KPMG has recently issued Room for Improvement, the second edition of its survey of business reporting. The study presents ‘the main findings from a global analysis of the content of 270 larger listed companies’ reports, in an effort to highlight weaknesses and identify good practices in the presentation of corporate information.” These are its main…
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales have issued the latest in a series of “Audit Insights” documents, this one focused on “Improving annual reports of listed companies.” Some of the content covers matters addressed on this blog several times in the past, for example in commenting on materiality and disclosure overload, and…
“Revenue Standard causes concern about compensation arrangements” says the headline of a recent article in the Journal of Accountancy. Here’s an extract: “Compensation arrangements are emerging as a big concern for companies as they implement the new revenue recognition standard. Many companies have compensation plans for sales personnel, executives, or others that are tied to…
A recent article in The New York Times argued that disclosure of conflict of interest “often has the opposite of its intended effect, not only increasing bias in advisers but also making advisees more likely to follow biased advice. The article isn’t any way about disclosure in the context of IFRS, and any extrapolation of…
The topic of climate change disclosures recently received some attention in Canada, by virtue of a speech by Bank of England governor Mark Carney. As reported in the Globe and Mail: “In a discussion with Canadian Environment Minister Catherine McKenna before a large audience at a Toronto Region Board of Trade event, Mr. Carney pointed…
The Canadian Securities Administrators have issued Staff Notice 51-346 Continuous Disclosure Review Program Activities for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2016. The report highlights a motley selection of apparently recurring deficiencies in IFRS financial statements: Market Risk Sensitivity Analysis “Some issuers present sensitivity analysis that is not reflective of the reasonably possible changes in…
In a recent post, I wrote a little bit about the integrated reporting (<IR>, as it styles itself) initiative, very much from the perspective of someone dipping an initial toe into the water. I mentioned that the initiative’s website contains samples of reports prepared with reference to the <IR> framework, and it’s interesting from many…
As we discussed here, the IASB has issued IFRS 16 Leases, effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after January 1, 2019. We’ve already discussed some of the issues arising in identifying at inception of a contract whether that contract is a lease, or contains a lease, in determining the lease term, and in measuring the lease…
The IASB has issued Definition of a Business and Accounting for Previously Held Interests, an exposure draft of proposed amendments to IFRS 3 and IFRS 11, with comments to be received by October 31, 2016 IFRS 3 defines a business as “an integrated set of activities and assets that is capable of being conducted and…
Notes on a recent speech by IASB Chair Hans Hoogervorst Here’s how the accompanying news release summed it up: “Mr Hoogervorst stated that the completion of several big IFRS Standards now allows the Board to focus its efforts on increasing the communication effectiveness of financial statements. He intends to prioritise the theme of ‘Better Communication’…
John Hughes IFRS Blog 