As the economic downturn continues to bite, corporate financial managers are likely to look for every bit of help they can get to free up more cash from within their businesses. Spotting opportunities for further efficiency or for cost savings is never easy—but an ideal tool for doing just that
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Management accounting
New Lender Oversight Regulations Boost SBA Enforcement Authority
The Small Business Administration issued an interim final rule for new lender oversight regulations in its guaranteed loan program. The regulations, which went into effect Jan. 12, give the agency greater enforcement authority and increase transparency on how risk is evaluated. The new regulations clarify supervision and enforcement actions for
Proposed Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines Issued
The major federal bank, thrift and credit union regulators issued proposed Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines that clarify risk management principles and internal controls for ensuring that financial institutions’ real estate collateral valuations (both appraisals and evaluations) are reliable and support their real estate-related transactions. The proposal was issued jointly by
Preventing Identity Theft Throughout the Data Life Cycle
The Federal Trade Commission estimates that as many as 9 million people have their identities stolen every year. According to the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, more than 200 million instances of data breaches have occurred since the beginning of 2005, and they show no signs of letting up. In the first
Plan Design in the Balance
An overview of the advantages and disadvantages of a cash balance plan.
Prince Charles to Host Accounting for Sustainability Forum
Accounting and business leaders from around the world will meet Wednesday, Dec. 17, in London for a forum on accounting for sustainability hosted by Prince Charles. The forum will include remarks from Prince Charles, HSBC Holdings Plc. Chairman Stephen Green and BP Plc. CEO Tony Hayward. The AICPA will also
Treasury’s Capital Purchase Program Raises Accounting Issues
With $250 billion dollars in play, questions have arisen regarding the accounting treatment for the Treasury Department’s injection of capital into banks through its Capital Purchase Program (CPP), which is part of the Treasury’s effort to ease the financial crisis. The capital injections through the Troubled Assets Relief Program
AICPA Issues Liquidity Restrictions Practice Aid
The AICPA has issued a new nonauthoritative Technical Practice Aid addressing potential accounting and auditing implications of a fund or its trustee imposing restrictions on a nongovernmental entity’s ability to withdraw its balance in a money market fund or other short-term investment vehicle. TPA 1100.15, Liquidity Restrictions, covers balance sheet
Managing Customer Profitability
All people may be created equal, but the same can’t be said for customers. Everyone knows that some customers are more profitable than others. Conversely, some are downright unprofitable. Knowing which is which is the all-important question. Despite enormous variations in profitability, many companies continue unprofitable relationships with customers, often
Highlights of Accounting Systems Research
This article is the fourth in a series reviewing research relevant to practicing accountants. Previous articles covered auditing, management accounting and tax. Recent, top-ranked journals that cover accounting and information technology systems were examined to determine results containing practical implications. HOW IT OUTSOURCING IMPACTS STOCK PRICESWhen a firm publicly announces
Forecasting Post-Combination Earnings
The acquisition method of financial accounting for business combinations under FASB Statement no. 141(R), Business Combinations, requires the acquiring company to recognize and measure all identifiable assets acquired, liabilities assumed and any noncontrolling interest in the acquired company as of the acquisition date at their respective fair values. The assets
States Bite Into Broken Gift Cards
At the peak of the 2008 holiday shopping season, gift card sales are expected to again have a material impact on the financial reports of many retailers. Gift card “breakage,” or the portion of gift card balances that consumers fail to redeem for merchandise, can boost a retailer’s short-term cash
AICPA Issues Two Final Standards on Internal Control
The AICPA’s Auditing Standards Board issued two final standards on internal control. Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements (SSAE) no. 15, An Examination of an Entity’s Internal Control Over Financial Reporting That Is Integrated With an Audit of Its Financial Statements, converges the standards practitioners use for reporting on a
Pessimism Grows as Credit Crisis Persists
Rising unemployment and the persistent credit crisis soured the outlook of CEOs, CFOs and other CPAs working in business and industry, according to a quarterly survey by the AICPA and the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School. Pessimism was at an all-time high in the survey, which began Nov.
Banks Still Looking for Bottom
The outlook was somber in Washington on Wednesday at the annual AICPA National Conference on Banks & Savings Institutions, where more than 1,000 CPAs gathered to discuss accounting issues in the ailing banking industry. “The S&L crisis was a Sunday school picnic compared to what we’re going through today,” said
PCAOB Proposes Seven Auditing Standards Related to Risk Assessment
The PCAOB voted to propose a slate of seven auditing standards related to risk assessment and response. The standards would supersede the board’s interim auditing standards related to audit risk and materiality, audit planning and supervision, consideration of internal control in an audit of financial statements, audit evidence, and performing
G-20 Addresses Accounting Issues at Financial Summit
Leaders of 20 of the world’s richest nations agreed on common principles to guide financial market reform at the Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy in Washington on Saturday. An attached plan charged G-20 financial ministers with accomplishing “immediate” high priority tasks designed to strengthen financial market transparency
Highlights
The AICPA’s Professional Ethics Executive Committee (PEEC) issued an exposure draft, Interpretation 101-17, Networks and Network Firms, under Rule 101, Independence, of the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct. Along with new or revised definitions for network, network firm and firm, the ED proposes that when CPA firms form
Building an Effective Whistleblower Program
One of the most effective and inexpensive methods of monitoring the pulse of a business is to create a confidential whistleblower hotline. According to the 2008 Association of Certified Fraud Examiners Report to the Nation on Occupational Fraud & Abuse, tips have historically been the most common means of fraud
Modernizing Business Reporting
The AICPA’s Assurance Services Executive Committee issued a white paper to address how transparency in financial reporting will be improved through the use of eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) and enhanced business reporting (EBR) that takes into account nonfinancial factors that affect a company’s value. The paper, The Shifting Paradigm in
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How to find the right CAS clients
The key to success with CAS is selecting the best clients. Tools like ideal client profiles (ICPs), buyer personas, and even artificial intelligence can help identify the businesses that best fit each CAS practice.
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