Financial statements paper

Accurate financial records are necessary to keep track of financial warning signals such as inordinately high expenses, high levels of debt or a poor record of collecting bills. Public companies often have specific procedures for gathering, verifying and reporting financial information. Recent corporate scandals have placed greater scrutiny on the managers and corporate officers of publicly held firms.

Fund accounting The rules for the recording, measurement and presentation of government financial statements may be different from those required for business and even for non-profit organizations. They may use either of two accounting methods: A complete set of chart of accounts is also used that is substantially different from the chart of a profit-oriented business.

Personal[ edit ] Personal financial statements may be required from persons applying for a personal loan or financial aid. Typically, a personal financial statement consists of a single form for reporting personally held assets and liabilities debtsor personal sources of income and expenses, or both.

The form to be filled out is determined by the organization supplying the loan or aid. Audit and legal implications[ edit ] Although laws differ from country to country, an audit of the financial Financial statements paper of a public company is usually required for investment, financing, and tax purposes.

These are usually performed by independent accountants or auditing firms. Results of the audit are summarized in an audit report that either provide an unqualified opinion on the financial statements or qualifications as to its fairness and accuracy.

The audit opinion on the financial statements is usually included in the annual report. There has been much legal debate over who an auditor is liable to. Since audit reports tend to be addressed to the current shareholders, it is commonly thought that they owe a legal duty of care to them.

But this may not be the case as determined by common law precedent. In Canada, auditors are liable only to investors using a prospectus to buy shares in the primary market. In the United Kingdomthey have been held liable to potential investors when the auditor was aware of the potential investor and how they would use the information in the financial statements.

Nowadays auditors tend to include in their report liability restricting language, discouraging anyone other than the addressees of their report from relying on it.

Liability is an important issue: In the United Statesespecially in the post- Enron era there has been substantial concern about the accuracy of financial statements. Corporate officers - the chief executive officer CEO and chief financial officer CFO - are personally responsible for fair financial reporting allowing those reading the report to have a good sense of the organization.

Standards and regulations[ edit ] Different countries have developed their own accounting principles over time, making international comparisons of companies difficult. To ensure uniformity and comparability between financial statements prepared by different companies, a set of guidelines and rules are used.

Commonly referred to as Generally Accepted Accounting Principles GAAPthese set of guidelines provide the basis in the preparation of financial statements, although many companies voluntarily disclose information beyond the scope of such requirements.

Inclusion in annual reports[ edit ] To entice new investors, public companies assemble their financial statements on fine paper with pleasing graphics and photos in an annual report to shareholdersattempting to capture the excitement and culture of the organization in a "marketing brochure " of sorts.

Usually the company's chief executive will write a letter to shareholders, describing management's performance and the company's financial highlights. In the United States, prior to the advent of the internet, the annual report was considered the most effective way for corporations to communicate with individual shareholders.

Blue chip companies went to great expense to produce and mail out attractive annual reports to every shareholder.

The annual report was often prepared in the style of a coffee table book. Notes[ edit ] Notes to financial statements notes are additional information added to the end of financial statements that help explain specific items in the statements as well as provide a more comprehensive assessment of a company's financial condition.

Notes to financial statements can include information on debtgoing concern criteria, accountscontingent liabilities or contextual information explaining the financial numbers e.

The notes clarify individual statement line-items. For example, if a company lists a loss on a fixed asset impairment line in their income statement, notes could state the reason for the impairment by describing how the asset became impaired.

Notes are also used to explain the accounting methods used to prepare the statements and they support valuations for how particular accounts have been computed. In consolidated financial statementsall subsidiaries are listed as well as the amount of ownership controlling interest that the parent company has in the subsidiaries.

Any items within the financial statements that are valuated by estimation are part of the notes if a substantial difference exists between the amount of the estimate previously reported and the actual result.

Full disclosure of the effects of the differences between the estimate and actual results should be included. Move to electronic statements[ edit ] Financial statements have been created on paper for hundreds of years. The growth of the Web has seen more and more financial statements created in an electronic form which is exchangeable over the Web.

These types of electronic financial statements have their drawbacks in that it still takes a human to read the information in order to reuse the information contained in a financial statement.Financial Statement Analysis Paper Example 1: Dell Computer Dell Inc.

Current Year Prior Year 3 Years Ago $ Percent $ Percent $ Percent Income Statement . Financial ratios are relationships determined from a company's financial information and used for comparison purposes.

Examples include such often referred to measures as return on investment (ROI. 3. An activity ratio relates information on a company's ability to manage its resources (that is, its assets) efficiently.

4. A financial leverage ratio provides information on the degree of a company's fixed financing obligations and its ability to satisfy these financing obligations.

Financial Statement Preparation | Example | Explanation of Steps	Creating digital, unambiguous, accurate and reusable versions of financial statements is one of the core capabilities of the XBRL standard.
LIQUIDITY RATIOS	These statements are the end product of the accounting system in any company. Basically, preparing these statements is what financial accounting is all about.
Specifications	Credit and Liquidity Programs and the Balance Sheet Credit and Liquidity Programs and the Balance Sheet Overview Crisis response Monetary policy normalization Fed's balance sheet Federal Reserve liabilities Recent balance sheet trends Open market operations Central bank liquidity swaps Lending to depository institutions Fed financial reports Other reports and disclosures Information on closed programs Federal Reserve System Financial Reports The Board of Governors and the Federal Reserve Banks annually prepare and release audited financial statements reflecting balances as of December 31 and income and expenses for the year then ended.
Credit and Liquidity Programs and the Balance Sheet	Written by Ng E-Jay 18 March In an attempt to shore up the faltering reputation of Singapore as a financial hub and to beef up regulations governing the marketing and sale of investment products, the Monetary Authority of Singapore MAS released a draft consultation paper last Thursday outlining what is acceptable sales practice and what crosses the line into mis-selling and deception. See here and here.

5. A shareholder ratio describes the company's financial condition in terms of amounts per. Written by Ng E-Jay 18 March In an attempt to shore up the faltering reputation of Singapore as a financial hub and to beef up regulations governing the marketing and sale of investment products, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) released a draft consultation paper last Thursday outlining what is acceptable sales practice and what crosses the line into mis-selling and deception.

Financial statements are a vital part of economic life.

Next Release of Financial Statements

Creating digital, unambiguous, accurate and reusable versions of financial statements is one of the core capabilities of the XBRL standard.. Flexibility is key.

Written by Ng E-Jay 18 March In an attempt to shore up the faltering reputation of Singapore as a financial hub and to beef up regulations governing the marketing and sale of investment products, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) released a draft consultation paper last Thursday outlining what is acceptable sales practice and what crosses the line into mis-selling and deception. RELEVANT TO ACCA QUALIFICATION PAPER F3 / FOUNDATIONS IN ACCOUNTANCY PAPER FFA © ACCA Preparing simple consolidated financial statements. Journal of Finance and Accountancy Restated financial statements, Page 1 Restated financial statements and type of internal control disclosures.

Financial statements: are governed by official accounting standards. The Board of Governors and the Federal Reserve Banks annually prepare and release audited financial statements reflecting balances (as of December 31) and income and expenses for the year then ended.