The aim of this thesis is to analyse auditing methods, which are specified in International Standards on Auditing - ISAs, and consequently apply some of these theoretical outputs to the financial statement of a real company.

The goal of this thesis is compilation of financial statements under IFRS and Czech law, focusing on the establishment of two major financial statements. First and second chapter deal with theoretical requirements the compilation of reports according to Czech legislation and IFRS. The work focuses on theoretical and practical description of the selected areas for exploring the activities to be carried out prior to financial close. The final chapters are to describe differences between IFRS and Czech accounting, billing scheme to capture the differences and copy of statements of financial position and financial performance in terms of IFRS, the balance sheet and profit and loss statement in terms of Czech accounting.

O objetivo do trabalho é investigar a relação entre o disclosure voluntário socioambiental e o custo de capital próprio de companhias abertas no Brasil. Com base na Teoria da Divulgação Voluntária, espera-se uma relação negativa entre o disclosure socioambiental e o custo de capital próprio. Para tanto, selecionou-se as 91 empresas que compõem o Índice Brasil (IBrX), consideradas como as mais negociadas na Bolsa de Valores de São Paulo (BOVESPA). A pesquisa é composta por dois períodos de análise. O primeiro compreende os anos de 2001 a 2010 e foi utilizado na análise para verificar a relação entre a publicação do Relatório de Sustentabilidade e o custo de capital próprio, enquanto o segundo período, de 2008 a 2010, se constitui na base de análise para examinar a relação entre o disclosure socioambiental e o custo de capital próprio. A métrica de disclosure voluntário socioambiental foi elaborada a partir de 20 pesquisas, na qual resultou em 80 subcategorias, sendo 40 referentes à divulgação social e 40 relacionadas ao meio ambiente. Por meio da análise de conteúdo de 272 Demonstrações Financeiras e de 178 Relatórios de Sustentabilidade, mensurou-se o nível de disclosure socioambiental das empresas. O custo de capital próprio foi estimado por uma abordagem ex ante mediante a utilização dos modelos de Claus e Thomas (2001), Ohlson e Juettner-Nauroth (2005) e Easton (2004), sendo utilizada nos modelos a média das três estimativas. No período de 2001 a 2010, considerando as 91 empresas analisadas na pesquisa, foram publicados 420 Relatórios de Sustentabilidade, sendo que 45% seguiram as orientações da GRI para sua elaboração. Os resultados obtidos com a regressão em painel logística mostraram que o início da publicação do Relatório de Sustentabilidade está relacionado com um alto custo de capital próprio do ano anterior. Constatou-se a partir da análise de dados em painel que o custo de capital próprio diminui após a divulgação do Relatório de Sustentabilidade elaborado de acordo com as diretrizes GRI. Apesar de o nível de disclosure voluntário socioambiental não possuir relação negativa com o custo de capital próprio, verificou-se que o conteúdo da evidenciação pode influenciar de maneira distinta o custo de capital próprio, uma vez que se constatou uma relação positiva entre o disclosure socioambiental desfavorável e o custo de capital próprio. Os resultados alcançados, no geral, indicam que o disclosure socioambiental impacta de maneira marginal o custo de capital próprio das empresas brasileiras, uma vez que sua influência pode ser verificada apenas com a divulgação do Relatório de Sustentabilidade elaborado de acordo com as diretrizes GRI e com o disclosure socioambiental desfavorável. / The aim of this research is to investigate the relationship between voluntary social and environmental disclosure and cost of equity capital of Brazilian public companies. Based on the Theory of Voluntary Disclosure, one expects a negative link between corporate social and environment voluntary disclosure and the cost of equity capital. To this end, we selected the 91 companies in the Brazil Index (IBrX), regarded as the most traded on the São Paulo Stock Exchange (BOVESPA). The time sample consists of two periods. The first covers the years 2001 to 2010 and was considered to verify the relationship between the publication of the Sustainability Report and the cost of capital, while in the second period, from 2008 to 2010, is the basis of analysis to examine the relationship between environmental disclosure and cost of equity capital is examined. The metric of environmental voluntary disclosure was formulated based on 20 previous researches, and resulted in 80 subcategories, of which 40 related to social disclosure and 40 related to the environment. By applying content analysis on 272 Financial Statements and 178 Sustainability Reports, the level of the companies\' social and environmental disclosure was measured. The cost of equity capital was estimated by ex ante approaches, using the existing models of Claus and Thomas (2001), Ohlson Juettner-Nauroth (2005) and Easton (2004). After these estimations, the average of the three estimates was used. From 2001 to 2010, considering the 91 companies analyzed in the study, 420 Sustainability Reports were published, and 45% of them applied the guidelines and standards of the GRI. Results obtained with the logistic panel regression showed that the beginning of the publication of the Sustainability Report is related to a high cost of equity capital in the previous year. It was found from the analysis of panel data that the cost of equity capital decreases after disclosing Sustainability Report prepared in accordance with the GRI guidelines. Although the level of voluntary environmental disclosure does not have a negative relationship with the cost of equity capital, it was found that the contents of the disclosure may influence differently the cost of capital, since it was found a positive relationship between unfavorable social and environmental disclosure and cost of equity capital. The results indicate that the impact of social and environmental disclosure on the cost of capital of Brazilian companies is marginal, because their influence can only be verified on the publication of the Sustainability Report prepared in accordance with the GRI guidelines and the unfavorable social and environmental disclosure.

