SEC Press press_release 6 KB 3,310 chars

Press Release: SEC Announces Next Steps Relating to International Financial Reporting Standards

Release: 2007-72

summary

The SEC announced in April 2007 a regulatory initiative to allow foreign private issuers to use IFRS without reconciling to U.S. GAAP by 2009, as part of its 2005 Roadmap, with no fraud or enforcement actions involved.

paragraph

In April 2007, the SEC announced plans to propose a rule change that would permit foreign private issuers to file financial statements using International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) without reconciling them to U.S. GAAP, effective for reports filed in 2009. This move, aligned with the 2005 Roadmap, was accompanied by a planned Proposing Release for public comment in summer 2007 and a Concept Release to explore extending IFRS adoption to U.S. issuers. No fraud, financial penalties, or enforcement actions were associated with this regulatory development—it was purely a policy effort to harmonize global accounting standards.

narrative

In April 2007, the SEC announced a series of regulatory steps to advance the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as part of its 2005 Roadmap toward global accounting convergence. The Commission planned to issue a Proposing Release that summer to seek public comment on eliminating the mandatory reconciliation of IFRS financial statements to U.S. GAAP for foreign private issuers, with implementation targeted for 2009. Simultaneously, the SEC intended to release a Concept Release to examine whether U.S. domestic issuers should also be allowed to use IFRS on a stand-alone basis. These actions were explicitly framed as policy and regulatory developments, not enforcement or fraud investigations. SEC Chairman Christopher Cox and Division of Corporation Finance Director John W. White emphasized the importance of investor protection and regulatory efficiency in this transition. Chief Accountant Conrad W. Hewitt noted the need for careful consideration of the policy implications for U.S. investors. Public comments on both releases were due in the fall of 2007, with no financial penalties, charges, or allegations of misconduct involved in the process.

Enriched metadata

Scheme: non-corporate (100%)

Classified non-corporate(confidence 100%). No EDGAR filing fingerprint (criminal/DOJ-side scheme). detection rule →

Extracted insights

Entities 8

person christopher cox
person conrad w. hewitt
agency director of sec division of corporation finance
person international financial reporting standards
person john w. white
agency sec chairman
agency sec chief accountant
agency Securities and Exchange Commission

Triples 10

SEC announced series of actions relating to acceptance of IFRS in financial reports
SEC plans to issue Proposing Release in summer 2007
SEC intends to allow use of IFRS by foreign private issuers
Christopher Cox is SEC Chairman
SEC plans to eliminate reconciliation requirement by 2009
John W. White is Director of SEC Division of Corporation Finance
Conrad W. Hewitt is SEC Chief Accountant
IASB publishes International Financial Reporting Standards
SEC announced Roadmap in 2005
SEC plans Concept Release on treating U.S. and foreign issuers similarly

View original SEC press releasesec.gov

Extracted body text (3,310c)

