In the following guest post, Kevin Douglas and Lora Wuerdeman of the Bass, Berry & Sims law firm take a look at post-pandemic reporting of non-GAAP financial measures. A version of this article previously was published on the Bass, Barry & Sims Securities Law Exchange. I would like to thank the authors for allowing me to publish their article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this blog’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is the authors’ article.
Continue Reading Guest Post: COVID-19 and Non-GAAP Financial Measures: A Survey and Overview of 1Q20 Disclosure Practices
Financial Reporting
Senate Acts to Enforce Audit Oversight on Foreign (Especially Chinese) Companies
When the U.S. Senate recently passed legislation that would bar access to U.S. securities exchanges to any foreign company whose auditor is not subject to the same regulatory inspections as domestic U.S. companies, it was the culmination of a series of moves by regulators, market authorities, and legislators to try to “level the playing field” and subject the foreign companies to the same scrutiny U.S. companies and their auditors face. The recently passed Senate legislation, Senate Bill 945, known as the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, was promoted by its co-sponsor, Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana, as a bill that would “kick deceitful Chinese companies off U.S. exchanges.” As discussed below, in addition to the recent Senate bill, efforts by regulators and market authorities with respect to rights to inspect and supervise auditors of foreign companies with securities listed on U.S. exchanges, are continuing.
Continue Reading Senate Acts to Enforce Audit Oversight on Foreign (Especially Chinese) Companies
Number of Restatements Continues to Decline
Financial restatements among U.S public companies hit their lowest level in years in 2017, according to the latest annual report from Audit Analytics. The total number of restatements declined in 2017 to a 17-year low and the number of reissuance restatements (those requiring withdrawal and reissuance of previously released financial reports) declined for the eleventh consecutive year. The number of companies restating their financials is at its lowest level since at least 2002. The findings are summarized in a June 7, 2018 Audit Analytics blog post (here). The full report can be found here (subscription or purchase required).
Continue Reading Number of Restatements Continues to Decline