Attestation Update – A&A for CPAs. – Page 62 – Technical stuff for CPAs providing attestation services.

That is the core point of a new book, The Bankers’ New Clothes, reviewed by John H. Cochrane in the Wall Street Journal – Running on Empty – Banks should raise more capital, carry less debt – and never need a bailout again.

Federal policy guarantees essentially all bank deposits. That creates moral hazard, which means banks can take extreme risks and depositors don’t care. The feds are on the hook for any failure, so why should bank management or depositors worry about risk levels? To mitigate risk, the regulators have thousands of pages of rules on the asset side of the balance sheet. Check this out: …

To end the Too Big To Fail syndrome, require banks to have some serious amounts of capitalRead More »

To end the Too Big To Fail syndrome, require banks to have some serious amounts of capital Read More »

Leaks: 3 more big banks may settle Libor manipulation cases by end of summer – also good infographic

Leave a Comment / Accounting, Other stuff / Jim Ulvog

The Wall Street Journal reports Regulators Hope for Libor Pacts.

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Leaks: 3 more big banks may settle Libor manipulation cases by end of summer – also good infographicRead More »

Leaks: 3 more big banks may settle Libor manipulation cases by end of summer – also good infographic Read More »

Compliance with laws and regulations – new requirement for 12-31-12 audits

Check out Evernote for storing articles, ‘net resources, and lots of other stuff

1 Comment / Other stuff / Jim Ulvog

I’ve been using Evernote for about two months now. It is a great tool to store internet articles, PDF documents, and other files.

It gives you a great way to store, access, and search those interesting web articles you would like to look at again.

Charles Hall, at CPA-Scribo introduces Evernote for CPAs:

Evernote is a game-changer for CPAs.

It is every bit as useful for someone in the NPO world. Mr Hall continues: …

Check out Evernote for storing articles, ‘net resources, and lots of other stuffRead More »

Check out Evernote for storing articles, ‘net resources, and lots of other stuff Read More »

5 ideas for a fraud test

Leave a Comment / Audits, Fraud / Jim Ulvog

Charles Hall has some ideas for you on easy fraud tests you could perform on your upcoming audits: Five Disbursement Fraud Tests

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5 ideas for a fraud testRead More »

5 ideas for a fraud test Read More »

Lessons to learn before you get a call from a client saying they found an embezzlement fraud

Leave a Comment / Audits, Fraud / Jim Ulvog

Would this call ruin your day?

You answer the phone and your client says:

“George, we just found out our controller has stolen about $70,000 per year for the last three years. Since you guys have been doing our audit, I thought I’d call and discuss what we need to do.” The caller does not verbally say it, but he intimates, “where were you guys?” and “how are you going to resolve this?”

That’s the sobering start to Charles Hall’s post at CPA-Scribo – Fraud Stings Auditor.

He outlines three mistakes you may have made on your latest audits:

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Lessons to learn *before* you get a call from a client saying they found an embezzlement fraudRead More »

Lessons to learn *before* you get a call from a client saying they found an embezzlement fraud Read More »

Does too big to fail, too big to punish, and too big to manage mean you are too big?

Leave a Comment / Other stuff / Jim Ulvog

George F. Will suggests the answer to the question is “yes”: When banks get too big to fail, they are too dangerous to leave intact

One of the U.S. senators on the left end of the political spectrum thinks it is time to break up the too-big-to-fail banks.

Look at the concentration of assets in the TBTF range and the long history of TBTF: …

Does too big to fail, too big to punish, and too big to manage mean you are too big?Read More »

Does too big to fail, too big to punish, and too big to manage mean you are too big? Read More »

Refresh your audit planning and fraud assessment

Leave a Comment / Audits, Fraud / Jim Ulvog

As we roll into audit season, would be wise to revisit your audit planning and risk assessment. Gary Zeune can help you do that in his superb article, Fraud: The 15 biggest risks for 2013.

He reminds us that we really, really need to understand our clients and their overall environment. We need to look at fraud from different angles all the time.

Try these ideas to refresh your thinking:

#1 – Are there things going on in DC or issues for which nothing is happening that could devastate your client’s industry? If so, you need to pay attention to the action or lethargy in play.

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Refresh your audit planning and fraud assessmentRead More »

Refresh your audit planning and fraud assessment Read More »

“Tragedy of Fraud” e-book now available at Amazon

Leave a Comment / Accounting, Audits, Books you might enjoy, Compilations & reviews, Fraud / Jim Ulvog

“Tragedy of Fraud – The Ripple Effects from Fraud and the Wages Earned” describes the tragic consequences from fraud.

There are ripple effects that spread out to harm innocent bystanders. The perpetrator draws a wide range of well-deserved wages that will be paid in full.

The book looks at two fraud incidents to learn what happens after a fraud is discovered. One took place in a local megachurch and the other in the mayor’s office of a small city.

The book closes with a discussion of the fraud triangle. That’s the idea that three components need to be present for a fraud to take place – opportunity, motivation, and rationalization. There are steps an organization can take to reduce those factors.

You can find the book at Amazon here.

This book is a compilation of blogs posts that have been previously published at Nonprofit Update and Attestation Update. The posts have been edited slightly and reorganized for easier reading.

Major sections of the book: …