IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/zbw/bayfat/201301.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Financial accounting and reporting in Germany: A case study on German accounting tradition and experiences with the IFRS adoption

Author

Listed:
  • Fülbier, Rolf Uwe
  • Klein, Malte

Abstract

Financial accounting is rooted in national thoughts, traditions and institutional settings. As a consequence, accounting has developed heterogeneously over time and fulfilled contracting purposes in divergent national environments. Against this background, we argue that the ongoing process of accounting internationalization and imposed harmonization carries with it the danger of deforming country-specific balancing factors in the accounting systems, especially when the national environment for economic and contractual activities is not harmonized at all. In contrast to more evolutionary integration and adjustment processes of the past where spillover effects have always existed, the rapidity of the current process and coercive nature increases country-specific frictions. To support our argument and to substantiate the interplay of accounting as a contractual device and country-specific characteristics, we provide an in-depth case study of one country, Germany. We illustrate how the traditional German commercial law accounting system has evolved over time to meet specific contractual needs. We demonstrate how the current process of globalization and accounting internationalization has been attended by increasing frictions and challenges, especially on the contractual and regulatory level. We finally investigate the consequences on the German standard setting system, which also includes the changing role of German accounting research.

Suggested Citation

  • Fülbier, Rolf Uwe & Klein, Malte, 2013. "Financial accounting and reporting in Germany: A case study on German accounting tradition and experiences with the IFRS adoption," Bayreuth Working Papers on Finance, Accounting and Taxation (FAcT-Papers) 2013-01, University of Bayreuth, Chair of Finance and Banking.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:bayfat:201301
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/72307/1/741299895.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Thorsten Sellhorn & Sylwia Gornik-Tomaszewski, 2006. "Implications of the 'IAS Regulation' for Research into the International Differences in Accounting Systems," Accounting in Europe, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 3(1), pages 187-217, October.
    2. Holger Daske & Günther Gebhardt, 2006. "International financial reporting standards and experts’ perceptions of disclosure quality," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 42(3‐4), pages 461-498, September.
    3. Ernstberger, Jürgen & Vogler, Oliver, 2008. "Analyzing the German accounting triad -- "Accounting Premium" for IAS/IFRS and U.S. GAAP vis-à-vis German GAAP?," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 43(4), pages 339-386, December.
    4. Dang Duc Son & Neil Marriott & Pru Marriott, 2006. "Users' perceptions and uses of financial reports of small and medium companies (SMCs) in transitional economies: Qualitative evidence from Vietnam," Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 3(3), pages 218-235, September.
    5. La Porta, Rafael & Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 1997. "Legal Determinants of External Finance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(3), pages 1131-1150, July.
    6. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    7. Rajiv D. Banker & Rong Huang & Ramachandran Natarajan, 2009. "Incentive Contracting and Value Relevance of Earnings and Cash Flows," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(3), pages 647-678, June.
    8. Z. Boross & A. H. Clarkson & M. Fraser & P. Weetman, 1995. "Pressures and conflicts in moving towards harmonization of accounting practice: the Hungarian experience," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 4(4), pages 713-737.
    9. Kaufmann, Daniel & Kraay, Aart & Mastruzzi, Massimo, 2007. "Governance Matters VI: Aggregate and Individual Governance Indicators, 1996-2006," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4280, The World Bank.
    10. Ulf Br&?ggemann & J?rg-Markus Hitz & Thorsten Sellhorn, 2013. "Intended and Unintended Consequences of Mandatory IFRS Adoption: A Review of Extant Evidence and Suggestions for Future Research," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 1-37, May.
    11. Laura Márquez-Ramos, 2011. "European Accounting Harmonization: Consequences of IFRS Adoption on Trade in Goods and Foreign Direct Investments," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(0), pages 42-57, September.
    12. Coase, Ronald H., 1990. "Accounting and the theory of the firm," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 12(1-3), pages 3-13, January.
    13. Martin Schmidt, 2009. "Fair Value: Your Value or Mine? An Observation on the Ambiguity of the Fair Value Notion Illustrated by the Credit Crunch," Accounting in Europe, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(2), pages 271-282, December.
    14. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 1998. "Law and Finance," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(6), pages 1113-1155, December.
    15. Susana Callao & Cristina Ferrer & José I. Jarne & José A. Laínez, 2009. "The impact of IFRS on the European Union," Journal of Applied Accounting Research, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 10(1), pages 33-55, May.
    16. Robert M. Bushman & Abbie Smith, 2003. "Transparency, financial accounting information, and corporate governance," Economic Policy Review, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, vol. 9(Apr), pages 65-87.
    17. Leuz, Christian & Nanda, Dhananjay & Wysocki, Peter D., 2003. "Earnings management and investor protection: an international comparison," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(3), pages 505-527, September.
