Accounting for Financial Reform

"While Europe stalls, Japan has raced ahead to become the largest economy so far to take advantage of new accounting rules reformed in the wake of the banking crisis. Japanese companies began using the International Acc­ount­ing Standards Board’s (IASB) new fair value rules yesterday, increasing pressure on other developed nations to adopt as well. It is the first stage of a three-part revision of the fair value standard. The rules, redesigned with banks in mind, use a mixed-measurement model to value assets at either their market price or amortised cost."

-Mario Christodoulou, Accountancy Age

As part of an agenda for global financial reform, the Group of 20 Leaders (G20) have called for standard-setters to re-double their efforts to achieve convergence in global accounting standards by June 2011. At the same time, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) is midway through its own comprehensive response to the financial crisis. Both endeavors are likely to result in a period of change for Japanese companies, investors and others involved in financial reporting.

Sir David Tweedie, Robert Herz

On April 7th at a corporate breakfast at Japan Society, Sir David Tweedie, Chairman of the IASB, will provide his own observations on the opportunities and challenges of financial reform, and his desire to see Japan play a leading role in shaping the future direction of global financial reporting. The Presider will be Robert Herz, Chairman, Financial Accounting Standards Board.