Current financial crisis not caused by change in accounting rules

According to the AP, The Financial Crisis Advisory Group has stated that changes in accounting rules did not cause the most recent credit crisis. They did state that there are weaknesses in the application rules that may reduce the credibility in the financial reporting. To see all of their current views, please read the article here.

Mark to market accounting

The Economist has a very interesting article looking some accounting rules that have different views from different sides. On one side, some believe that loans, securities, and frauds should be accounted for at market prices. On the other side, managers believe that assets should be accounted for at cost and only be written down when losses are likely to occur. The IASB has stepped in and set some new rules on this topic, and they want a system that is not going to change when the economic cycle travels up and down. Read the full article here.

Germans loosen accounting rules

According to Forbes, German banks responded well to the news that the government would recend an accounting rule to help banks boost spending in the current economy. This ruling will ease up on the capital requirements governing a bank. The rule, created to be helpful in bull markets harms the banks in bear markets. Read what this ruling would do for German banks here.