This study investigates whether a relationship exists between fraudulent financial reporting and a variety of corporate governance attributes. Numerous high profile accounting scandals perpetuated over recent years have brought prominence to the corporate governance structure employed by US public companies. Many of these scandals involved manipulation of the financial reporting process by high level managers. It is therefore thought that a lack of effective oversight provided by the governing bodies engaged to monitor the actions of management may be at the heart of the problem. A review of prior research is used to identify the attributes of corporate governance relevant for inclusion in this study and to provide support for the posing of twenty directional hypotheses. The selected corporate governance attributes are classified into four broad categories depicting Audit Committee Functionality, Board of Director Composition, Ownership Structure, and External Auditor Factors. A matched pair research design is utilised to determine whether significant differences exist between the corporate governance attributes employed by fraud and non-fraud companies. A sample of 76 fraud companies, identified through an examination of Accounting and Auditing Enforcement Releases issued by the Securities Exchange Commission and drawn from a total of 223 companies examined, are tested along with an industry-size matched sample of non-fraud companies. The results of univariate paired t-tests and a conditional logistic regression equation find that statistically significant relationships do exist between a number of corporate governance attributes and fraudulent financial reporting. Specifically, the study finds that the percentage of independent directors on a company's board, the existence of a nominating committee, and the engaging of a Big6 auditor are negatively related to the incidence of fraud. Whereas, the average number of directorships held by audit committee members, the duality of the CEO and Chairman of the Board positions, and the percentage of company ownership held by outside blockholders are positively related to the incidence of fraudulent financial reporting.

Sammanfattning Problem och bakgrund: Bokföringsnämnden (BFN) har arbetat fram ett regelverk för de enskilda näringsidkare som bör implementeras från den 1 januari 2007. Syftet anses vara bland annat att underlätta den administrativa bördan. Huvudfrågan som ställs i denna studie är en undran om, till vilken grad har användbarheten av K1 regelverket för de enskilda näringsidkarna förändrat redovisningsarbetet? De andra nyckelfrågorna är, har en effektivisering skett av redovisningsarbetet samt har det lett till väsentliga kostnadsbesparingar vad gäller den administrativa bördan? Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka huruvida K1 regelverket har förenklat den administrativa arbetsbördan för enskilda näringsidkare, samt om det skett en effektivisering av arbetet med redovisningen. Metod: Studien tillämpar huvudsakligen den deduktiva forskningsmetoden med hjälp av statistisk datasamling. Detta innebär att studien utgår från en kvantitativ enkätundersökning med ett slumpmässigt urval av respondenter. Referensram: I studiens teoretiska referensram presenteras olika interrelaterade teorier som belyser K1 regelverkets motiv och funktion samt dess betydelse för redovisningen för de enskilda näringsidkarna i ett bredare perspektiv. Slutsats: Studiens syfte var att försöka förklara användbarheten av det nya K1 regelverket i samband med praktiken. Hur K1 regelverket har bidragit till en enklare redovisning och hur den har reducerat de administrativa kostnaderna. Studiens resultat visar att det förenklade årsbokslutet används i väldigt liten skala bland deltagande respondenter i undersökningen. Största orsaken till att K1 regelverket inte används i den utsträckning som förväntats är bristen på information och kunskap hos de enskilda näringsidkarna om K1:s strukturella form och funktion. Då få respondenter använder sig av ett förenklat årsbokslut, blev det svårt att på ett adekvat sätt besvara hur väl det lett till att de administrativa kostnaderna har minskats. / Abstract Problem and background: The Swedish Accounting Standards Board (BFN) has issued a set of standards for small businesses that have been implemented since January the 1st 2007. The purpose of these standards is to facilitate and simply the administrative burden. This study poses the question "To what extent has the usability of the K1 framework for small businesses changed the accounting workload? Has there been a streamlining of the accounting workload and has it led to significant cost savings in terms of administrative burden." Aim of this study: The aim of this study is to investigate whether the K1 framework has simplified the administrative workload for small businesses, and if it has led to a streamlining of the process of accounting. Method: The study applies mostly to the deductive research method with the aid of statistical data collection. This means that the study is based on a quantitative survey of a random sample of respondents.   Frame of references: In the study's theoretical frame of reference various inter-related theories are presented, highlighting the motives behind the K1 framework as well as its functions and its importance to the workload in preparing the financial statements for sole trade businesses in a broader perspective.   Conclusion: The study's main objective was to try to explain the usefulness of the new K1 framework in the context of its use in practice. How the K1 framework contributed to a simpler accounting and how it has reduced the administrative costs. The results of the study show that only a small set of the respondents to the survey use the simplified annual accounts from the K1 framework. The principal reason that the K1 framework is not used to the extent expected, is due to the lack of awareness by the small businesses on the K1 framework's structural form and function. It is evident that more could have been done to widen the knowledge and information on the K1 framework. Given that only a small subset of the respondents use the simplified annual accounts from the K1 framework, it is not adequate to conclude on how well the framework has been used to lessen the administrative costs and burdens.