    18. Harris, Ts & Lang, M & Moller, Hp, 1994. "The Value Relevance Of German Accounting Measures - An Empirical-Analysis," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(2), pages 187-209.
    19. Georg Vogeler, 2005. "Tax accounting in the late medieval German territorial states," Accounting History Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(3), pages 235-254.
    20. Leuz, C & Verrecchia, RE, 2000. "The economic consequences of increased disclosure," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38, pages 91-124.
    21. Christian Laux & Christian Leuz, 2010. "Did Fair-Value Accounting Contribute to the Financial Crisis?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 24(1), pages 93-118, Winter.
    22. Holger Daske & Luzi Hail & Christian Leuz & Rodrigo Verdi, 2008. "Mandatory IFRS Reporting around the World: Early Evidence on the Economic Consequences," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(5), pages 1085-1142, December.
    23. Roland Königsgruber, 2010. "A political economy of accounting standard setting," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 14(4), pages 277-295, November.
    24. Yuri Biondi, 2007. "Accounting and the economic nature of the firm as an entity," Post-Print halshs-00321534, HAL.
    25. Brigitte Eierle & Axel Haller, 2009. "Does Size Influence the Suitability of the IFRS for Small and Medium-Sized Entities? -- Empirical Evidence from Germany," Accounting in Europe, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(2), pages 195-230, December.
    26. Laux, Christian & Leuz, Christian, 2009. "The crisis of fair-value accounting: Making sense of the recent debate," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 34(6-7), pages 826-834, August.
    27. Biondi Yuri, 2011. "The Pure Logic of Accounting: A Critique of the Fair Value Revolution," Accounting, Economics, and Law: A Convivium, De Gruyter, vol. 1(1), pages 1-49, January.
    28. J�rgen Ernstberger & Michael Stich & Oliver Vogler, 2012. "Economic Consequences of Accounting Enforcement Reforms: The Case of Germany," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(2), pages 217-251, August.
    29. Hans-Ulrich Kupper & Richard Mattessich, 2005. "Twentieth century accounting research in the German language area," Accounting History Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(3), pages 345-410.
    30. Joerg-Markus Hitz, 2007. "The Decision Usefulness of Fair Value Accounting - A Theoretical Perspective," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(2), pages 323-362.
    31. Fama, Eugene F & Jensen, Michael C, 1983. "Separation of Ownership and Control," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 26(2), pages 301-325, June.
    32. Christian Leuz, 2003. "IAS Versus U.S. GAAP: Information Asymmetry–Based Evidence from Germany's New Market," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(3), pages 445-472, June.
    33. Heidhues, Eva & Patel, Chris, 2011. "A critique of Gray's framework on accounting values using Germany as a case study," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 273-287.
    34. repec:dau:papers:123456789/1338 is not listed on IDEAS
    35. Robert Bushman & Ellen Engel & Abbie Smith, 2006. "An Analysis of the Relation between the Stewardship and Valuation Roles of Earnings," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(1), pages 53-83, March.
    36. Eric Nowak, 2001. "Recent Developments In German Capital Markets And Corporate Governance," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 14(3), pages 35-48, September.
    37. Walther Busse von Colbe, 1996. "Accounting and the business economics tradition in Germany," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 5(3), pages 413-434.
    38. Gassen, Joachim, 2008. "Are stewardship and valuation usefulness compatible or alternative objectives of financial accounting?," SFB 649 Discussion Papers 2008-028, Humboldt University Berlin, Collaborative Research Center 649: Economic Risk.
    39. Christian Leuz, 2003. "IAS Versus U.S. GAAP: Information Asymmetry–Based Evidence from Germany's New Market," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(3), pages 445-472, June.
    40. Joachim Gassen & Kristina Schwedler, 2010. "The Decision Usefulness of Financial Accounting Measurement Concepts: Evidence from an Online Survey of Professional Investors and their Advisors," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 495-509.
    41. McLeay, Stuart & Ordelheide, Dieter & Young, Steven, 2000. "Constituent lobbying and its impact on the development of financial reporting regulations: evidence from Germany," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 79-98, January.
    42. Joachim Gassen & Rolf Uwe Fulbier & Thorsten Sellhorn, 2006. "International Differences in Conditional Conservatism - The Role of Unconditional Conservatism and Income Smoothing," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(4), pages 527-564.
    43. Masato Kikuya, 2001. "International harmonization of Japanese accounting standards," Accounting History Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(3), pages 349-368.
    44. Peter Walton, 1993. "Company law and accounting in nineteenth-century Europe," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 2(2), pages 286-291.
    45. Matthias Schmidt, 2002. "On The Legitimacy Of Accounting Standard Setting By Privately Organised Institutions In Germany And Europe," Schmalenbach Business Review (sbr), LMU Munich School of Management, vol. 54(2), pages 171-193, April.
    46. Igor Goncharov & Joerg Richard Werner & Jochen Zimmermann, 2006. "Does Compliance with the German Corporate Governance Code Have an Impact on Stock Valuation? An empirical analysis," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(5), pages 432-445, September.
    47. Walther Busse von Colbe, 1992. "Relationships between financial accounting research, standards setting and practice in Germany," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 1(1), pages 27-38.
    48. Christopher Nobes, 2006. "The survival of international differences under IFRS: towards a research agenda," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(3), pages 233-245.
