Considering transitioning to international Financial Reporting Standards?

• Author: Heffes, Ellen M.
• Position: Financial reporting - Brief article

Since launching this column devoted to international Financial Reporting Standards last October, it has covered several aspects of IFRS. A prime takeaway is that it pays to get up to speed on IFRS implications specific to each company--and the good news: resources are readily available. Also, it's best to swiftly identify the conversion process and project management team.

In its Roadmap for the Potential Use of Financial Statements in Accordance with IFRS by U.S. Issuers, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed to mandate IFRS for large public companies in 2014, and many opine on the direction convergence should take.

The comment period was scheduled to end Feb. 19. On Jan. 23, FEI requested a 45-day extension, which coincided with a memo from Presidential Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel instructing agencies to consider extending by 60 days the effective date of pending regulations. Then, on Feb. 3, the SEC announced a 60-day extension of the comment period to...