A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce. University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Commerce. / Accounting is a human creation designed to satisfy human need, and which must therefore, above all be useful. Financial statements should, therefore, provide information that is useful in making economic decisions. Academics and practitioners are however critical of the output of the accounting information system and propose that accounting profitability is of limited economic significance. They claim it is no longer sufficient to provide antiquated historical cost data. that in Joost respects cannot be processed further. There is no urgent need to develop both analytical systems for thinking about and anticipating changes in the business world and the mechanisms and structures to assure that we respond appropriately from that standpoint of useful financial reporting 'The Accounting Rate of Return (ARR) may assist in evolving the usefulness of financial reporting. In the report the usefulness of the Accounting Rate of Return is established. The purpose of this report is achieved through normative and empirical studies. The result of comparing the ARR to the opportunity cost of capital has been suggested to be absolute. but in reality this is not feasible. Investors would use the ARR, as an input in rather than the decisive factor for deciding whether to buy. hold or sell investment. The proposals advocated in the paper communicate relevant and useful information for the purposes of investment performance appraisal. / Andrew Chakane 2018

M.Comm. (Accounting) / To date, a comprehensive theory of accounting has not been developed by accounting academics. This absent theoretic basis for the practice of accounting has created uncertainty within the field amongst both academics and practitioners resulting in practitioners having taken over the role of developing accounting standards. As a result, a number of practical problems have arisen within the sector. In addressing this problem, a body of literature has emerged proposing institutional thinking as a viable basis for the development of an academically sound base for the practice of accounting. This study assesses whether further academic merit can be given to this proposal by establishing whether or not accounting practice does indeed function as an economic institution, specifically within a South African context. Owing to the sophisticated structures that govern the practice of accounting in South Africa, a South African context is considered appropriate for setting international precedence. In fulfilling the research objective, this study follows a three-step, qualitative approach of an exploratory nature. The first step identifies who the major role-players within the field of accounting in South Africa are and explains what their roles consist of. The second step develops a set of criteria which are generally agreed amongst institutional economists to be present in most functioning macro-economic institutions. The third step then applies these criteria to accounting practice in South Africa to assess whether or not this practice functions as a macro-economic institution. The outcomes of the study indicate that accounting practice in South Africa does indeed function as an economic institution with strong interdependencies existing between the key role-players thereby granting further academic credibility to exploring the development of accounting theory from an institutional perspective.

M.Com. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Com. (International Accounting) / Without me trying to rewrite history or steal the thunder from many historians, it was William Pollard who said: “without change there is no innovation, creativity, or incentive for improvement. Those who initiate change will have a better opportunity to manage the change that is inevitable” (Brainyquote, 2014). In the words of the famous George Bernard Shaw, “progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything” (Brainyquote, 2014). These truths equally apply to accounting practice. Over the past few years, many factors have contributed to changes in accounting practice.

M.Com. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

It is widely assumed that the managers of companies behave in a self-interested and opportunistic manner when making the discretionary accounting choices that are applied in the preparation of published financial reports. Empirical research has found evidence for this in the United States, Britain, Spain, France and Australia, amongst other countries. There has, however, been no prior work of a similar nature in a South African context. The purpose of this study is to extend this body of work by examining the relationship between a number of potentially opportunistic (profit-increasing, income-smoothing and solvencyimproving) accounting choices made by the managers of South African listed companies, and growth rates in the share prices of those companies. Data in respect of thirty-nine medium-sized South African listed companies are analysed for evidence of the expected positive relationship between opportunistic accounting choices and share price growth. No evidence is found for this relationship. This may be due to limitations in the research design, inadequacies in the interpretation of the agency theory from which the hypotheses are developed, or a combination of both. Refinements in the research design or a re-interpretation of the theory may be successful in addressing these matters as part of future research efforts.

