Stop Using Excel, Finance Chiefs Tell Staffs
CFOs say the ubiquitous spreadsheet software that revolutionized accounting in the 1980s hasn’t kept up with the demands of contemporary corporate finance units.
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Dow Jones
CFO Journal
Data Breaches Will Soon Cost Companies in Europe
Data breaches like the one disclosed by Uber could soon draw fines from European regulators.
Currency
U.K. Companies Plan to Use Fewer Euros Ahead of Brexit
British businesses are planning to cut their use of the euro for settling international payments, a sign they're seeking growth opportunities beyond Europe following Brexit.
CFO Report
Tax Overhaul Could End Record Pileup of Offshore Cash
The U.S. corporate offshore cash pile is projected to hit $1.4 trillion by the end of 2017, according to Moody's Investors Services Inc. But the record-setting run-up in foreign cash could end in 2018 if Congressional Republicans advance their effort to overhaul the U.S. tax system.
New Accounting Rule to Revamp Companies’ Financials
New accounting standards will require companies such as Rolls-Royce to rejigger how they recognize revenue and provide more detailed financial information.
Security
Boards Should Think of Cyber a Bit More Like Bank Robberies, Former AT&T; Security Chief Says
While bank boards know there are a number of bank robberies, they don’t expect to eliminate them completely. Corporate boards should begin to think about cyber risk in similar terms, said Ed Amoroso, now CEO of TAG Cyber LLC.
Big Data
Insurer AXA Bets On Big Data
AXA SA, the French insurance giant, has set its sights on expanding its finance team’s big data expertise in 2018, according to Chief Financial Officer Gérald Harlin.
SEC
SEC to Give Companies Time to Adjust to New Revenue Rules
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission officials indicated that they will hold off on issuing comment letters scrutinizing company compliance with the new revenue accounting standard in the early stages of implementation.
Cohn: ‘We’ve Got to Get Taxes Done This Year’
Gary Cohn, the president’s top economic adviser, said Tuesday he is confident Congress will pass a sweeping tax overhaul, adding that lawmakers need to act before year’s end.
Accounting
EY Stresses Replacing the Job, Not the Person, With Robots
Automation is about talent management, as lower-paying jobs that focus on more menial finance work will begin to disappear, making mid-level jobs more important.
Accounting
Energy Sector’s Goodwill Impairments Slump as Oil Prices Rebound
The amount and number of goodwill impairments recorded by the energy sector declined dramatically in 2016 as crude oil prices recovered from 12-year lows, according to a study by the Financial Executives Research Foundation and valuation firm Duff & Phelps LLC.
Latest News
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Uber Breach and Response Draw Global Regulatory Scrutiny WSJ
Government officials world-wide said they would look at Uber’s handling of a major data breach last year.
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European Stocks Struggle for Direction After Steep Falls in China WSJ
European stocks traded flat after Chinese shares suffered their worst day for months.
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Saying Bye to Buybacks WSJ
Large companies are repurchasing their shares at the slowest pace in five years, as record U.S. stock indexes and an expanding economy propel more money out of flush corporate coffers into capital spending and mergers.
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Shopping by Phone Begins Right After the Pumpkin Pie WSJ
Mobile phones have accelerated a fundamental change in holiday shopping: online buying on Thanksgiving.
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HSBC’s Global Banking Co-Head Leaves After 18 Months WSJ
HSBC’s global banking co-head, Matthew Westerman, will leave after a turbulent 18 months at the bank, staff were told in a memo.
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The Next Billion-Dollar Boom in Chinese Tech WSJ
Many Chinese companies want to tap into the power of artificial intelligence and cloud computing to increase efficiency and cut costs, spelling huge opportunity for the enterprise-applications market.
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What Does the AT&T Lawsuit Mean for Fox? WSJ
As the industry weighs the impact of the Justice Department’s lawsuit, Comcast Corp.’s bid to acquire a significant chunk of 21st Century Fox’s assets draws comparisons to the AT&T-Time Warner deal.
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Carl Icahn Buys Stake in SandRidge Energy WSJ
Carl Icahn has purchased a 13.5% stake in SandRidge Energy Inc., joining a list of shareholders who say a deal the oil-and-gas producer struck last week for Bonanza Creek Energy Inc. makes little sense.
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CFTC Reports Steep Drop in Enforcement Actions, Fines WSJ
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s enforcement actions and fines plunged in the first year of the Trump administration from a year earlier, when the figures were lifted by big settlements with banks.
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China Wields Bigger Stick on Booming Little Lenders WSJ
In its latest attempt to restrain the fast-evolving fintech sector, Beijing directed local governments to stop licensing providers of online microloans and to prohibit their operating outside the province where they are registered.
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Fed on Track for December Rate Rise, but Inflation Worries Persist WSJ
Federal Reserve officials said at their latest meeting they likely would raise rates “in the near term” as the economy strengthens, although several said their support for the move would hinge on inflation picking up, according to minutes released Wednesday.
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Facebook Plans to Let Users Know If They Followed Russian Pages WSJ
Facebook plans to tell millions of users who liked or followed any of the 290 Facebook and Instagram pages created by Russian actors that they were ensnared in an alleged misinformation campaign around the U.S. presidential election last year.
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Long Island Town Charged With Securities Fraud WSJ
The Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday charged the Long Island town of Oyster Bay with defrauding bondholders by failing to tell them about four private loan deals.
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Robots May Make Radiologists’ Jobs Easier, Not Redundant WSJ
Scientists recently said an artificial intelligence program diagnosed pneumonia on chest X-rays more accurately than human radiologists. Should radiologists worry? Probably not. AI is more likely to make their jobs easier, not less necessary.
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Fed Changes Quorum Rules as It Deals With Vacancies WSJ
The Federal Reserve is planning for ways its seven-person board of governors can operate with multiple vacancies, as the Washington-based body could have as few as three members come February
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Tax Bill’s Fine Print: Making It Tougher for Cities, States to Refinance Debt WSJ
Cities and states across the U.S. are warily bracing for the elimination of the tax exemption on certain bonds they rely on to refinance old bonds.
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Why Investors Should Be Pleased to See Chinese Interest Rates Rise WSJ
There are encouraging signs that Beijing is allowing the cost of credit to be driven more by market forces.
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Maybe Bitcoin Isn’t Untouchable at J.P. Morgan After All WSJ
J.P. Morgan weighs helping clients trade bitcoin futures, despite CEO Jamie Dimon’s criticism of the cryptocurrency.
