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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: accounting

accounting stories: 18 news summaries

Atlanta May Elect 1st White Mayor in 36 Years 

Frontrunner Mary Norwood vows to fix the city's accounting mess

Nov 3, 09 9:43 AM CST
(Newser) - A simple focus on accounting is poised to radically—read: racially—change the politics of Atlanta . In a majority-black city that hasn’t had a white mayor in 36 years, a Caucasian city councilwoman from a tony neighborhood has a commanding lead in the polls. Mary Norwood has promised... More »

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Atlanta • African Americans • Georgia • accounting • mayor • Shirley Franklin • white women • mayoral race • Election 09 • Mary Norwood • election day November 2009

Wall Street Cleverly Carves Up Bad Assets

So cleverly, in fact,
that regulators are getting worried

Oct 1, 09 7:31 AM CDT
(Newser) - Wall Street’s financial magicians have come up with a way to transform toxic assets into shiny new ones. In popular new deals called “re-remics,” a sour mortgage-backed security is split in two, one containing all the good mortgages, the other all the bad, the Wall Street ... More »

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Wall Street • accounting • mortgage backed securities • ratings agencies • re-remic

Accounting Firm Faces $2B in Lawsuits in Madoff Scam

PricewaterhouseCoopers Canada slapped with 7 lawsuits

Aug 23, 09 8:04 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Canadian branch of the world’s largest accounting firm is facing seven lawsuits for up to $2 billion on behalf of investors who fell victim to Bernard Madoff, the Telegraph reports. PricewaterhouseCoopers Canada was the auditor of a feeder fund, Fairfield Sentry, that directed cash to the Ponzi schemer.... More »

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accountants • accounting • lawsuit • Ponzi scheme • accounting firm • Bernard Madoff

(Newser) - The SEC today simultaneously announced a complaint against former AIG chief Hank Greenberg and the resolution of the matter—a $15 million payment to settle the suit, the New York Times reports. Greenberg and a former AIG CFO were accused of “numerous improper accounting transactions” between 2000 and... More »

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insurance companies • accounting • AIG • Hank Greenberg • settlement • Federal government • Securities and Exchange Commission

Palin's Figures on Ethics Complaints Don't Add Up

Report has lawyer costing $30K per hour

Jul 10, 09 8:00 PM CDT
(Newser) - A spreadsheet from Sarah Palin's office detailing spending on ethics complaints and lawsuits is riddled with discrepancies, the Anchorage Daily News reports. The administrative director of Palin's office says accidental double-counting added $26,849 to the $1.9 million total. She plans to make inquiries about other parts of the... More »

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ethics • Alaska • accounting • governor • Troopergate • Sarah Palin

ANALYSIS

3 Million US Job Openings Isn't
a Good Thing

Figure shows troubling disconnect between employers, workers

May 1, 09 2:26 PM CDT
(Newser) - Even with the unemployment rate shattering records, 3 million jobs nationwide remain unfilled. But the growing mismatch between employers and workers tarnishes that silver lining, Peter Coy argues in BusinessWeek. Untrained job-seekers often don’t have necessary skills to work in growing sectors like health care and accounting, and employers... More »

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health care • accounting • unemployment • job market • unemployment benefits • economy • job training

(Newser) - Citigroup posted its first profitable quarter in 18 months today, thanks in no small part to $45 billion in bailout funds and changes to accounting rules, Bloomberg reports. The company posted a $1.6 billion profit, up from a $5.1 billion loss last year. The company reported a loss... More »

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Citigroup • accounting • corporate earnings • Vikram Pandit • first quarter earnings

(Newser) - At a White House “fiscal responsibility summit” today, President Obama opened fire on what he called the Bush administration’s “casual dishonesty” about the federal budget, Politico reports. “Contrary to the prevailing wisdom in Washington these past few years,” Obama said, “we cannot simply spend... More »

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Bush administration • accounting • economic stimulus package • federal budget • Iraq war spending • George W. Bush • Obama administration • disaster relief • President Obama • dishonesty

Accountants May Be Liable in Madoff Fraud

Experts say feeder funds obviously skimped on scrutiny

Feb 18, 09 11:17 AM CST
(Newser) - The many accounting firms that missed Bernie Madoff’s massive scam could be in for a world of legal hurt, experts tell the Wall Street Journal. Madoff’s company was audited by a firm that had just one accountant, and one ex-SEC accountant finds it hard to believe that... More »

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accountants • accounting • liability • Bernard Madoff