Text in Afrikaans / Hierdie verhandeling handel oor die belastingimplikasies wat uit die aankoop en verkoop van ondernemings in Suid-Afrika voortspruit. Aandag word gegee aan die bree belastingraamwerk van die transaksie en die verskillende maniere waarop 'n onderneming aangekoop of verkoop kan word. Vervolgens word die belastingimplikasies met betrekking tot die aankoop en die verkoop van 'n onderneming bespreek, deur die twee maniere waarop 1 n onderneming oorgeneem kan word, naamlik bateverkryging en belangverkryging, te ontleed. Belastingbeplanningsaspekte wat vir die koper en die verkoper van 'n onderneming van belang is, word ook geidentifiseer. 'n Metode word daarna ontwikkel om die belastingimplikasies te kwantifiseer sodat die belastingimplikasies deur die koper en die verkoper geevalueer kan word. Die gevolgtrekking word gemaak dat 'n koper en verkoper van 'n onderneming groot belastingvoordele kan bewerkstellig deur die transaksie deeglik te beplan en noukeurig deur middel van 'n koopkontrak te struktureer. / This dissertation deals with the tax implications arising from the purchase and sale of enterprises in South Africa. Attention is given to the broad tax framework of the transaction and the different manners in which an enterprise can be purchased or sold. Next, the tax implications in relation to the purchase and sale of an enterprise are discussed by analysing the two manners in which an enterprise can be acquired, namely asset acquisition and share acquisition. Tax planning aspects of importance to the buyer and seller of an enterprise are also identified. Thereafter, a method is developed to quantify the tax implications in order that they can be evaluated by the buyer and seller. The conclusion is made that a buyer and seller of an enterprise can secure major tax benefits by planning the transaction properly and by structuring it carefully by means of a contract of sale. / Financial Accounting / M.Com. (Accounting)

Non-financial disclosures are of considerable interest and importance to the reporting world and decision making. However, many companies fail to disclose adequate information on their non-financial matters. The lack of internationally accepted requirements for the presentation of non-financial disclosures is one reason for inadequate reporting of non-financial matters and the reporting differences among companies. The aim of this dissertation was to explore the nature and extent of non-financial disclosure in South African mining companies listed on the JSE Securities Exchange. This sector was chosen because of its high risky nature and its significant role in the South African economy. The data were collected from 22 South African mining companies‘ websites and related to the 2004, 2005 and 2006 annual reports. A disclosure index was developed to investigate the extent and nature of non-financial disclosure in the South African mining companies with regards to environmental, social, corporate governance, forward-looking information and Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A), and the extent of non-financial disclosure with the JSE Securities Exchange reporting requirements; that is, the King II and the JSE SRI Index. Thereafter, a content analysis of the companies‘ annual reports was carried out using the disclosure index developed for this study. The study found that the non-financial disclosure for all 22 mining companies showed an increasing trend over the years studied. Mining companies were disclosing environmental issues more than any of the other non-financial disclosure items. However, more than half of the companies did not provide information with regard to their non-compliance issues. Generally this means that, although the mining companies face obvious risks, they are better at disclosing positive rather than negative information. The main reason for the increase in the companies‘ adoption of Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) as a non-financial reporting guideline is King II. The study demonstrates that there was not 100% compliance level of adherence with the reporting requirements of the JSE Securities Exchange on corporate governance and integrated sustainability reporting. Keywords: Non-financial disclosures, mining companies, South Africa, JSE Securities Exchange, environmental, social, corporate governance, forward-looking, MD&A. / Thesis (M.Acc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2009.

