EFR urges Commission to resolve controversial issues identified in IAS 32, 39 and ED 5

16 February 2004

In a letter to Commissioner Bolkestein the European Financial Services Round Table (EFR) expresses their concerns about the final proposals of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) expected in March. According to the EFR neither the banking nor the insurance sector has been able to reach agreement with the IASB on certain core standards. The EFR therefore urges the European Commission to ask the accounting advisory committee, EFRAG, to be prominently present in the preparation of a European accounting standard for financial instruments.

Particularly, on the subject of macro hedging and asset-liability mismatches the current proposals do not reflect economic reality, create artificial and undue volatility on earnings and equity and would lead to misinterpretation of financial statements. The proposed standards would create a great threat for the stability of the markets and the transparency of financial disclosures.

Press release

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