Accounting Big Bang : From the standpoint of Historical and Comparative Institutional Analyses

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The purpose of this research is to clarify institutional, economic, and theoretical consequences of "Accounts Big Bang", from the standpoint of historical and comparative institutional analyses.From a historical viewpoint, I surveyed the arguments until 1980s about "economic income" which is a theoretical core of accounting big bang and "discount present value" which is technical core of accounting big bang. According to the survey, it is obvious that although direct measurement(fresh-start measurement) and accounting allocation (interest method) coexisted in the generation era (16-20th century), only accounting allocation had been applied in accounting standards or conceptual frameworks in United States in the establishment era (middle of 1930s to 1970s). Furthermore, it becomes clear that there were two heterogeneous genealogies, that is, "economical monism" and "economic and accounting dualism" existed in the process in which economic income and present value developed.From an insti … More tutional viewpoint, "substance-over-form" comes to be emphasized in the discussion such as lease accounting and comes to be proposed new approaches(the right of use model, the whole asset model). This means accounting standards setters want to eliminate "management intents", because it is thought to cause accounting fraud. Moreover there is a tendency from "nominal capital maintenance - total capital concept" (entity view) to "financial maintenance - net capital concept" (proprietary view) in such discussions on fair value measurements of liabilities (bonds), immediate recognition of pension liabilities, and accounting for assets retirement obligations.After the 1990s, fair value (accounting) becomes conspicuous and present value comes to be an important measurement technique of fair value. This momentum serves as expansion of a mark-to-market (revaluation), and recognition of some kinds of intangibles including a part of self-generating goodwill However, new problems occur under accounting big bang. Fair value accounting does not need net income in nature which is important not only for reconciliation of interest between stakeholders but also provision of useful information for investors. Although fair value accounting and recognition of self-generating goodwill are asserted simultaneously, both conflict with each other in nature. Fair value accounting might eliminate management intents but it cannot eliminate measurement arbitrariness. These features might cause another types of accounting fraud. Less