User:Well-rested/Voluntary disclosure

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This is an early draft of the article. It has been shifted to Voluntary disclosure.


Voluntary disclosure in accounting is the provision of information by a company's management beyond requirements such as generally accepted accounting principles and Securities and Exchange Commission rules,[1][2] where the information is believed to be relevant to the decision-making of users of the company's annual reports.[1]

Voluntary disclosure is carried out extensively by many companies,[2] and has also been identified as an important area in financial reporting research.[3] Voluntary disclosures can include strategic information such as company characteristics and strategy, nonfinancial information such socially responsible practices, and financial information such as stock price information.[1]

Impact of voluntary disclosure

Voluntary disclosure benefits investors, companies and the economy. For example, it helps investors make better capital allocation decisions and lowers firms' cost of capital, the latter of which also benefits the general economy.[1][2] Chau and Gray (2002) also found support for the theory that voluntary disclosure helps reduce conflicts of interest in widely-held firms.[4]

Firms, however, balance the benefits of voluntary disclosure against the costs, which may include the cost of procuring the information to be disclosed, and decreased competitive advantage.[1][2]

Types and examples of voluntary disclosures

The FASB classified voluntary disclosures into six categories below,[2] while Meek, Roberts and Gray (1995) classified them into three major groups: strategic, nonfinancial and financial information.[1]

  • Business data
e.g. breakdown of market share growth and information on new products
  • Analysis of business data
e.g. trend analysis and comparisons with competitors
  • Forward-looking information
e.g. sales forecast breakdown and plans for expansion
  • Information about management and shareholders
e.g. information on stockholders and creditors and shareholding breakdown
  • Company background
e.g. product description and long-term objectives
  • Information about intangible assets
e.g. research and development and customer relations.

Determinants

The determinants of the extent and type of voluntary disclosures of firms have been explored in the financial reporting literature. Meek, Roberts and Gray (1995) found that the extent and type of voluntary disclosure differs by geographic region, industry, and company size, and other research has found that the extent of voluntary disclosure is affected by the firm's corporate governance structure[3][5] and ownership structure.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Meek G. K., Roberts C. B., Gray S. J., 1995. Factors Influencing Voluntary Annual Disclosures By U.S., U.K., and Continental European Multinational Corporations. Journal of International Business Studies 26(3), 555-572.
  2. ^ a b c d e FASB, 2001. Improving Business Reporting: Insights into Enhancing Voluntary Disclosures. Retrieved on April 20, 2012.
  3. ^ a b Ho S.S.M. & Wong K.S., 2001. Journal of International Accounting, Auditing & Taxation 10(2001), 139-156. Cite error: The named reference "HW2001" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  4. ^ Chau G.K. & Gray S.J., 2002. Ownership structure and corporate voluntary disclosure in Hong Kong and Singapore. The International Journal of Accounting 37 (2002), 247-265.
  5. ^ a b Eng L.L. & Mak Y.T., 2003. Corporate governance and voluntary disclosure. Journal of Accounting and Public Policy 22 (2003), 325-345.
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