‘ACCOUNTANCY’ – JANUARY 2017 MONETARY SANCTIONS? USELESS ON THEIR OWN Unfortunately for our profession, the ‘Big 4’ label may equally be taken to refer to HSBC, RBS, Lloyds and Barclays, which between them have incurred an eye-watering £50 billion in fines and lawsuits since the financial crisis began ten years ago. Their misdemeanours relate mainly […]

Explaining boardroom mega-bucks The basic pay of most employees is governed by industrial and professional norms, and is relatively stable over time when so-called “inflation” adjustments are factored in. Almost unbelievably, today’s average hourly wage has the same buying power as it did 45 years ago! By contrast, executive remuneration in the largest companies is […]

February 2017 “ACCOUNTANCY” Legitimising corrupt practices In last month’s column I commented on the huge fines levied on financial institutions guilty of violating securities laws, noting that natural justice would be better served if these vast penalties were applied to compensate victims, rather than enriching culprits’ lawyers – while leaving the transgressors’ obscene levels of […]

News media gloat over the eye-watering levels of retribution (in the form of fines and penalties) finally being meted out to aberrant banks found guilty of having violated securities laws leading up to the last financial crash. I find it astonishing, firstly, that it has taken close to 10 years to identify, formulate and punish […]

Emile, Is there not a difficult practical issue here? There has been an outcry about the huge pay packet of Caros Ghosn at the head of Renault and its Japanese arm, Nissan. They calculate how many years it would take a production line worker to own what Ghosn gets in a day. How can he […]

November 2016 “Accountancy” The central bankers’ obsession with interest rate cuts as a means of stimulating economic recovery reminds me of the “dare” games we played as children, such as “how long can you keep your finger in the candle flame?” Or, in banking terms, “how close to zero can you fix interest rates before […]

“Accountancy” Magazine – October 2016 Standard-setting or obfuscation? The accounting world has become shrouded in complexity, largely of its own making. Here’s an uncontroversial statement of its original purpose: “To report the results of an entity’s economic transactions in accordance with well-understood and generally accepted accounting principles”. Here is an equally uncontroversial statement: No enterprise would […]

“Accountancy” Magazine: September 2016 In the wake of Brexit, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is urging companies to engage in dialogue with their auditors on whether specific disclosures are needed in their annual strategic report. This, for many companies, will provide a key focus for members, potential investors and financial journalists. Drafting its section on […]

Woolf: clamping down on share of non-audit services As new audit regulations take effect with the introduction of the EU Audit Regulations and Directive (ARD) into UK legislation, Emile Woolf FCA emphasises the need for renewed rigour in governance and auditor oversight 29 Jul 2016 Emile Woolf FCA, chartered accountant View profile and articles. Governance […]

Governance is more than regulation, which is its servant. Every public interest entity (‘PIE’), operating for the benefit of stakeholders and employees, functions within a regulatory structure that balances operational freedom, risk and cost. Finding and maintaining a lasting balance between these potentially competing elements is the province of good governance, and ensuring its effectiveness […]