Pelosi's PAC Paid Husband's Firm $99K for Work

Transaction legal, but would have been banned by bill Dem Speaker supported

Oct 1, 08 3:45 PM CDT
(Newser) - Nancy Pelosi paid her husband’s company $99,000 through her political action committee during the past 9 years, the Washington Times reports. Payments to Paul Pelosi’s Financial Leasing Services are routine fees for accounting and office-space rent payments, but would have been illegal under a bill Pelosi supported... More »

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Nancy Pelosi • Congress • House of Representatives • accounting • political action committees • political donations • spouse • financial crisis

 SEC Relaxes 
 'Fire Sale' 
 Assets Rule 

Aims to ease pressure by freeing assets from free-market value

Oct 1, 08 3:23 AM CDT
(Newser) - The SEC is relaxing enforcement of a controversial rule in a bid to ease pressure on banks during the financial crisis, the New York Times reports. Current accounting rules require companies to value assets at a fluctuating fair market price. In the current financial chaos, values are rapidly heading south,... More »

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SEC • accounting • JPMorgan Chase • banks • financial crisis • Wall Street bailout • American Bankers Association

Juggled Books at Freddie, Fannie Sparked Fed Takeover

Situation more dire than accounting revealed, probers found

Sep 7, 08 6:17 AM CDT
(Newser) - Federal advisers pushed for a government takeover of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae after discovering fuzzy accounting that failed to fully reveal the dire nature of the companies' financial situation, reports the New York Times. The practices, while not illegal, overstated the mortgage giants' capital cushions while attempting to delay... More »

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accounting • Freddie Mac • Fannie Mae • housing crisis • bailout • financial crisis

Investors, Companies Benefit by Accounting Switch: SEC

Move to international standard will require 'massive effort,' US firms say

Aug 28, 08 9:50 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Securities and Exchange Commission sees a smoother ride for American companies, and investors, in its plan for the US to adopt international accounting standards, the Wall Street Journal reports—though the shift would be an expensive, “massive effort,” some say, requiring new training from business schools on... More »

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SEC • accounting • corporate earnings • Financial Accounting Standards Board • International Financial Reporting Standards

SEC Wants US Firms to Switch to International Accounting

Multinationals would change first under plan

Aug 27, 08 4:42 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Securities and Exchange Commission is planning to require US companies to switch to international accounting rules, the Wall Street Journal reports. The body voted today to seek public comment on a plan for the transition, which would stagger requirements. Large multinational firms would be expected to voluntarily switch in... More »

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globalization • business • SEC • accounting • corporations • Christopher Cox • regulation • multinationalism

Invisible Ink, Hidden Numbers Help Fuzzy Accounting

SEC complaint shows CFO used printouts to fool auditors

Jul 23, 08 5:59 PM CDT
(Newser) - Sometimes high-stakes fraud doesn’t have to be high-tech. The former chief financial officer at a company now called Voyager Learning allegedly cooked the company's books by entering figures as white text on white background—the equivalent of invisible ink, Adam Jones notes in a Financial Times blog. More »

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fraud • earnings reports • SEC • accounting • revenue • Microsoft Excel

Feds Plan to Allow Foreign Accounting Rules

Critics slam 'outsourcing' of financial protections

Jul 5, 08 7:17 AM CDT
(Newser) - Federal officials are proposing to loosen accounting regulations, allowing American companies to shift to international standards that offer more latitude in reporting earnings, the New York Times reports. The move would make businesses more competitive, the administration argues, but it would also effectively exempt them from the investor-protection measures instigated... More »

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finance • SEC • Sarbanes Oxley • accounting • regulation • securities

Lawsuit: ORU Leaders Stole $1B a Year

Dodgy account used to defraud IRS, renovate ex-president's home

Feb 8, 08 9:06 AM CST
(Newser) - Oral Roberts University leaders funneled $1 billion a year from the books for their personal use, a former accountant alleges in a lawsuit. The charges are the latest accusations of financial misdeeds to hit the college, the AP reports. The suit names former president Richard Roberts and his wife as... More »

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accounting • lawsuit • Oral Roberts University • Richard Roberts • Trent Huddleston • defrauding the IRS • funneling money

Accounting Degrees
Add Up

Number-crunchers are BMOCs
with companies desperate to fill slots

Jul 6, 07 5:01 AM CDT
(Newser) - Accounting majors have become the most in-demand kids on campus, and prospective employers are wooing them with lavish parties, free vacations, and promises of handsome signing bonuses. Colleges aren't turning out enough number-crunchers to meet the growing demand, which has skyrocketed in the wake of stricter controls required by Sarbanes-Oxley,... More »

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CPA • Sarbanes Oxley • recruitment • accountants • business school • accounting

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