The Big Four accounting firms will call on Wednesday for sweeping changes in the way companies report their results to investors, including an end to quarterlies, according to the Financial Times.
In the place of “static” quarterly statements, PwC, Deloitte, KPMG, Ernst & Young, plan to recommend “real-time, internet-based reporting encompassing a wider range of performance measures,” the FT reported on late Tuesday afternoon.
Along with the heads of Grant Thornton and BDO, senior managements of the Big Four reportedly plan to say in a joint paper to be revealed at gathering in Paris that the financial reporting model of the 20th century “is broken,” said Mike Rake, chairman of KPMG International, according to the FT.
“There are significant shortcomings to [U.S. generally accepted accounting principles] and issues of concern with international financial reporting standards,” he also reportedly said. “We’re not in a very happy situation.”
“Current systems of reporting and auditing company information will need to change toward the public release of more non-financial information customized to the user, and accessed far more frequently than is currently done,” the paper reportedly says.
The accounting firms reportedly have been working on their proposals for over a year, according to the FT.