Malin Bergquist

Malin Bergquist Helps Foreign-Owned Companies Launch U.S. Foothold in Pittsburgh and Builds National Reputation for International Financial Reporting Standards Expertise

Jeffrey Deane is a leading authority on audit oversight, accountability and transparency when companies report financial performance - and whether the U.S. should abandon a globally unpopular system and join the majority of the industrialized world in adopting international standards in an era when scandals and mismanagement have shaken investor confidence.

At a time when the financial health of U.S. and foreign companies are tightly intertwined, and as the Obama administration establishes its agenda, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the nation's corporate and accounting communities are debating whether to shift from generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) to IFRS. It would mean far more than just a change in paperwork and impact virtually every aspect of a company's operations. As the world economy languishes, some argue that having one set of international standards would benefit the global financial system. GAAP's complexities and significant compliance cost (including Sarbanes Oxley) have driven many companies to foreign exchanges for their initial public offerings. GAAP grows increasingly complex each year, with tens of thousands of pages of rules and many exceptions, while IFRS is a high-quality, principles-based framework far less cumbersome. With more than 100 countries adopting IFRS, its use in the U.S. could result in more foreign firms listing securities, or establishing operations, here.