COVER STORY
Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives: A Global Perspective
-- Kashmir Singh and Ramanjit Kaur
Economics prevailed upon emotions for decades in the corporate world and the classical economists' viewpoint of profit and wealth maximization remained the sole objective of business organizations. The last 20 years have seen radical changes in the relation of corporate sector, both with the state and the civil society. Now, the relationship between corporate and civil societies has moved on from a paternalistic philanthropy to an alignment of business operations with social values.
© 2009 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
ACCOUNTING
Mental Accounting Operations in Investment Decision Making
-- Tarak Paul
People have to take a variety of economic decisions concerning earning, spending, and saving money. These decisions are based on their own judgment, study and perception. Initially, experts in the area of finance were reluctant to accept the views of psychologists. Gradually, the influence of emotion and psychology on economic decision-making got greater attention. Traditional finance theory holds that every economic decision should be based on rational calculation of its effect on wealth position. Generally, people don't have computation skills and the willpower to evaluate such decision, in terms of their impact on wealth. People have the tendency to separate their money into different mental accounts, leading to the development of mental accounting. This article aims at understanding the role played by behavioral biases and mental accounting done by people while taking economic decisions.
© 2009 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
FORENSIC ACCOUNTING
Forensic Accounting: A Solution for Frauds and Crimes in Accounting
-- AS Shiralashetti and SS Hugar
Recently, frauds and white collar crimes have increased in the Indian corporate and non-corporate sectors. Infamous scams like Harshad Mehta, Ketan Parekh, Sanjay Seth, the Indiabulls and Kingfisher Airline credit card fraud, etc., have adversely affected the development of the corporate sector. Forensic accounting is considered as a tool for investigation and minimization of frauds and crimes in accounting. Further, there are numerous career opportunities for forensic accountants due to increasing number of white collar crimes in all sectors of the Indian economy, in particular and the world economy, in general. This article is based on secondary data collected from websites, newspapers, journals, etc. The main objective of the article is to know the conceptual background of forensic accounting.
© 2009 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
FORENSIC ACCOUNTING
Forensic Accounting: An Expert Witness Testimony
-- KR Swain
The corporate scandals in the US and Europe have led to the creation of new accounting laws and forensic accounting practices. It is the specialty practices in the area of accountancy, which describe the results from actual or anticipated disputes or litigation. In the present practices, forensic accounting is the fastest growing area of accounting. The world of forensic accounting involves the application of specialized knowledge and specific skills to the field of accounting, auditing, and investigation in order to collect evidence of a company's financial statements.
© 2009 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
BUSINESS LAW
The Competition Act, 2002: A Blessing to the Accountancy Profession
-- Umesh H Dixit
The objective behind enacting Competition Act, 2002 is to prevent anti-competitive practices, and to promote and sustain competition in the relevant markets in India. The thrust areas under the Act are Prohibition of Anti-Competitive Agreements, Abuse of Dominant Position and Combination Regulation. The Competition Commission of India has been established as a regulatory body for the purposes of the Act. During the course of investigation of an enterprise, the verification of its financial statements, books of accounts, cost of production, etc., are the prominent areas. In the light of this investigative approach, the Act has placed extensive reliance on the accountancy profession, with regard to various aspects.
© 2009 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
ACCOUNTING STANDARDS
Global Convergence of Financial Reporting: An Insight
-- NS Pandey
Changing of accounting treatment from Accounting Standards (AS) to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) entails, not only a single adoption of one accounting principle to another, but also an enormous exercise for accountants, which requires starting from a long-term vision to the lowest level of technical skills. This article highlights the need for global convergencethe need for IFRS in India. Comparative analysis of IFRS, International Accounting Standards, and Indian GAAP have also been discussed.
© 2009 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
ACCOUNTING STANDARDS
Innovations in Accounting Standards: Bridging the Gap Between GAAP and IFRS
-- Salini K
Acceptance of International Accounting Standards has gathered momentum. Many multinational companies and national regulatory authorities have come forward to adopt global accounting standards. They believe that this will help them compare the financial results of different companies, globally. Investors would also find it easier to identify opportunities better. Many experts tend to believe that it would not be difficult to hire manpower from across the world, if companies adopt International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). This article attempts at analyzing the implications of IFRS implementation in India. It also tries to highlight the major differences between Indian GAAP and IFRS and the possible ways to accommodate these differences.
© 2009 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
TAXATION
Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) in India: An Assessment
-- Pradeep Kumar Singh
Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) is a special tax, which is imposed on employers, if they are providing some specific perquisites (direct or deemed) to the employees during the financial year. As per the provisions of the act, fringe benefits mean any facilities/perks provided by the employers, in way of privilege, service, or amenity, directly or indirectly to the employees. The basic object of the FBT is to maintain equity and fairness to those, who are not getting such type of facilities, since government cannot levy tax on the employees due to different nature of the facilities. Keeping these points in mind, researchers try to explain the concept of FBT in India, the rationale for application of this act, collection of tax revenue and industrial sectors, which are contributing more towards FBT.
© 2009 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
SPEECH
Speech by SEC Commissioner: Increasing Accountability and Transparency to Investors
-- Luis A Aguilar
Commissioner, US Securities and Exchange Commission,
Washington, DC.
The financial crisis which is prevalent in the US should be carefully analyzed by the leaders of different industries and the government as quickly as possible. They should articulate an action plan and also implement the response. The main focus should be on regulatory reforms and re-establishing accountability and transparency to investors. The Congressional plan requires the closure of regulatory loopholes, internal shifts in policy and practice. The SEC should enhance the investor's ability to demand transparency and accountability.
© 2009 US Securities and Exchange Commission (www.sec.gov). Speech by Luis A Aguilar, Commissioner, Conference Co-sponsored by Investment Company Institute, Washington, February 6, 2009. Reprinted with permission. |
