Europe

SEC Calls for More Uniform Disclosure of European Debt Exposure

February 14, 2012

The SEC is prodding companies to clarify how they report risks related to European debt, after reviews found lots of variance among disclosures. It also wants companies to report exposure exceeding 1 percent of total assets, far lower than the typical 5 percent threshold. "It could be that the SEC doesn't want to be tainted if something bad happens," says David Larsen, a managing director at Duff & Phelps.
 

Europe's New Data Laws Could Snare Many U.S. Companies

January 31, 2012

The European Union is moving toward new data protection laws that will require many U.S. companies with a sizable European customer base to comply for the first time, which could carry a hefty price tag. "There is no doubt that, as written, this proposal will have major repercussions for business in terms of compliance costs," says Belinda Doshi, a partner at London-based law firm Nabarro.
 

Europe Starts Overhaul of Market Abuse Directive

June 28, 2010

The European Union is planning to toughen its rules on insider dealing and wider market abuse in an effort to plug gaps in the way its current directive on the issue is enforced.The trading bloc agreed a directive in 2003 that was meant to usher in a common approach to...
 

Europe Busts First Cartel With New Plea Powers

May 24, 2010

The European Commission has reached its first cartel-busting settlement under "fast track" procedures introduced two years ago.Under the deal, ten companies that produce memory chips have agreed to pay fines totaling €331 million ($409 million). The companies were involved in price-fixing between 1998 and 2002.Samsung will pay the biggest single...
 

German Ban Dents European Regulation

May 21, 2010

Germany undermined European efforts to maintain a coordinated response to the financial crisis in Greece and to market regulation more widely this week when it took unilateral action to clamp down on short-selling.The country’s financial regulator, BaFin, surprised other regulators when it announced a ban on “naked” short-selling transactions in...
 

Europe Inconsistent on Insider-Dealing Rules

April 15, 2010

The European Union’s 27 member states have taken an inconsistent approach to new laws aimed at cracking down on insider dealing, meaning that compliance requirements across the trading bloc vary widely, according to European securities regulators.The EU agreed to a common legal approach to insider dealing and stock mark manipulation...
 

Europe Refuses New Financial Instruments Standard

November 13, 2009

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European IFRS Lessons for U.S Real Estate Sector

October 26, 2009

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Briefing Compares G20 Exec Pay Rules

October 15, 2009

0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */table.MsoNormalTable{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;mso-style-noshow:yes;mso-style-parent:"";mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;mso-para-margin:0cm;mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;mso-pagination:widow-orphan;font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} Leaders of the G20 nations agreed on a global approach to the governance of executive pay in the financial sector at their recent summit in Pittsburgh, but...
 

Europe Leaves U.S. Out of Audit Oversight Deal

September 11, 2009

0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} The European Commission has excluded the U.S. from a deal that will allow audit oversight bodies operating inside the European Union to share their working...
 

European Accountants Tell IASB to Dump Convergence

July 20, 2009

The International Accounting Standards Board should abandon its efforts to converge global reporting rules with U.S. accounting standards, and focus instead on making its standards better and less complex, according to a body that speaks for the European accounting profession.FEE (the Federation of European Accountants) says it supported International Financial...
 

FSA Plans to Treble Fines

July 09, 2009

Financial firms that fall foul of the U.K’s lead regulator face a three-fold increase in fines under its plan to get tougher with wrongdoers.The Financial Services Authority (FSA), which said recently it wanted firms to be more frightened by its enforcement powers, said its proposed new penalty regime reflected its...
 

Tweedie Defends Speed of IFRS Reforms

June 11, 2009

International Accounting Standards Board chairman Sir David Tweedie has defended the organization’s response to the financial crisis in front of a meeting of European ministers in Luxembourg.Tweedie told European Union finance ministers that he “took very seriously” their concerns about “the pace and substance” of IASB’s accounting standards reform. And...
 

G20 Told to Leave IASB Alone

April 30, 2009

The International Accounting Standards Board must be allowed to focus its efforts on a fundamental rewrite of its rules on financial assets and should not be forced to respond to every short-term policy shift announced by the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board, according to a body created to advise both...
 

Investors Target Governance at Belgian Bank

April 24, 2009

A group of public sector U.K. pension funds has called for a shareholder rebellion over poor governance practices at Belgian banking and life assurance group KBC. The move is part of the Local Authority Pension Fund Forum’s plan to take a tougher stance on governance issues at international companies.The forum,...
 

Failure of Trust Between EU Financial Regulators

February 17, 2009

A leading shareholder group has called for an inquiry into whether the European Union should create a single financial watchdog, saying that the credit crunch has caused a “failure of trust” between the EU’s national regulators.The Association of British Insurers (ABI) made the call when it launched a plan to...
 

FSA Grants Amnesty for Disclosure Rules

January 12, 2009

U.K. regulator the Financial Services Authority has given company directors a brief amnesty to comply with its disclosure rules on shares used as loan security, after admitting the rules had caused “uncertainty.”In a statement issued to clarify its position, the FSA said a director who wants to use company shares...
 

Europe's Big Banks Slow on Fair-Value Opt-out

January 08, 2009

Many European Union financial companies—including a majority of the biggest ones – have decided not to apply a relaxed accounting rule that would allow them to shelter assets from a fair value write-down. But those that have used the get-out have not disclosed enough about what they are doing, according...
 

Europe Extends IFRS Opt-Out for U.S. and Others

December 16, 2008

The European Commission has extended a ruling that permits companies from the United States and five other countries to file accounts under their own national GAAPs, rather than having to use International Financial Reporting Standards, which are mandatory for European public companies.When the trading bloc made IFRS reporting mandatory for...
 

Europe Needs Better Non-financial Reporting

December 12, 2008

European companies need to improve their reporting of non-financial information, according to the umbrella group that represents Europe’s national accountancy bodies.Brussels-based FEE (the Fédération des Experts comptables Européens) said reporting on issues such as sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility met the letter of recently introduced European legal requirements, but not...
 

God Save the Queen

October 13, 2008

Who knew they still had it in them? Forty-three years after Winston Churchill passed from the scene and at least 15 years since the Rolling Stones put out a respectable single, the Brits are back at the helm of world leadership!First, Prime Minister Gordon Brown proposes to combat the credit...
 

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