Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of companies, business organizations, or their operating units are transferred to or consolidated with another company or business organization. This could happen through direct absorption, a merger, a tender offer or a hostile takeover. As an aspect of strategic management, M&A can allow enterprises to grow or downsize, and change the nature of their business or competitive position.
The Big Four are the four largest professional services networks in the world: Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC. They are the four largest global accounting networks as measured by revenue. The four are often grouped because they are comparable in size relative to the rest of the market, both in terms of revenue and workforce; they are considered equal in their ability to provide a wide scope of professional services to their clients; and, among those looking to start a career in professional services, particularly accounting, they are considered equally attractive networks to work in, because of the frequency with which these firms engage with Fortune 500 companies.
International Financial Reporting Standards, commonly called IFRS, are accounting standards issued by the IFRS Foundation and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). They constitute a standardised way of describing the company's financial performance and position so that company financial statements are understandable and comparable across international boundaries. They are particularly relevant for companies with shares or securities publicly listed.
Financial statements are formal records of the financial activities and position of a business, person, or other entity.
An intangible asset is an asset that lacks physical substance. Examples are patents, copyright, franchises, goodwill, trademarks, and trade names, as well as any form of digital asset such as software. This is in contrast to physical assets and financial assets. Intangible assets are usually very difficult to value.They suffer from typical market failures of non-rivalry and non-excludability. Today, a large part of the corporate economy consists of intangible assets, reflecting the growth of information technology and organizational capital.
Financial accounting is a branch of accounting concerned with the summary, analysis and reporting of financial transactions related to a business. This involves the preparation of financial statements available for public use. Stockholders, suppliers, banks, employees, government agencies, business owners, and other stakeholders are examples of people interested in receiving such information for decision making purposes.
In financial accounting, a cash flow statement, also known as statement of cash flows, is a financial statement that shows how changes in balance sheet accounts and income affect cash and cash equivalents, and breaks the analysis down to operating, investing and financing activities. Essentially, the cash flow statement is concerned with the flow of cash in and out of the business. As an analytical tool, the statement of cash flows is useful in determining the short-term viability of a company, particularly its ability to pay bills. International Accounting Standard 7 is the International Accounting Standard that deals with cash flow statements.
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, commonly referred to as Deloitte, is a multinational professional services network. Deloitte is the largest professional services network by revenue and number of employees in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting firms, along with EY, KPMG, and PwC.
A special-purpose entity is a legal entity created to fulfill narrow, specific or temporary objectives. SPEs are typically used by companies to isolate the firm from financial risk. A formal definition is "The Special Purpose Entity is a fenced organization having limited predefined purposes and a legal personality".
In accounting, amortization is a method of obtaining the expenses incurred by an intangible asset arising from a decline in value as a result of use or the passage of time. Amortisation is the acquisition cost minus the residual value of an asset, calculated in a systematic manner over an asset's useful economic life. Depreciation is a corresponding concept for tangible assets.
In business, consolidation or amalgamation is the merger and acquisition of many smaller companies into a few much larger ones. In the context of financial accounting, consolidation refers to the aggregation of financial statements of a group company as consolidated financial statements. The taxation term of consolidation refers to the treatment of a group of companies and other entities as one entity for tax purposes. Under the Halsbury's Laws of England, amalgamation is defined as "a blending together of two or more undertakings into one undertaking, the shareholders of each blending company, becoming, substantially, the shareholders of the blended undertakings. There may be amalgamations, either by transfer of two or more undertakings to a new company or the transfer of one or more companies to an existing company".
In accounting, goodwill is an intangible asset recognized when a firm is purchased as a going concern. It reflects the premium that the buyer pays in addition to the net value of its other assets. Goodwill is often understood to represent the firm's intrinsic ability to acquire and retain customer business, where that ability is not otherwise attributable to brand name recognition, contractual arrangements or other specific factors. It is recognized only through an acquisition; it cannot be self-created. It is classified as an intangible asset on the balance sheet, since it can neither be seen nor touched.
Hedge accounting is an accountancy practice, the aim of which is to provide an offset to the mark-to-market movement of the derivative in the profit and loss account.
Inflation accounting comprises a range of accounting models designed to correct problems arising from historical cost accounting in the presence of high inflation and hyperinflation. For example, in countries experiencing hyperinflation the International Accounting Standards Board requires corporations to implement financial capital maintenance in units of constant purchasing power in terms of the monthly published Consumer Price Index. This does not result in capital maintenance in units of constant purchasing power since that can only be achieved in terms of a daily index.
IAS 39: Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement was an international accounting standard which outlined the requirements for the recognition and measurement of financial assets, financial liabilities, and some contracts to buy or sell non-financial items. It was released by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) in 2003, and was replaced in 2014 by IFRS 9, which became effective in 2018.
International Accounting Standard 10 Events after the Reporting Period or IAS 10 is an international financial reporting standard adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). It contains requirements for when events between the end of the reporting period and the date on which the financial statements are authorised for issue should be reflected in the financial statements.
The accounting profession in Luxembourg is structured around Ordre des Experts-Comptables (OEC) which serves as the main accounting body in the country. Luxembourg accounting standards are inspired from neighbouring France and Belgium. Similar to France, Luxembourg has set up a Commissions des Normes Comptables (CNC) which serves as an advisor to the Ministry for Justice in respect of accounting related matters, e.g. waivers for presenting consolidated accounts.
IAS 14Segment Reporting is a former International Accounting Standard that was fully withdrawn in 2009 and superseded by IFRS 8 Operating Segments. IAS 14 set guidelines on disclosing information by business segment in a company's financial statements.
International Accounting Standard 23: Borrowing Costs or IAS 23 is an international financial reporting standard adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). Borrowing costs refer to the interest & other costs that an entity incurs in connection with the borrowing of funds. IAS 23 provides guidance on how to measure borrowing costs, particularly when the costs of acquisition, construction or production are funded by an entity’s general borrowings. The standard mandates that borrowing costs that are directly attributable to the acquisition, construction or production of a qualifying asset must be capitalized as part of that asset. Other borrowing costs are recognised as an expense.
IFRS 7, titled Financial Instruments: Disclosures, is an International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) published by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). It requires entities to provide certain disclosures regarding financial instruments in their financial statements. The standard was originally issued in August 2005 and became applicable on 1 January 2007, superseding the earlier standard IAS 30, Disclosures in the Financial Statements of Banks and Similar Financial Institutions, and replacing the disclosure requirements of IAS 32, previously titled Financial Instruments: Disclosure and Presentation.
