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Text size [+][-]  Saturday March 20 2010GLOBAL EDITION

Considered view
12 Nov 2009 16:32

Accounting grail

Context News

The International Accounting Standards Board has set out the first part of its new standard on financial accounting. The standard, called IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, is designed to take effect no later than 2013. Banks and other affected firms will be able to deploy it earlier.

The European Commission said it was going to wait until the remaining two phases of the IASB’s project was complete before deciding whether to adopt the standard.

Attempts to streamline the rules for bank accounting are running into problems with both the EU and the US. But this holy grail is well worth pursuing. The current hairballs helped confuse almost everybody – and exacerbated the crisis.

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