Text in Afrikaans / Hierdie verhandeling handel oor die belastingimplikasies wat uit die aankoop en verkoop van ondernemings in Suid-Afrika voortspruit. Aandag word gegee aan die bree belastingraamwerk van die transaksie en die verskillende maniere waarop 'n onderneming aangekoop of verkoop kan word. Vervolgens word die belastingimplikasies met betrekking tot die aankoop en die verkoop van 'n onderneming bespreek, deur die twee maniere waarop 1 n onderneming oorgeneem kan word, naamlik bateverkryging en belangverkryging, te ontleed. Belastingbeplanningsaspekte wat vir die koper en die verkoper van 'n onderneming van belang is, word ook geidentifiseer. 'n Metode word daarna ontwikkel om die belastingimplikasies te kwantifiseer sodat die belastingimplikasies deur die koper en die verkoper geevalueer kan word. Die gevolgtrekking word gemaak dat 'n koper en verkoper van 'n onderneming groot belastingvoordele kan bewerkstellig deur die transaksie deeglik te beplan en noukeurig deur middel van 'n koopkontrak te struktureer. / This dissertation deals with the tax implications arising from the purchase and sale of enterprises in South Africa. Attention is given to the broad tax framework of the transaction and the different manners in which an enterprise can be purchased or sold. Next, the tax implications in relation to the purchase and sale of an enterprise are discussed by analysing the two manners in which an enterprise can be acquired, namely asset acquisition and share acquisition. Tax planning aspects of importance to the buyer and seller of an enterprise are also identified. Thereafter, a method is developed to quantify the tax implications in order that they can be evaluated by the buyer and seller. The conclusion is made that a buyer and seller of an enterprise can secure major tax benefits by planning the transaction properly and by structuring it carefully by means of a contract of sale. / Financial Accounting / M.Com. (Accounting)

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management at the University of Witwatersrand in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Commerce, February 2019 / Orientation: The professional accountant’s ability regarding ethical decision-making has come under increased scrutiny within recent times. This is particularly relevant within the South African accountancy environment given the recent accounting scandals that surfaced during 2017 and 2018. For professional accountants to achieve the goal of serving the public interest, they are required to have a mindset that fosters ethical-decision making. Research aim: The primary aim of this study was to explore the different factors which influence ethical judgement and behavioural intentions of professional accountants and to investigate which are significant factors which influence ethical-decision making. Ethical judgment involves the ability of the participant to recognise the seriousness of an ethical conflict whereas ethical behavioural intentions focus on the willingness of the participant to behave ethically. The secondary aim of the study was to explore the effect of demographical characteristics on ethical decision-making. Motivation for study: From a South African perspective, it is critical to ensure that professional bodies who are tasked with developing the accounting profession as well as serving the public interest gain a better understanding of the different factors which influence ethical judgment and behavioural intentions of professional accountants. Research approach and method: This study used a multidimensional ethics scale (MES) to measure the significant considerations of professional accountants when faced with an ethical dilemma. A quantitative research approach was followed and a questionnaire based upon the MES and three tax related ethical dilemmas was used to gather data. To address the research aims of the study, two research questions were answered through hypothesis testing which involved both descriptive and inferential statistical methods. Main results: The primary results indicated that factors such as morality, fairness, justice and acceptability to one’s family play the most significant role in influencing the ethical judgement of professional accountants. In addition, it was found that egoism which prioritises the long-term self-interest of the professional accountant significantly influences their ethical behavioural intentions. Lastly, the secondary results indicated that demographical characteristics such as rank and highest qualification attained by professional accountants play an important role in influencing the mind of the professional accountant when faced with an ethical dilemma. Application: This study contributes to the existing body of research involving ethical decision-making of professional accountants. This is an important topic in the current discourse on accounting and amongst accounting professionals. Furthermore, the results of this study can also form the basis of a mechanism for change within professional accounting bodies (PAO’s). The results of this study can be applied to assist in re-aligning continuous professional development (CPD) programmes. Based on the results, professional bodies can shift their focus in terms of CPD’s towards prioritising public interest as a key consideration for current and future accountants. To this end, PAO’s and higher education institutions can use this contribution when designing a new syllabus which addresses the issues that arise around ethical decision-making. Contributions: Key conclusions of this study contribute to the understanding of professional accountants’ ethical judgment and behavioural intentions. The topic under investigation is in direct response to calls for increased research on ethical judgement and behavioural intentions of professional accountants. The results also contribute towards a better understanding of the effects of gender, rank and professional qualifications on ethical decision-making. / PH2020