What will Rise at CFO Rising?

In just a few weeks, Orlando will play host to the 18th Annual CFO Rising Conference and Exhibition, and while the event will contain a number of impressive keynote speakers (as well as some creative networking opportunities), as usual, it is the breakout sessions that we at Merrill Corporation heavily endorse participating in. We specifically recommend:

Private Company Financial Reporting: What CFOs Should Know Now

In the United States and around the world, private-company financial reporting is undergoing significant, continuous change. In particular, financial accounting and reporting standards are increasingly influenced by global phenomena that private-company CFOs can no longer ignore. This workshop will explain the impact that recent and forthcoming developments in private-company financial reporting will have on your company, your department, and your career. It will also provide you with proven, actionable guidance for managing the associated risks both inside and outside of the finance department. Because this workshop focuses on major trends from the CFO’s perspective, your main takeaway will be a solid understanding of the critical decisions and plans that you will need to make and act on in order to lead your private company through a time of unprecedented change in financial reporting. That understanding will empower you to overcome the many near-term challenges that private company CFOs face.

Topics covered in this workshop include:

• The Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (FASB’s) Accounting Standards Codification™.
• Proposed changes to accounting and reporting standards for revenue, leases, and financial instruments.
• Opportunities and incentives for private companies to adopt International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) or the IFRS for Small and Medium-sized Entities.
• Other alternatives to U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) for private U.S. companies.
• The prospects for greater divergence between private-company GAAP and public-company GAAP in the United States and other countries.
• Cost-effective internal control over financial reporting.
• Talent management.

On the Front Lines: The State of Finance 2011 (A Panel Discussion)

Already so lean that they often escaped the deep cuts that other departments endured over the past two years, finance departments are slimming down even further. In fact, a combination of increasing automation, new business models, and offshoring has pushed down the average finance staff’s size by 30% over the past six years, according to The Hackett Group. How is that affecting the war for talent? Are finance jobs more strategic now? And what is the prognosis for the future?

Masterclass 2: Compliance

The debate over the convergence of international accounting standards is coming to a close. FASB and the IASB plan to release a slew of new standards this year that will dramatically affect financial statements. Changes in financial accounting promise to affect how CFOs communicate with stakeholders—and how they do their jobs. This session will address how some leading finance executives are coping with the latest developments, including the convergence of U.S. GAAP and IFRS and offer best practices.

As an organization that will play a role in the ongoing development of these issues, we strongly encourage our current and future clients to keep up-to-date with the most current information on some of these topics.

Another Year, Another Deadline for the Fund Industry

Brokers had a busy 2010 preparing for the new cost-bases reporting rules that took effect in January of this year. Mutual Funds are next up with the IRS and cost-bases reporting slated to hit them square in the compliance expense pocket for 2012.

As Chris Kentouris explains in his article from Securities Technology Monitor, "Buying new software to calculate the correct number for the original cost of a tax lot of shares is just the tip of the iceberg in preparations." Adding, "Mutual funds, which have always relied on average cost accounting, will now be required to give investors the option of deciding which tax lot accounting methodology to use."

Confused? Read the rest of Chris' article here and a follow on article from Tom Steiner-Threlkeld and look for more information and solutions to help through the new regulations over the coming months.

You can read the final regulations brokers are currently working under here.

Hedge Accounting

Do you have experience in hedge accounting? More importantly, do you have opinions on the reporting of hedge accounting?

This week, The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued their latest discussion paper to solicit input on how to improve, simplify, and converge the financial reporting requirements for hedging activities.

Hedge accounting exists as a method for financial institutions and businesses to protect themselves from different economic risks associated with derivative financial instruments. The use of it, spelled out under the International Accounting Standards's IAS39 (Financial Instrument Recognition and Measurement).

 

The timeline for this process started in May 2010 with the FASB's proposed revisions to improve and simplify standards for financial reporting of financial instruments, including hedge accounting guidance. In December 2010, as part of its project to improve the accounting for financial instruments, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) issued its Exposure Draft (ED) Hedge Accounting, which seeks to align hedge accounting more closely with risk management while addressing inconsistencies and weaknesses in the existing hedge accounting model.

According to the FASB, differences exist between the International Financial Reporting Standards and the U.S. GAAP relating to hedge accounting. The revisions proposed by the ISAB's  Exposure Draft would result in more differences compared with the FASB’s current and proposed hedge accounting guidance. The FASB Discussion Paper asks stakeholders whether the IASB’s proposals are a better starting point for any changes to U.S. GAAP as it relates to derivatives and hedging activities.

“The FASB is issuing this Discussion Paper to determine whether our constituents think the IASB’s proposed changes would improve the accounting for hedging activities,” stated FASB Chairman Leslie F. Seidman. “The information received during the comment period will be helpful to both the FASB and the IASB as we deliberate issues pertaining to hedge accounting.”