Accounting Group Taps Michael Bloomberg, Mary Schapiro [WSJ]
I guess the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board wanted some heavy hitters on their team. MB will be chair and MS will be vice-chair. "In a statement, Mr. Bloomberg said SASB's mission reflects the goals of his media-and-information conglomerate, Bloomberg LP, 'that greater market transparency leads to better investment decisions.' "
Big Data: Can the Regulators Handle the Big Challenge to Big Audit [Re:Balance]
Jim Peterson sees the future of auditing: "[T]he genie of Big Data is out of the bottle, and will not be returned. If the audit firms do not develop the models and methods for its deployment in the assurance process, and re-calibrate their business models accordingly, then new players in the market surely will, with existential consequences for the viability of the audit firms and their existing franchise."
Buffett Pressures Coca-Cola Over Executive Pay [WSJ]
WB doesn't agree with Joe Nocera that his abstention was a waste, telling the Journal that not voting was "just as clear as voting no, in my view."
Yearning for the days when the government actually took ANY action against white-collar criminals.
If my memory is right: With Enron and Worldcon there were fewer speeches and talk of action, just action by enforcers
— Matthew Goldstein (@MattGoldstein26) May 1, 2014
Why Only One Top Banker Went to Jail for the Financial Crisis [NYT]
Okay, I guess this is something.
Twitter's shady accounting gets shadier [Fortune]
Hard to believe! "Twitter (TWTR), which reported results on Tuesday afternoon, said it generated $37 million in adjusted EBITDA — its version of [everything but the bad stuff] — in the first three months of this year. That was up from $11.7 million in the same period in 2013. A year ago, though, the spread between what Twitter lost under the official accounting rules — $27 million — and adjusted EDITDA, was just under $40 million. In this year's first quarter, the gap between its reported results and its adjusted number it has been steering investors to grew to $168 million"
Lawmakers push bill to stop IRS bonuses [The Hill]
This legislation, which is going nowhere, would "ensure that federal employees in trouble with the law or their agency don’t get bonuses." Hopefully that includes House and Senate employees, too.
Brazil to Boost Beer Taxes to Address Fiscal Accounts [Bloomberg]
It'll break your World Cup budget.
Murderous Squirrel Attacks Man Taking Selfie [Jezebel]
If only this happened more often.
