US adoption of IFRS will happen in the long run, say investors.

• Author: Heffes, Ellen M.
• Position: FINANCIAL REPORTING - International financial reporting standards

Fifty-seven percent of global investors in a recent survey expect that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will one day require reporting under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), but that the process will take time and need substantial investment in staff and training.

These findings, from research by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), were published in a report, IFRS in the US: An Investor's Perspective. ACCA is a global body for professional accountants.

According to the research, which was conducted by Forbes Insights and surveyed some 500 U.S.-based investors--professional investment managers, asset managers and fund managers with a combined $2.3 trillion under management--investors believe that the long-term benefits of adoption would outweigh the costs by a margin of 41 percent to 29 percent.

Sue Almond, technical director at ACCA, says, "ACCA has repeatedly called for putting investors at the heart of the standard-setting process globally, and this is why we commissioned this research, to understand what American investors thought about the future of IFRS in the USA."

Hans Hoogervorst, chairman of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), says, "The ACCA's findings are consistent with anecdotal feedback we hear from the U.S. investor community. They also lend further credence to the argument that the USA is well prepared for a successful transition to IFRS."

Among other key findings:

* Investors identified the most significant challenges as the one-off transition matters, while longer-term concerns are rated less highly

* The most informed investors...