In late 2007, I predicted in a presentation that U.S. companies would be using International Financial Reporting Standards as their basis of accounting within 10 years. In the Q&A that followed, two audience members said my prediction was ridiculous; one said the United States wouldn’t move that quickly, while the other said there was no way it would take so long.
Of course, last year the Securities and Exchange Commission actually proposed a roadmap to move from U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles to IFRS. According to that schedule, if all goes well, convergence and education would continue for the next several ...