    49. Christensen, Peter O. & Feltham, Gerald A. & Sabac, Florin, 2005. "A contracting perspective on earnings quality," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 39(2), pages 265-294, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Elshandidy, Tamer & Shrives, Philip J., 2016. "Environmental Incentives for and Usefulness of Textual Risk Reporting: Evidence from Germany," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 51(4), pages 464-486.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ulf Br&?ggemann & J?rg-Markus Hitz & Thorsten Sellhorn, 2013. "Intended and Unintended Consequences of Mandatory IFRS Adoption: A Review of Extant Evidence and Suggestions for Future Research," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 1-37, May.
    2. repec:hum:wpaper:sfb649dp2012-011 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Oxelheim, Lars, 2019. "Optimal vs satisfactory transparency: The impact of global macroeconomic fluctuations on corporate competitiveness," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 190-206.
    4. Palea, Vera, 2013. "IAS/IFRS and Financial Reporting Quality: Lessons from the European Experience," Department of Economics and Statistics Cognetti de Martiis. Working Papers 201330, University of Turin.
    5. Akisik, Orhan, 2020. "The impact of financial development, IFRS, and rule of LAW on foreign investments: A cross-country analysis," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 815-838.
    6. Rolf Uwe Fülbier & Joerg‐Markus Hitz & Thorsten Sellhorn, 2009. "Relevance of Academic Research and Researchers' Role in the IASB's Financial Reporting Standard Setting," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 45(4), pages 455-492, December.
    7. Elbakry, Ashraf E. & Nwachukwu, Jacinta C. & Abdou, Hussein A. & Elshandidy, Tamer, 2017. "Comparative evidence on the value relevance of IFRS-based accounting information in Germany and the UK," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 10-30.
    8. Karampinis, Nikolaos I. & Hevas, Dimosthenis L., 2011. "Mandating IFRS in an Unfavorable Environment: The Greek Experience," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 304-332, September.
    9. Iatridis, George, 2010. "International Financial Reporting Standards and the quality of financial statement information," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 193-204, June.
    10. Alex Frino & Riccardo Palumbo & Francesco Capalbo & Dionigi Gerace & Vito Mollica, 2013. "Information Disclosure and Stock Liquidity: Evidence from Borsa Italiana," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 49(4), pages 423-440, December.
    11. Schleicher, Thomas & Tahoun, Ahmed & Walker, Martin, 2010. "IFRS adoption in Europe and investment-cash flow sensitivity: Outsider versus insider economies," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 45(2), pages 143-168, June.
    12. Macías, Marta & Muiño, Flora, 2011. "Examining dual accounting systems in Europe," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 51-78, March.
    13. Mazzi, Francesco & Slack, Richard & Tsalavoutas, Ioannis, 2018. "The effect of corruption and culture on mandatory disclosure compliance levels: Goodwill reporting in Europe," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 52-73.
    14. Armstrong, Christopher S. & Guay, Wayne R. & Weber, Joseph P., 2010. "The role of information and financial reporting in corporate governance and debt contracting," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(2-3), pages 179-234, December.
    15. Chan, Ann L.-C. & Hsu, Audrey W.-H. & Lee, Edward, 2015. "Mandatory adoption of IFRS and timely loss recognition across Europe: The effect of corporate finance incentives," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 70-82.
    16. Pierre Bonetti & Antonio Parbonetti & Michel Magnan, 2013. "The Influence of Country- and Firm-Level Governance on Financial Reporting Quality: Revisiting the Evidence," CIRANO Working Papers 2013s-03, CIRANO.
    17. Tan, Youchao & Zhu, Zhenmei & Zeng, Cheng & Gao, Minghua, 2014. "Does external finance pressure affect corporate disclosure of Chinese non-state-owned enterprises?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 212-222.
    18. Ioannis Tsalavoutas & Paul André & Lisa Evans, 2009. "Transition to IFRS and value relevance in a small but developed market: A look at Greek evidence," Post-Print halshs-00460532, HAL.
    19. Gaetano Matonti & Giuseppe Iuliano, 2012. "Voluntary Adoption of Ifrs by Italian Private Firms: A Study Of The Determinants," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 2(2), pages 43-70, December.
    20. Holger Daske & Luzi Hail & Christian Leuz & Rodrigo Verdi, 2008. "Mandatory IFRS Reporting around the World: Early Evidence on the Economic Consequences," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(5), pages 1085-1142, December.
    21. Bozos, Konstantinos & Ratnaike, Yasanji C. & Alsharairi, Malek, 2014. "How has the international harmonization of financial reporting standards affected merger premiums within the European Union?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 48-60.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    German Accounting; Accounting Research; HGB; Code Law; Legal System; Socioeconomic-Environment; Institutional Settings; SME; Book-Tax-Conformity; Debt Financing; Accounting History;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • K22 - Law and Economics - - Regulation and Business Law - - - Business and Securities Law
    • M41 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Accounting
    • N00 - Economic History - - General - - - General
    • N24 - Economic History - - Financial Markets and Institutions - - - Europe: 1913-
    • N44 - Economic History - - Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation - - - Europe: 1913-

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:zbw:bayfat:201301. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/rwbayde.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.