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COVER
STORY
Another
Hurdle on the road to Compliance:Assessing Company-Level Controls
- - J Stephen McNally
The
Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) has clarified
that the companies are not only needed to comply with the
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act but the company-level
controls should nevertheless be overlooked. In addition to
the transaction level control, the design and operating level
effectiveness should also be taken into account at the company-level
control. The company-level controls improve the corporate
governance and help in focusing the effectiveness of the company
that leads to better performance.
© Winter 2005. Reprinted with permission from the Pennsylvania
Institute of Certified Public Accountants (www.picpa.org).
FINANCIAL
REPORTING
Segmental
Reporting; Thoughts Segmented
- - Anitha Dilipan
The
last few decades have witnessed massive expansion, both through
external mergers and internal reconstructions. This has resulted
in diversification which seems to be the mantra for sustenance.
The period has seen many MNCs spread their arms into various
geographical areas and product lines. To enable financial
information help decision-making, it would be meaningful only
if both, consolidated and segmental information are provided.
© 2005 IUP. All Rights Reserved
BUSINESS
ENVIRONMENT
Mutual
Funds' Outsourcing: Slashing Expenses, Easing Fee
- - Anitha Dilipan
The
mutual fund industry is a common and reliable investment in
India. But with the investors becoming conversant in the fees
and expenses charged by them, it is in a position where it
has to find out ways of cutting those expenses. And as with
other industries, it has been engulfed by the outsourcing
wave to curb costs
© 2005 IUP. All Rights Reserved
BUSINESS
ENVIRONMENT
Pricing
of Life Insurance products
- - Debkumar Mukherjee
Till
date, Indians are not aware of the importance of life insurance
products. The country has enormous untapped potential for
life insurance products and both the domestic and international
life insurance companies are very well aware of this market.
Still, 80% of the total life insurance market is covered by
LIC whereas private insurers have the rest 20%.
©2005 IUP. All Rights Reserved
BUSINESS
ENVIRONMENT
Bombay
Bound
- - René Lewandowski
First
it was IT; then HR. Now it's accounting's turn to be outsourced
to countries such as India. But are too many companies shipping
their finance functions overseas?
© November 2004, CA Magazine (www.camagazine.com). Published
by The Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants, Toronto,
Canada. Reprinted with permission.
TECHNOLOGY
Audit
Tools The Legal Realities of Computer Logs
- - Erin Kenneally, J D
Computer
logs are today's version of yesteryear's paper trail. In this
day of information technology and internet, electronic transactions
and information handling has made the electronic data a very
sensitive business asset. Logs basically document the access
and modification of such electronic assets. In case of legal
battles logs are key evidence in the court of law and they
have indeed risen to the importance of corporate asset and
must be treated that way.
© The Institute of Internal Auditors Inc. Originally published
in FSA Times, October, 2004, published by The Institute of
Internal Auditors Inc., (http://www.theiia.org). Reprinted
with permission.
GOVERNANCE
AND ETHICS
Substance,
form and tax avoidance
- - Peter Surtees and Suné Millard
There
is a fine difference between tax avoidance and tax evasion.
When a taxpayer intentionally masks the true nature of a transaction
to get tax benefits it is clearly a case of tax evasion. On
the other hand, if the taxpayer complies with the provisions
of the taxation acts and is able to use the tax benefits to
minimize taxes, it is a case of avoidance. However, it is
difficult to identify the intents of the taxpayer, and to
dissect the real substance of the transaction from the form
it is presented. The two cases presented in this article discuss
this fine line and urge the legal community not to merge the
two concepts.
© 2004 Accountancy SA (www.accountancysa.org.za). Reprinted
with permission.
LITERATURE
SURVEY
Do
Mergers Create Value for Shareholders?
- - Rekha HG
This
article presents a study to verify the common belief that
mergers create value for shareholders. There is dilution in
the earnings for both the target and the acquiring company
immediately after the merger, but studies show that when there
is a merger between two profitable companies, both companies
experience an accretion in the Market Price Per Share (MPS).
© 2005 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
LITERATURE
SURVEY
Research
in Earnings Management Across Countries
- - Shailaja Pai
Earnings
management has been a well-researched topic in the US as well
as in other countries. This article puts together some of
the research findings that have emerged out of various studies
on the subject in different countries. It helps us to understand
the key drivers of earnings management in countries where
businesses have developed in vastly different environments.
© 2005 IUP. All Rights Reserved
RISK
MANAGEMENT
ERM
Embracing a Total Risk Model
- - Lawrence Richter Quinn
Enterprise
Risk Management (ERM) is fast joining the business lexicon
for more and more companies as increasing regulatory, legislative
and stock exchange rules demand that senior executives and
corporate boards certify their knowledge of current and future
risks and the programs in place for managing those risks.
© 2005 Financial Executive Magazine (www.financialexecutivemag.com).
Reprinted with permission.
RISK
MANAGEMENT
Operating
in a New Age of Compliance
- - Jane Hurworth
The
growing level of regulation such as International Accounting
Standards, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act impacting treasuries and
regulated entities, the new capital adequacy standards means
that it is not possible just to stand still. Treasurers must
constantly keep up to date with developments in best practice
for their type of entity.
© 2004 The Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT). Originally
published in The Treasurer Magazine (www.treasurers.org).
Reprinted with permission.
MANAGEMENT
ACCOUNTING
Measure
Performance with the Right Data
- - Eric Laursen
Acquiring
and managing accurate data on working capital is the first
step towards improved performance. New, custom metrics and
greater transparency can demonstrate the importance of working
capital management to the overall business.
© 2005 CFO Publishing Corporation. Originally prepared by
the CFO Research Services. Reprinted with permission.
SPEECH
Remarks
Before the Open Meeting to Consider the Reproposal of Regulation
NMS
- - Paul S Atkins
Here
the SEC commissioner explains the reasons why there are objections
to the regulation NMS (National Market System) which provides
insight to the proposal. The new proposal takes a completely
different practical and philosophical approach. The question
remains as to whether this rule proposal can achieve its intended
goals of strong markets while nurturing innovation, competition,
and ever-increasing efficiency. He was glad that the SEC Chairman
has opened the proposal for more comments rather than adopting
it directly.
© US Securities and Exchange Commission (www.sec.gov). Speech
by SEC Chairman, December 15, 2004 Washington, DC. Reprinted
with permission. |
