Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the processing of information about economic entities, such as businesses and corporations. Accounting measures the results of an organization's economic activities and conveys this information to a variety of stakeholders, including investors, creditors, management, and regulators. Practitioners of accounting are known as accountants. The terms "accounting" and "financial reporting" are often used as synonyms.
The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) is the national professional organization of Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) in the United States, with more than 428,000 members in 130 countries. Founded in 1887 as the American Association of Public Accountants (AAPA), the organization sets ethical standards and U.S. auditing standards. It also develops and grades the Uniform CPA Examination. The AICPA maintains offices in New York City; Washington, DC; Durham, NC; and Ewing, NJ.
Founded in 1904, the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants(ACCA) is the global professional accounting body offering the Chartered Certified Accountant qualification (ACCA). It has 240,952 members and 541,930 future members worldwide. ACCA's headquarters are in London with principal administrative office in Glasgow. ACCA works through a network of over 110 offices and centres in 51 countries - with 346 Approved Learning Partners (ALP) and more than 7,600 Approved Employers worldwide, who provide employee development.
The Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accountants or CICPA is a professional accounting organization based in Beijing with oversight responsibility for accountants in China.
Founded in 1908, the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada (CGA-Canada) serves Certified General Accountants and students in Canada and nearly 100 countries. CGA-Canada established the designation's certification requirements and professional standards, offers professional development, conducts research and advocacy, and represents CGAs nationally and internationally. CGA-Canada joined the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada to integrate operations under the CPA banner in 2015. CPA Canada is the new national accounting body formed by the merger of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) and the Society of Certified Management Accountants (CMA) in 2013, and now Certified General Accountants.
International Standards on Auditing (ISA) are professional standards for the auditing of financial information. These standards are issued by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB). According to Olung M, ISA guides the auditor to add value to the assignment hence building confidence of investors.
Materiality is a concept or convention within auditing and accounting relating to the importance/significance of an amount, transaction, or discrepancy. The objective of an audit of financial statements is to enable the auditor to express an opinion on whether the financial statements are prepared, in all material respects, in conformity with an identified financial reporting framework, such as the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) which is the accounting standard adopted by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB) is an independent organisation within the fold of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). The board develops guidance to improve standards of education in accountancy. The two main areas of focus are the key elements of accreditation and the requirements of accountants for continuing professional education. The board also sponsors studies or papers about accounting education that promote discussion and debate on accounting education and development issues.
ASCA is a non-profit professional association that aims to advance the profession of accounting, management, and related disciplines in the countries of the Arab League. ASCA also aims to maintain the professional independence of accountants and their protection through the application of professional supervisory measures as a way to elevate the professions of accounting and auditing.
Accounting ethics is primarily a field of applied ethics and is part of business ethics and human ethics, the study of moral values and judgments as they apply to accountancy. It is an example of professional ethics. Accounting was introduced by Luca Pacioli, and later expanded by government groups, professional organizations, and independent companies. Ethics are taught in accounting courses at higher education institutions as well as by companies training accountants and auditors.
The accountancy profession in Malaysia is regulated by the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) through the powers conferred by the Accountants Act, 1967. The MIA is an agency under the Ministry of Finance and reports directly to the Accountant General Office. As at 4 February 2016, MIA has 32,618 members of which 68% are involved in commerce and industry, 22% in public practice and 10% in government and academia. Selangor and the Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory have the largest concentration of MIA membership with 13,125 and 7,351 members respectively. https://web.archive.org/web/20150725035639/http://www.mia.org.my/new/members_statistics_state.asp
The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) is an independent standards body that issues standards, like the International Standards on Auditing, International Standards on Quality Management, and other services, to support the international auditing of financial statements. It is a body supported by the International Foundation for Ethics and Audit. The Public Interest Oversight Board provides oversight of the IAASB, ensuring that the standards are in the public interest.
The Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB) is an international body that oversees the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and seeks to improve the quality and public interest focus of the IFAC standards in the areas of audit, education, and ethics.
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) develops and promotes the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants. The IESBA also supports debate on issues related to accounting ethics and auditor independence.
The Institute of Authorized Chartered Auditors of Albania is a professional body that regulates the accountancy industry in Albania.
The Forum of Firms is an association of international networks of accounting firms that perform transnational audits.
The Accounting Standards Board (AcSB) establishes accounting standards for use by private enterprises and private sector not-for-profit organizations. The AcSB contributes to the development of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) by participating in consultations and activities of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) to ensure Canadian publicly accountable entities' financial reporting needs are considered. The AcSB develops and participates in the development of high-quality financial reporting standards.
The Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AASB) is an independent organization body who serves the Canadian public interest by setting the standards for financial statement audits of Canadian companies. The AASB works towards developing internationally accepted assurance standards and works toward adopting them as Canadian standards. CPA Canada, formerly the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants funds the AASB and provides administrative and other support.
Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada is the national organization representing the Canadian accounting profession through the unification of the three largest accounting organizations: the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA), the Society of Management Accountants of Canada and Certified General Accountants of Canada (CGA-Canada), as well as the 40 national and provincial accounting bodies. It is one of the largest organizations of its type in the world, with over 217,000 Chartered Professional Accountants in Canada and around the world.
