Annelies Renders

Accounting Review p. 1-31 Doi: https://doi.org/10.2308/tar-2021-0520

ABSTRACT Firms are facing increasing pressure to provide information about their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) commitment. Firms however differ in the quality of how they communicate CSR-related efforts to stakeholders as well as in the intensity of their CSR contracting. We examine the relationship between CSR disclosures and contracting and argue that the designs of the two practices are complements in signaling a CSR commitment. Using hand-collected data to capture disclosure quality of CSR reports and intensity of CSR contracting (i.e., scope, importance, and degree to which CSR metrics are incorporated) for S&P 500 firms, we show that firms indeed align the design choices of the two practices. In addition, firms using both practices intensively are associated with a stronger CSR commitment and more credible CSR disclosures. Finally, we document that firms that face higher credibility concerns show stronger complementarity between the design of these two practices. Data Availability: All data are available from public sources mentioned in the text. JEL Classifications: M14; M40.

Accounting in Europe Doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/17449480.2023.2253808

This paper discusses several issues that were raised by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) in their request for information for the post-implementation review (PIR) of the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 9: Financial instruments – Classification and Measurement. In doing so, we first review the related academic literature and present empirical evidence on the post-adoption impact of IFRS 9. We then discuss conceptual issues associated with the business model and cash flow characteristics assessment in IFRS 9, as well as issues associated with the presentation of fair value changes in other comprehensive income (OCI) and modifications to contractual cash flows. Finally, we identify gaps in the literature and provide suggestions for future research that can help inform accounting standard setters.

Journal of Accounting and Economics Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacceco.2023.101670

This study examines whether the implementation of industry-specific accounting standards helps capital market participants in making decisions about providing capital to firms. We predict and find an, on average, increase in firms’ capital growth in years following implementation of the relevant industry standard. The increase in capital growth arises primarily from equity issuances and is attributable to the implementation of the standards rather than industry-specific trends or economic shocks. We explore heterogeneity in industry standards and find more pronounced effects for (i) industry standards that reveal new information, provide explicit guidance, or in- crease accounting uniformity, and (ii) small firms, firms with greater information asymmetry, and firms with greater capital constraints before implementation of the standards. We also find evi- dence consistent with two channels explaining the documented increase in capital flows: reduction of information asymmetry and increase in financial statement comparability.

Abacus. A Journal of Accounting and Business Studies Doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/abac.12246

Accounting Review Doi: https://doi.org/10.2308/TAR-2018-0293