This thesis concerns the issues of the harmonization of the Czech accounting legislature on the international accounting. The thesis is divided into two parts. The first part defines the fundamental principles of the International Accounting Standards and compares them with the accounting legislature of the Czech Republic. It outlines the basic responsibilities for the accounting. Further, it compares the conceptual framework and the valuation bases. One of the chapters deals with the entering of the International Accounting Standards into the Czech environment. The second part concerns the analysis of Czech accounting in relation to the specific International Accounting Standards, in particular, IAS 1 {--} Insurance Contracts, IAS 16 - Property, Plant and Equipment, IAS 17 {--} Leases. Finally, the different standards are compared with the Czech accounting legislature and the IFRS Financial Statement is presented.

O objetivo do trabalho é investigar a relação entre o disclosure voluntário socioambiental e o custo de capital próprio de companhias abertas no Brasil. Com base na Teoria da Divulgação Voluntária, espera-se uma relação negativa entre o disclosure socioambiental e o custo de capital próprio. Para tanto, selecionou-se as 91 empresas que compõem o Índice Brasil (IBrX), consideradas como as mais negociadas na Bolsa de Valores de São Paulo (BOVESPA). A pesquisa é composta por dois períodos de análise. O primeiro compreende os anos de 2001 a 2010 e foi utilizado na análise para verificar a relação entre a publicação do Relatório de Sustentabilidade e o custo de capital próprio, enquanto o segundo período, de 2008 a 2010, se constitui na base de análise para examinar a relação entre o disclosure socioambiental e o custo de capital próprio. A métrica de disclosure voluntário socioambiental foi elaborada a partir de 20 pesquisas, na qual resultou em 80 subcategorias, sendo 40 referentes à divulgação social e 40 relacionadas ao meio ambiente. Por meio da análise de conteúdo de 272 Demonstrações Financeiras e de 178 Relatórios de Sustentabilidade, mensurou-se o nível de disclosure socioambiental das empresas. O custo de capital próprio foi estimado por uma abordagem ex ante mediante a utilização dos modelos de Claus e Thomas (2001), Ohlson e Juettner-Nauroth (2005) e Easton (2004), sendo utilizada nos modelos a média das três estimativas. No período de 2001 a 2010, considerando as 91 empresas analisadas na pesquisa, foram publicados 420 Relatórios de Sustentabilidade, sendo que 45% seguiram as orientações da GRI para sua elaboração. Os resultados obtidos com a regressão em painel logística mostraram que o início da publicação do Relatório de Sustentabilidade está relacionado com um alto custo de capital próprio do ano anterior. Constatou-se a partir da análise de dados em painel que o custo de capital próprio diminui após a divulgação do Relatório de Sustentabilidade elaborado de acordo com as diretrizes GRI. Apesar de o nível de disclosure voluntário socioambiental não possuir relação negativa com o custo de capital próprio, verificou-se que o conteúdo da evidenciação pode influenciar de maneira distinta o custo de capital próprio, uma vez que se constatou uma relação positiva entre o disclosure socioambiental desfavorável e o custo de capital próprio. Os resultados alcançados, no geral, indicam que o disclosure socioambiental impacta de maneira marginal o custo de capital próprio das empresas brasileiras, uma vez que sua influência pode ser verificada apenas com a divulgação do Relatório de Sustentabilidade elaborado de acordo com as diretrizes GRI e com o disclosure socioambiental desfavorável. / The aim of this research is to investigate the relationship between voluntary social and environmental disclosure and cost of equity capital of Brazilian public companies. Based on the Theory of Voluntary Disclosure, one expects a negative link between corporate social and environment voluntary disclosure and the cost of equity capital. To this end, we selected the 91 companies in the Brazil Index (IBrX), regarded as the most traded on the São Paulo Stock Exchange (BOVESPA). The time sample consists of two periods. The first covers the years 2001 to 2010 and was considered to verify the relationship between the publication of the Sustainability Report and the cost of capital, while in the second period, from 2008 to 2010, is the basis of analysis to examine the relationship between environmental disclosure and cost of equity capital is examined. The metric of environmental voluntary disclosure was formulated based on 20 previous researches, and resulted in 80 subcategories, of which 40 related to social disclosure and 40 related to the environment. By applying content analysis on 272 Financial Statements and 178 Sustainability Reports, the level of the companies\' social and environmental disclosure was measured. The cost of equity capital was estimated by ex ante approaches, using the existing models of Claus and Thomas (2001), Ohlson Juettner-Nauroth (2005) and Easton (2004). After these estimations, the average of the three estimates was used. From 2001 to 2010, considering the 91 companies analyzed in the study, 420 Sustainability Reports were published, and 45% of them applied the guidelines and standards of the GRI. Results obtained with the logistic panel regression showed that the beginning of the publication of the Sustainability Report is related to a high cost of equity capital in the previous year. It was found from the analysis of panel data that the cost of equity capital decreases after disclosing Sustainability Report prepared in accordance with the GRI guidelines. Although the level of voluntary environmental disclosure does not have a negative relationship with the cost of equity capital, it was found that the contents of the disclosure may influence differently the cost of capital, since it was found a positive relationship between unfavorable social and environmental disclosure and cost of equity capital. The results indicate that the impact of social and environmental disclosure on the cost of capital of Brazilian companies is marginal, because their influence can only be verified on the publication of the Sustainability Report prepared in accordance with the GRI guidelines and the unfavorable social and environmental disclosure.

