Abstract Problem: In today’s business environment, rising demand in financial reporting and frequent changes in accounting frameworks lead to an increased focus on reliability in Fair Value Measurement (FVM) and disclosures. The frequent changes in accounting frameworks create a challenge for managers in measuring accounting estimates accurately and have been an exceedingly difficult task. The difficult task is that of the auditors. How would auditors endorse and ensure the reliability and relevance of financial statements? Also how could they evaluate the accuracy of the measurement of fair values as presented in the financial statements? (IFAC, 2011, ISA 540). Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to explore the methods and approaches used by auditors while auditing fair values from practical perspectives. Method: A multiple case study with pure qualitative methods and an inductive approach has been adopted. The qualitative method used a semi-structured interview to collect data.  Result: The result shows that by understanding the challenges and following the phases of auditing, auditors can maintain the quality of financial reporting. Four key audit phases are relevant to audit FVM. These are: understanding the Client-Business environment, Engagement, Internal Control, and Planning phases of auditing. Furthermore, the results revealed key challenges of auditing FVM and disclosures. These challenges are information insufficiency in the market (reliability), competence, auditors’ lack of fair value audit exposure, and the manager's leadership role and style. Moreover, as previous studies on FV have primarily relied on synthesis of academic literature, the thesis contributes knowledge to academia by using an empirical approach.

This thesis is focused on the basic area of financial accounting -- measurement. It deals with principal measurement bases and mentions their advantages and disadvantages. In the key part of this thesis there is a definition of fair value and analysis its application under IFRS. Further it includes Exposure Draft: Fair value measurement. In the conclusion there is a smaller research regarding using of fair value by companies quoted at the Prague Stock Exchange.

In recent times, the significance of fair value in financial reporting is gaining momentum and current debates are moving in the trend of full fair value reporting. Small and medium-sized entities are not let off in this instance. The move to new reporting standards results in numerous challenges for diverse interest groups such as auditors, preparers and regulators. The main objective of the study was to establish the fair value implementation challenges facing SMEs in the agricultural sector in Ghana. This study established that, in Ghana, commodity markets do not exist and that farmers do not have access to market information. The study also established that there is high IFRS implementation cost, inadequate training and education for preparers of financial statements and academic education not focusing on agricultural accounting. In light of these challenges, the study recommends improving capacity building through user training and education and establishment of commodity markets. / Financial Accounting / M. Phil. (Accounting Sciences)

This thesis examines the factors affecting audit and non-audit fees and the effects of the joint provision of audit and non-audit services on auditing. The first essay focuses on environmental factors. Using data for Swedish listed companies over a six year span, including pre-crisis, crisis and post-crisis periods, the essay investigates whether changing economic conditions affect the level of fees paid for audit and non-audit services. The finding suggests that auditors increase their risk premium for auditing during a financial crisis andtend to charge higher audit fees as a response to lower risk levels in the post-crisis period. On the other hand, a significant reduction in non-audit fees suggests that companies are less willing to invest in consulting services during thecrisis and post-crisis periods. The second essay also studies the effects of environmental factors on audit pricing. Using data for financial institutions in 24 European countries, the study examines whether the level of effort spent on the evaluation of fair values is higher for more uncertain fair values.The result suggests that an increasing level of complexity and risk requires greater audit effort. Furthermore, the results showthat the strength of a country’s institutional setting is positively associated with the effort spent on the evaluation of high uncertainty fair value estimates. The finding implies that auditors spend more effort in stronger regulated countries, possibly due to higher potential litigation costs. The third essay focuses on the factors related to an individual audit partner. Based on the data of publicly listed Swedish companies, it investigates whether partner special competencies are reflected in the prices charged for auditing. The findings show that partner industry expertise and client-specific expertise are associated with higher audit fees. A further finding isthat female partners are considerably under-represented among specialists. However,the under-representation of females among higher qualified partners does not seem to negatively affect their possibilities to earn higher fees. The fourth essay investigates how the joint provision of audit and non-audit services affects perceived knowledge spillover and audit efficiency. The essay makesuse of survey data from a large sample of Swedish auditors and finds that the levels of communication and trust are positively associated with knowledge spillover. The result further suggests that the information gained from the provision of non-audit services can reduce auditors’ effort (time) spent on different audit procedures, thereby increasing audit efficiency.

Background: The reported result from the lifetime of an organization will be followed by a cash flow equal in size. In contrast, accruals enables short term discrepancies. When a property can be valued at fair value and recognize changes in the value directly in the result, it is interesting to examine how the earnings and cash flow relate to each other in these companies. By studying the relationship between a company's earnings and cash flow it is possible to appoint their consistency. Aim: The purpose of this paper is exploratory, it intends to examine how property management companies value their property holdings, and examine the relationship between the companies' overall earnings and cash flow from operating activities during the period 2008-2014. Method: Empirical data is primarily collected from primary sources in the form of annual reports. Numbers from the companies' annual reports allowed us to calculate the ratio of accumulated cash flow and accumulated earnings, to then be able to determine the connection between the two. Results and Conclusions: Real estate companies value ​​according to level 3 and during 2014 65,61% of the value of the property portfolio's are valued externally. Ten of the 17 companies that were listed during the period 2008-2014 has accumulated a higher earning than cash flow from operating activities. On average the real estate companies has accumulated 48% higher earnings than cash flow from operating activities. / Bakgrund: Det redovisade resultatet från en verksamhets livstid kommer att efterföljas av ett lika stort kassaflöde. Däremot möjliggör periodiseringar att det på kortare sikt kan finnas avvikelser. Då fastighetsbolag får värdera till verkligt värde och redovisa värdeförändringar direkt mot resultatet är det intressant att undersöka hur resultatet och kassaflödet förhåller sig till varandra i dessa bolag. Genom att studera ett företags relation mellan resultatet och kassaflödet går det att utse om dessa stämmer överens eller inte. Syfte: Syftet med uppsatsen är explorativt, den ämnar till att undersöka hur fastighetsförvaltande bolag värderar sitt fastighetsbestånd samt undersöka relationen mellan bolagens sammanlagda resultat och kassaflöde från den löpande verksamheten under perioden 2008-2014. Metod: Studiens empiri har främst insamlats från primärkällor i form av årsredovisningar. Med hjälp av siffror från företagens årsredovisningar har kvoten mellan ackumulerat kassaflöde och ackumulerat resultat kunnat räknas fram, för att därefter kunna bedöma dess samband. Resultat och slutsats: Fastighetsbolagen värderar enligt nivå 3 och under 2014 har 65,61% av branschens sammanlagda värde på fastighetsbeståndet externvärderats. Tio av de 17 företag som var börsnoterade under perioden 2008-2014 har ackumulerat högre resultat än kassaflöde från den löpande verksamheten. I genomsnitt har fastighetsbolagen ackumulerat ett 48% högre resultat än kassaflöde från den löpande verksamheten.