All SEC articles – Page 78
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Blog
SEC: two FCPA cases result in non-prosecution agreements
The SEC has entered into non-prosecution agreements with Akamai Technologies and Nortek that will forfeit ill-gotten gains connected to bribes paid to Chinese officials by foreign subsidiaries. Simultaneously, the Justice Department closed its investigations into Akamai and Nortek. Jaclyn Jaeger reports.
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ArticleSpotting the difference between ‘significant deficiency’ and ‘material weakness’
Material misstatements involve mistakes large enough, surely, to involve some kind of internal control shortcoming that allowed the misstatement to occur in the first place. So why aren’t more internal control reporting and auditing processes helping to identify control lapses in advance of material misstatements? Tammy Whitehouse explores.
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SEC offers views on adopting new lease rules
Getting a jump start on adopting the new accounting requirements for leasing? Good news: According to the SEC, companies will need to apply the rules to just the three years presented in the complete set of financial statements, not the five years worth of selected data provided in the financial ...
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Transparency penalty? Companies pondering revenue adoption, beware
Companies that are considering how they will adopt the new revenue standard should take into account whether they might expect to access the capital markets in a stock offering anytime soon after putting the new accounting to work. It could affect just how much revenue they’ll need to restate. Tammy ...
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Discussing the many facets of disclosure effectiveness
The SEC is seeking comment on nearly 350 questions regarding the Commission’s Regulation S-K effectiveness review. At last week’s Compliance Week conference, Karen Garnett of the Division of Corporate Finance headlined a panel discussion on the process thus far. Joe Mont has more.
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SEC issues new guidance on use of non-GAAP accounting
The SEC has updated its Compliance & Disclosures Interpretations guidance with a dozen new Q&As focused on how companies might report financial information outside the realm of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles without also running afoul of financial reporting requirements. More from Tammy Whitehouse.
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SEC approves PCAOB rule on naming engagement partners
The SEC has given final approval to a PCAOB rule requiring audit firms to complete a new filing on Form AP to provide the name of the engagement partner on each audit engagement. Meanwhile, Tammy Whitehouse reports, the PCAOB is attempting once again to expand the audit report.
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The relentless growth of non-GAAP reporting is a problem
The use of non-GAAP reporting has ebbed and flowed over the years, but a recent increase in the practice is starting to raise questions as to whether or not the SEC will have to get involved before things get out of hand. Tammy Whitehouse reports.
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The SEC asks Novartis, ‘Haven't we met before?’
After settling an FCPA enforcement brought by the SEC in March, Novartis is now under criminal investigation in South Korea for alleged illegal payments to physcians. Should the SEC reopen its investigation?
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Trump’s non-GAAP was first to face SEC enforcement
Long before Donald Trump launched his presidential campaign, the entertainment giant he founded, Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts, faced the wrath of the SEC, whose leadership he would shape if elected. Tammy Whitehouse looks back on Trump’s SEC enforcement action.
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Big 4 firm offers tips on assessing use of non-GAAP measures
An upswing in corporate use of non-GAAP measures along with increased regulatory scrutiny of such reporting has inspired the folks at Deloitte to offer some tips on how to assess non-GAAP measures to assure they don’t run afoul of filing rules.
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75% of S&P 100 report non-GAAP earnings, study shows
A recent Georgia Tech Financial Analysis study found that 75 S&P 100 companies reported non-GAAP earnings in 2013, with 48 companies making adjustments as a result of gains or losses due to non-recurring events. Income taxes gave rise to 30 adjustments, and 27 adjustments arose from restructuring and productivity-related charges.
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Article
Longer case closure times boost risk of whistleblowers reporting externally
Employers are taking longer and longer to act on internal whistleblower reports, which can frustrate employees who have been encouraged to step up and report what they see as unacceptable behavior. As reporters find their concerns languishing in limbo, the chances they might simply take their issue to an outside ...
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FCPA enforcement ramps up in Q1 2016
If it looks like FCPA enforcement is at a low ebb, judging by the amount of activity we saw in 2015, don’t be fooled. The SEC is prosecuting FCPA cases with vigor, and if some of the current enforcement actions underway are any indicator, we will not see a significant ...
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SEC staff call out custom axis tag use in XBRL filings
The SEC is advising companies to take a careful look at their use of axis tags in their XBRL filings. The SEC has been studying corporate filings from 2013 to 2015 in the “XBRL format looking for problems that lead to data quality concerns, with axis tags being one such ...
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ArticleSEC fines energy company $300K over rubber stamp internal controls
Image: A recent SEC action against a company for maintaining insufficient internal controls signals a new effort from federal authorities to hold companies to higher standards when it comes to internal control material weaknesses and significant deficiencies. “This is a case that doesn’t have a punchline,” says Tom Sporkin, a ...
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Novartis to pay $25 million in FCPA case
Switzerland pharmaceutical giant Novartis yesterday reached a $25 million settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for violating the books and records and internal accounting controls provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act concerning its operations in China.
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Former Goldman compliance employee settles SEC insider trading case
A former Goldman Sachs compliance employee settled his case with the Securities and Exchange Commission to resolve insider trading charges filed against him last year. Judge Valerie Caproni of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York last week entered a final judgment against defendant Yue Han, ...
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VimpelCom and the conscious indifference of a board under the FCPA
Image: The joint Justice Dept., SEC settlement with telecom giant VimpelCom resolving a longstanding FCPA violation will cost the company more than $795 million, say reports. But there’s a bright side, says CW Columnist Tom Fox. The multiple bribery schemes seem to have been supported by top management and will ...
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SEC approves PCAOB budget; Doty promises new proposals soon
Image: With majority support from the SEC—all two of them, that is—the PCAOB has finalized its 2016 budget with a 12-percent increase in fees charged to public companies to support it. Only SEC Chair Mary Jo White and Commissioner Kara Stein supported the PCAOB’s $257.7 million budget for the current ...