近二十年來，許多國內外規模大型的上市櫃公司因經濟情況的不穩定受到極大的影響，但為了使帳務好看，所以利用窗飾計巧使得報表美化。導致後續有許多財務報導重編、盈餘虛增等負面消息接連發生。這些訊息使得市場投資者感到不安，且不僅打亂原本資本市場的秩序，也使得社會大眾對整體市場的信任也相對減少，導致投資行為受到改變。過去文獻曾指出班佛法則可用來偵測財務報表數據是否盈餘管理，本研究的目的運用班佛法則針對台灣上市櫃公司之財務比率找出特徵數字，這些特徵數字是否可以偵測財報可能有誤。研究結果發現管理當局偏好於操弄淨利和 EPS 等與盈餘性值相關的會計項目；在損益表中，營業收入相關比率有高估的現象，費用類的有低估的現象；而的確形成紅旗警訊的特徵數字可以用來偵測財報有誤。 / In the last 20 years ago, many public company had larger capital were affected by the economic instability. They wanted to keep the reports in good-looking; thus, they use some skill like window dressing to achieve their purpose. This worst news like many financial reports needed to restate or inflated earnings communicate to public investors, and lead to investors feel anxious. These things result in the original market fall into disorder. General public loss their mind to believe the market and change their investment behavior. In the past, the former research found that they use the Benford’s Law to detect whether the financial reports have earnings management. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the feature figure obtained from using Benford’s Law to measure the financial ratios from public company in Taiwan can detect the misstatement. The result is the managers prefer manipulate the account which has surplus nature like the net income and earnings-per-share. In the income statement, you will note the ratios are relative to income or earnings will be overestimate; on the other hand, the ratios are relative to cost or loss will be underestimate. And the flag made from the feature figure can detect whether the financial report have the misstatement.

Investment managers are entrusted with clients assets and should act with due care and diligence when dealing with it. The regulation of investment managers does not preclude the possibility that they can defraud their clients. The question posed by this research is whether the regulator can as part of its risk-based supervision methodology apply a fraud auditing approach to identify possible investment fraud schemes. The regulatory mandate and powers to pro-actively detect fraud is considered as well as the changes required to the regulator’s methodologies. / Dissertation (MPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Accounting / unrestricted

Purpose of this work is to describe long-termed tangible assets in compliance with IFRS and U.S. GAAP and compare their individual elements using financial statements of The Coca-Cola Company and Coca-Cola HBC. Part of this work will focus on ongoing convergent process. Specifity of agriculture (IAS 41) is not an object of this work.