More than half of approximately 2,100 business professionals (56 percent) surveyed during a Deloitte webcast about reducing fraud risks think more financial statement fraud will be uncovered this year and in 2011, as compared to the last three years.
by Matha Doran
The spectacle of scandals in the US and Europe turned up the heat on the growing reform movement, both in trying to harmonize accounting standards and corporate governance.
By Dr. Yvonne Hinson
IFRS will most likely come to the U.S. in some form but the timeline is still unknown. The differences between IFRS and GAAP are something that educators need to be addressing now as they send students out into a global marketplace.
Dell has agreed to corporate governance changes as part of settlement with the SEC that was tied to its past financial reporting practices.
By Ken Marshall, Co-leader of Ernst & Young LLP’s IFRS Markets team in the United States.
If economics be the dismal science, then the global slump that began in 2007 makes it seem still more so. With America’s regulators preoccupied with managing the credit crisis and its companies facing the imperative to cut costs — including on projects that require a long-term commitment of resources, what once appeared almost certain momentum toward US adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) has slowed.
At the same time, there seems near universal agreement that a single global set of accounting policies and financial reporting standards would benefit investors. International standards setters and regulators, including the US Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), its counterpart the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), and the US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) all share the view that comparability between US and other countries’ accounting standards will increase transparency in the global marketplace and protect investors.
Janice Patrisso, Advisory Partner with KPMG LLP, explains that many organizations are looking at their readiness for potential U.S. adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). What should you expect?
By Kelly Gentenaar and William Olsen of Grant Thornton LLP
Congress initially passed the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA” or the “Act”) in 1977 as a result of SEC investigations that revealed that more than 400 U.S. companies admitted making questionable or illegal payments – totaling in excess of $300 million – to foreign government officials, politicians, and political parties. At a turbulent time in American history, the Act was intended to restore public confidence in the integrity of the American business system. It is doubtful that Congress could have foreseen the unprecedented globalization of the world’s economy that has transpired over the past 30 years and the impact the Act would have on global commerce and subsequent anti-corruption legislation in other countries and regions.
In the age of global corporations, compliance professionals cannot afford to simply be reactive when a potential FCPA violation occurs. They must be proactive advocates of a control environment that prevents FCPA violations.
General Electric was not only the only company to find itself in hot water this week. Huron Consulting Group out of Chicago, like GE, is now staring down its own accounting scandal with the CEO and CFO already casualties.
Yesterday it was announced that GE would be paying a $50 settlement fine to the SEC in response to a civil suit filed by the agency against the company for accounting fraud. GE is paying the fine, but without admitting guilt nor denying the allegations.
In today’s GRC News Roundup, stories from the Wall Street Journal and CFO.com are featured that discuss the proposed single-regulator for the banking industry as well as Ernst & Young getting ripped for improper revenue recognition.
