute of Accountants, Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB as theoretical basis. Research on the quality of financial information is diverse yet have many things in common, above all is the Relevance characteristic which considered to be the basic qualitative component of the quality of financial information in financial statements. Conceptual Framework officially issued by FASB & IASB in 2010 (FASB & IASB 2010) has further confirmed Relevance is the basic quality component of financial information. Compared with previous announcements, there has been a considerable change in the criteria and attributes used to evaluate the appropriateness of Relevance characteristic of financial information in financial statements. This study aims at confirming the importance of the Relevance component in evaluating the quality of financial information, clarifyingg the characteristics of Relevance measurement before and after Conceptual Framework 2010 and constructing relevant scales as well as measuring the qualitative characteristic of Relevance among enterprises in Vietnam.


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