The accounting for stock options and other share-based payments should be simpler going forward, under a new accounting standard meant to carve out unnecessary complexity.
The Financial Accounting Standards Board approved Accounting Standards Update No. 2016-09 in March to revise Topic 718 of the Accounting Standards Codification in a way that is intended to make the accounting easier on preparers while not complicating things for investors. “The impetus is to reduce the cost and complexity of existing GAAP while making sure the information investors are getting is not compromised,” says Sandie Kim, a partner in Deloitte’s national office and leader of the stock-based compensation team.
