Corporate governance standards at companies listed in France have improved over the year, but more action is needed to control executive powers and to explain any deviations from governance best practice, according to the head of the country’s stock market regulator. Speaking at the launch of the Autorité des Marchés Financiers’ (AMF) sixth annual report […]
Global Glimpses
Posted inRisk Management
Standard Chartered Overhauls Governance
Standard Chartered, the banking group, has overhauled its boardroom structures in an effort to improve its corporate governance. The bank is going to split a board committee that covers audit and risk issues into two new bodies. A risk committee will oversee the management of the bank’s key prudential risks and will review the effectiveness […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Japan Gives Green Light to IFRS Accounting
Japan’s Financial Services Agency has decided to let domestic companies use International Financial Reporting Standards beginning in March of next year, leaving the U.S. as the only major economy not using the global reporting rules in some form. The FSA’s decision to allow voluntary use of IFRS is a timely boost to the global standards […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Accounts Watchdog Reveals Priority Sectors
The U.K. watchdog that scrutinizes company reports for suspect accounting practices says it will focus its firepower on businesses in the commercial property, advertising, media, recruitment, and technology sectors next year. The Financial Reporting Review Panel says it will target businesses in these sectors because they rely heavily on discretionary spending that might be cut […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
U.K. Proposes Governance Revamp
U.K regulator the Financial Reporting Council has proposed a series of changes to its Combined Code on Corporate Governance. The new version of the code released for consultation is aimed at incorporating lessons learned during the financial crisis. Among the key changes, the FRC wants shareholders to elect the board chairman—or the whole board—annually and […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Report Shakes Up U.K. Financial Sector Governance
U.K financial firms will have to set up board-level risk committees and disclose more information about the salaries of high earners following the completion of a government-commissioned review of corporate governance in the financial sector. The final report from Sir David Walker sticks with the recommendations made in a July interim report, with a few […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Angry Reaction to Rejection of IFRS 9 in Europe
The European Commission’s refusal to adopt a new International Financial Reporting Standard on financial instruments has provoked an angry reaction from parts of the trading bloc’s accounting profession. The International Accounting Standards Board released “IFRS 9 Financial Instruments” on November 13 after calls from the G20 nations to simplify accounting in this area. But a […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Government Seeks New Powers for FSA
Britain’s Financial Services Authority will be able to take tougher action against firms and individuals that fail to comply with its rules if draft legislation proposed by the government makes in onto the statute books. The centerpiece of the new Financial Services Bill was a measure that would give the FSA powers to tear up […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Canada Stops Governance Reforms
Canadian securities regulators have decided not to push ahead with planned corporate governance reforms out of concern that companies would be too busy to comply with any new rules. The Canadian Securities Administrators, an umbrella body for province-level regulators, set out plans to improve governance at the country’s listed companies last December. But a hostile […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Financial Instruments Disclosure Poor in Europe
Many European banks and insurance companies are failing to comply with mandatory disclosure rules relating to financial instruments, according to the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR). CESR, which advises the European Commission on securities regulation, analyzed compliance with the disclosure rules in IFRS 7 – Financial Instruments: Disclosures. It found that a significant minority […]