SEC Announces Next Steps Relating to International Financial Reporting Standards FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 2007-72 Washington, D.C., April 24, 2007 - Following up on its roundtable last month, the Securities and Exchange Commission today announced a series of actions it intends to take relating to the acceptance of financial reporting in International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as published by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). The Commission anticipates issuing a Proposing Release this summer that will request comments on proposed changes to the Commission's rules which would allow the use of IFRS in financial reports filed by foreign private issuers that are registered with the Commission. The approach in the proposed rule would be to give foreign private issuers a choice between IFRS and U.S. GAAP. In addition, the Commission plans a Concept Release relating to issues surrounding the possibility of treating U.S. and foreign issuers similarly in this respect by also providing U.S. issuers the alternative to use IFRS. Comments on both would be due in the fall. "The next steps that the Commission is announcing today will keep us on course with the Roadmap announced in 2005," said SEC Chairman Christopher Cox. Pending public comments on the proposal, "we remain on track to eliminate reconciliation by 2009," Cox added. The Commission's rules currently require that foreign private issuers who report in IFRS, or any other non-U.S. GAAP, provide a reconciliation of those financial statements to U.S. GAAP. The Commission's planned proposal this summer would address eliminating that reconciliation requirement with respect to financial statements filed in IFRS beginning in 2009. This is consistent with the timetable set forth in the Roadmap in 2005. Because the elimination of the reconciliation requirement will permit some, but not all, registrants to have a choice between IFRS and U.S. GAAP, it raises the question whether all registrants should be able to report under either IFRS or U.S. GAAP. The planned Concept Release will permit the Commission to gather more information on this subject. "I am very pleased that the Commission is moving forward in this important area. The actions announced today represent critical steps toward a future regulatory framework in which IFRS may be used on a stand-alone basis by foreign private issuers and possibly also by U.S. issuers," remarked John W. White, Director of the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance. "The staff will continue our work relating to IFRS so that we are in a position to make a recommendation to the Commission with respect to the elimination of the U.S. GAAP reconciliation requirement in time for the annual reports filed by calendar year foreign private issuers in 2009." "Whether foreign private issuers, and ultimately U.S. companies, should be permitted to use financial statements prepared using IFRS without the current reconciliation to U.S. GAAP are important policy questions for the Commission and U.S. investors," said Conrad W. Hewitt, the Commission's Chief Accountant. "Mindful of the Roadmap, we are working expeditiously to develop our recommendations for the Commission to consider." http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2007/2007-72.htm Home | Previous Page Modified: 04/25/2007

OCR text (3,310c · plain-text · 99% conf)

SEC Announces Next Steps Relating to International Financial Reporting Standards FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 2007-72 Washington, D.C., April 24, 2007 - Following up on its roundtable last month, the Securities and Exchange Commission today announced a series of actions it intends to take relating to the acceptance of financial reporting in International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as published by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). The Commission anticipates issuing a Proposing Release this summer that will request comments on proposed changes to the Commission's rules which would allow the use of IFRS in financial reports filed by foreign private issuers that are registered with the Commission. The approach in the proposed rule would be to give foreign private issuers a choice between IFRS and U.S. GAAP. In addition, the Commission plans a Concept Release relating to issues surrounding the possibility of treating U.S. and foreign issuers similarly in this respect by also providing U.S. issuers the alternative to use IFRS. Comments on both would be due in the fall. "The next steps that the Commission is announcing today will keep us on course with the Roadmap announced in 2005," said SEC Chairman Christopher Cox. Pending public comments on the proposal, "we remain on track to eliminate reconciliation by 2009," Cox added. The Commission's rules currently require that foreign private issuers who report in IFRS, or any other non-U.S. GAAP, provide a reconciliation of those financial statements to U.S. GAAP. The Commission's planned proposal this summer would address eliminating that reconciliation requirement with respect to financial statements filed in IFRS beginning in 2009. This is consistent with the timetable set forth in the Roadmap in 2005. Because the elimination of the reconciliation requirement will permit some, but not all, registrants to have a choice between IFRS and U.S. GAAP, it raises the question whether all registrants should be able to report under either IFRS or U.S. GAAP. The planned Concept Release will permit the Commission to gather more information on this subject. "I am very pleased that the Commission is moving forward in this important area. The actions announced today represent critical steps toward a future regulatory framework in which IFRS may be used on a stand-alone basis by foreign private issuers and possibly also by U.S. issuers," remarked John W. White, Director of the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance. "The staff will continue our work relating to IFRS so that we are in a position to make a recommendation to the Commission with respect to the elimination of the U.S. GAAP reconciliation requirement in time for the annual reports filed by calendar year foreign private issuers in 2009." "Whether foreign private issuers, and ultimately U.S. companies, should be permitted to use financial statements prepared using IFRS without the current reconciliation to U.S. GAAP are important policy questions for the Commission and U.S. investors," said Conrad W. Hewitt, the Commission's Chief Accountant. "Mindful of the Roadmap, we are working expeditiously to develop our recommendations for the Commission to consider." http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2007/2007-72.htm Home | Previous Page Modified: 04/25/2007