Most companies unable to gauge whether suppliers meet ESG goals: survey

Companies that collect data about their suppliers can gain insights needed to influence suppliers’ behavior on carbon emissions and other sustainability goals.

By Jim Tyson • April 20, 2022

SEC alleges Brazilian ex-CFO planted false Berkshire Hathaway story

Fernando Passos used a fabricated shareholder list and a fake email as part of a scheme to bolster his false Berkshire Hathaway claim and pump up IRB's flagging stock, according to the complaint.   

By Maura Webber Sadovi • April 20, 2022

Explore the Trendline➔

Financial reporting enters a new age

Finance leaders are increasingly relying on metrics including churn, net promoter score and customer growth to reveal company performance in a way traditional GAAP measures cannot.

By CFO Dive staff

SEC swats pest control company with $8M penalty for accounting flaws

Rollins Inc., a global exterminator company, adjusted its accounting reserves in order to increase its EPS by 1 cent and meet quarterly forecasts.

By Jim Tyson • April 19, 2022

Accounting-related class actions plunge

Settlements, and settlement amounts, were also down, possibly in part because companies are restating financials less, Cornerstone Research finds.

By Robert Freedman • April 13, 2022

Republican lawmakers slam SEC climate-risk disclosure proposal

SEC Chair Gary Gensler says that a new regime of disclosure standards would answer the demand from investors for detailed information about climate risks faced by publicly traded companies.

By Jim Tyson • April 13, 2022

SEC issues guidance on crypto-asset accounting, disclosure

As theft of crypto-assets rises, the SEC is pushing companies to publicly report on the potential costs from such crimes and efforts to curb hacking risks.

By Jim Tyson • April 11, 2022

FTC orders fixes at Dun & Bradstreet, citing report errors

Dun & Bradstreet must overhaul how it gathers credit information and provide refunds to subscribers of its CreditBuilder product, the FTC said. 

By Jim Tyson • April 8, 2022

IRS's Rettig appeals for 'consistent, timely' funding to streamline agency

The Biden administration has proposed an 18% increase in funding for the IRS budget to help the agency improve performance after years of tight funding.

By Jim Tyson • April 7, 2022

Federal auditor watchdog fines former KPMG vice chair $100,000

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board fined the former head of KPMG’s U.S. audit business soon after releasing a report on how audit firms can improve their work.

By Jim Tyson • April 6, 2022

Russian invasion impact challenges auditors: PCAOB

Auditors need to be on alert for several business disruptions from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that increase the risk that companies will misstate financial results, a federal regulator said.

By Jim Tyson • April 4, 2022

CFO scenario planning is key as Biden pushes 28% corporate tax rate

“The advice we’re giving people is to watch what the Build Back Better morphs into in 2022 and see if there’s momentum to push through those tax changes,” said PwC's Ken Kuykendall. 

By Maura Webber Sadovi • March 31, 2022

SEC proposes tougher disclosure rules for SPACs

A Securities and Exchange Commission proposal caps months of sharper scrutiny of SPACs and coincides with a slump in the market for the so-called blank-check companies.

By Jim Tyson • March 30, 2022

Data pose biggest hurdle to ESG disclosure: Deloitte

Gathering credible data on greenhouse gas emissions by suppliers and other third-party business partners has emerged as one of the most difficult steps in sustainability reporting.

By Jim Tyson • March 25, 2022

Companies must venture into 'jungle' of approaches to ESG ratings

CFOs committed to providing sustainability disclosures confront a confusing variety of inconsistent standards and measurements, according to a panel of experts.

By Jim Tyson • March 23, 2022

SEC accepts FASB's 2022 reporting taxonomies

The 2022 reporting taxonomies include updates to accounting standards on credit losses and balance sheet offsets, among other things, the Financial Accounting Standards Board says. 

By Maura Webber Sadovi • March 23, 2022

SEC proposes ‘rules of the road’ for climate-risk disclosures

Investors with $130 trillion in assets under management have pushed for consistent, comparable disclosures on climate risk, SEC Chair Gary Gensler said Monday.

By Jim Tyson • March 21, 2022

Shell faces lawsuit as SEC prepares carbon crackdown

The SEC plans Monday to announce a proposed rule for carbon emissions disclosure just days after Shell came under fire from activists saying it needs a solid strategy to curb climate risk.

By Jim Tyson • March 18, 2022

What the new R&D tax rule means for life sciences companies

For established companies with very large R&D expenses, the cash tax impacts can be a billion-dollar issue.

By Mark Drozdowski and Christine Kachinsky • March 18, 2022

School district overstated financials in $20M bond issue; former CFO fined

The Crosby, Texas, agency left almost $12 million it owed off the financial statements that were used to support its capital raise. 

By Robert Freedman • March 18, 2022

Regulation, weak economy pose obstacles to SPACs: Deloitte

After booming last year, the SPAC market has fizzled so far in 2022, with the number and average value of deals falling.

By Jim Tyson • March 16, 2022

Women executives tick up to 18%, avoid pandemic backslide

“We are still far from where we should be, and some of our findings continue to be shocking,” said Diana Van Maasdijk, CEO at Equileap. 

By Maura Webber Sadovi • March 15, 2022

Risks persist with some LIBOR legacy contracts: Fitch

Recently passed federal legislation may not avert disruptions from some financial contracts linked to LIBOR that need to adopt a new benchmark rate.

By Jim Tyson • March 14, 2022

SEC pushes for tougher cybersecurity disclosure rules

SEC Chair Gary Gensler said investors demand more detailed information about how companies seek to curb the risk and costs of cyberattacks.

By Jim Tyson • March 9, 2022

How CFOs can structure an ESG-friendly tax strategy

ESG's tax implications is “a topic where there’s a two-way street,” said Kevin M. Jacobs, a managing director at Alvarez & Marsal Taxand. 

By Maura Webber Sadovi • March 3, 2022

CFOs should prepare for stronger ESG shareholder pressure: EY

CFOs and directors need to prepare for the 2022 proxy season as institutional investors turn up the heat on efforts to ensure companies embrace sustainable business practices.

By Jim Tyson • March 1, 2022