Private Equity Capitalizes on Chinese Firms’ Depressed Shares [DealBook] Don't let the headline fool you. This article features a nightmare deal for Ambow Education Holding and how it blew up on Baring Private Equity Asia. PwC and KPMG are in supporting roles.
Congress Hurdle to U.S. Code Rewrite Seen as Few Know How [Bloomberg] As lawmakers rewrite the 4,000-page U.S. Internal Revenue Code, the complexities of Congress — not just the tax code — may present some of the biggest hurdles. Lobbyists and lawmakers working on tax legislation point to a relative lack of experience among officials and their staffs — particularly among House Republicans — in drafting, debating, and voting on major pieces of tax legislation.
It's Time to Stop Talking About Tax Reform [Joe Thorndike/Tax Analysts] JT: "[A] much larger and more important battle is raging in Washington over the meaning of tax reform. For most Democrats, reform means raising new money from the tax system, preferably from the rich. For most Republicans, reform means tax reduction of one sort or another. This debate over tax reform, meanwhile, is just part an even bigger, almost epic battle over the size and shape of government. The stakes of that battle are so high as to render tax reform little more than an afterthought."
How Likely Is Carried Interest Reform? [HP] Closer than you think says, Jeremy Scott.
Accountants as anarchists [Economia] This is quite the pep talk from Brett Scott: "It is accountants' duty to stand up to power, rather than facilitate it, and thereby to help maintain diversity and resilience in self-organising systems."
Wal-Mart Board Seen at Risk of Losing Independent Voices [Bloomberg] How about a little governance for you this morning?
What To Do When a Coworker Cries at the Office [Lifehacker] This will come in handy at some point, I assure you.
Are Angry Legos Harming Our Children? [PopSci] Dunno. But this guy's face looks like a stressed-out CPA's.
Is Obama Smart? [WSJ]
When it comes to piloting, Barack Obama seems to think he’s the political equivalent of Charles Lindbergh, Chuck Yeager and—in a “Fly Me to the Moon” sort of way—Nat King Cole rolled into one. “I think I’m a better speech writer than my speech writers,” he reportedly told an aide in 2008. “I know more about policies on any particular issue than my policy directors. And I’ll tell you right now that I’m . . . a better political director than my political director.”
Sales up at UK arm of Deloitte [FT]
The bigge was the consulting business, which increased its sales by 13 per cent to £517m, aided by the integration of acquired businesses and extra financial services work. Gains in market share lifted auditing revenues 4 per cent higher to £652m, the group said, while the tax and corporate finance divisions posted increases of 5 per cent and 11 per cent respectively. However, the average profit distributed to each partner fell 13 per cent from £873,000 to £758,000 because of the cost of making new hires and increasing pay to retain existing staff.
Markets Sink Then Soar After Fed Speaks [WSJ]
The Federal Reserve sent investors lurching from worry to hope as it warned that the economy would remain weak for some time but said it was prepared to take further steps to shore it up. The Fed’s statement, which included plans to keep interest rates near zero for at least the next two years, ultimately sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 4%, its biggest daily gain since March 2009. Yields on Treasury bonds dropped as investor demand pushed up prices.
For Murdoch, a Board Meeting With Friendly Faces [NYT]
One [director] is a former Goldman Sachs president who helped News Corporation broker mega-deals. Another is godfather to one of Mr. Murdoch’s grandchildren. Another ran Mr. Murdoch’s Australian subsidiary, News Limited. And those are just some of News Corporation’s directors who are designated as independent — chosen because they comply with regulations intended to ensure that companies maintain a layer of objective oversight.
NYSE Seeks to Tighten ‘Reverse’ Deal Rules [WSJ]
The New York Stock Exchange wants to toughen the standards that “reverse-merger” companies must meet to list on the Big Board, in the wake of accounting questions at many Chinese companies that have gone public via such transactions. The exchange is proposing a series of “seasoning” requirements that would effectively delay an NYSE listing for reverse-merger companies and set bars they would have to clear to obtain it.
BofA Doesn’t Need to Raise Capital, Finance Chief Thompson Tells Nomura [Bloomberg]
Bank of America Corp. (BAC), the largest U.S. lender, won’t need to raise extra capital to meet new international standards, Chief Financial Officer Bruce Thompson told Nomura Securities International analysts. The bank will be able to comply by cutting expenses, selling assets and letting some holdings decline naturally as they mature by the time the rules become fully effective, Thompson said in a meeting with analysts led by Glenn Schorr in New York.
A Much Needed Accounting Lesson for Two Senators [Accounting Onion]
Namely, Carl Levin (D-MI) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH).
People on the Move: KPMG Taps Chris Goodman as CMO [AdAge]
Goodman comes from Young & Rubicam and also did stints at Accenture and IMG.
Plante & Moran Elects 9 New Partners and One Affiliated Entity Member [P&M]
Six men and four women.
Swiss to Settle Tax-Evasion Dispute With Germany [Bloomberg]
Switzerland and Germany completed an accord to end a dispute over tax evasion by wealthy Germans holding cross-border accounts with Swiss private banks. As part of the settlement, Swiss banks will pay 2 billion Swiss francs ($2.8 billion) to the German government to cover the failure by their clients to disclose undeclared money in the past, the Swiss finance ministry said today in a statement.
