IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/hum/wpaper/sfb649dp2012-010.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Fair Value Reclassifications of Financial Assets during the Financial Crisis

Author

Listed:
  • Jannis Bischof
  • Ulf Brüggemann
  • Holger Daske

Abstract

At the peak of the financial crisis in October 2008, the IASB amended IAS 39 to grant companies the option of abandoning fair value recognition for selected financial assets. Using a comprehensive global sample of publicly listed IFRS banks, we find that banks use the reclassification option to forgo the recognition of fair value losses and ultimately the regulatory costs of supervisory intervention. Analyses of stock market reactions suggest that a small subset of the most troubled banks benefit from such reclassifications. However, analyses of related footnote disclosures reveal that two-thirds of reclassifying banks do not fully comply with the accompanying IFRS 7 requirements. These banks experience a significant increase in bid-ask spreads in the long run.

Suggested Citation

  • Jannis Bischof & Ulf Brüggemann & Holger Daske, 2012. "Fair Value Reclassifications of Financial Assets during the Financial Crisis," SFB 649 Discussion Papers SFB649DP2012-010, Sonderforschungsbereich 649, Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:hum:wpaper:sfb649dp2012-010
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://sfb649.wiwi.hu-berlin.de/papers/pdf/SFB649DP2012-010.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bryan Howieson, 2011. "GFC or KFC?: How Standard Setters Were Battered and Fried," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 21(1), pages 3-13, March.
    2. Glosten, Lawrence R. & Harris, Lawrence E., 1988. "Estimating the components of the bid/ask spread," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(1), pages 123-142, May.
    3. Maynes, Elizabeth & Rumsey, John, 1993. "Conducting event studies with thinly traded stocks," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 145-157, February.
    4. Ray Ball, 2006. "International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS): pros and cons for investors," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(S1), pages 5-27.
    5. Paquita Y. Davis†Friday & Chao†Shin Liu & H. Fred Mittelstaedt, 2004. "Recognition and Disclosure Reliability: Evidence from SFAS No. 106," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 21(2), pages 399-429, June.
    6. Dushyantkumar Vyas, 2011. "The Timeliness of Accounting Write‐Downs by U.S. Financial Institutions During the Financial Crisis of 2007–2008," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(3), pages 823-860, June.
    7. Mary Barth, 2006. "Including estimates of the future in today's financial statements," BIS Working Papers 208, Bank for International Settlements.
    8. Leslie Hodder & Mark Kohlbeck & Mary Lea McAnally, 2002. "Accounting Choices and Risk Management: SFAS No. 115 and U.S. Bank Holding Companies," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 19(2), pages 225-270, June.
    9. Stoll, Hans R, 1978. "The Supply of Dealer Services in Securities Markets," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 33(4), pages 1133-1151, September.
    10. Skinner, Douglas J., 2008. "The rise of deferred tax assets in Japan: The role of deferred tax accounting in the Japanese banking crisis," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(2-3), pages 218-239, December.
    11. Fonseca, Ana Rosa & González, Francisco, 2008. "Cross-country determinants of bank income smoothing by managing loan-loss provisions," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 217-228, February.
    12. Shen, Chung-Hua & Chih, Hsiang-Lin, 2005. "Investor protection, prospect theory, and earnings management: An international comparison of the banking industry," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(10), pages 2675-2697, October.
    13. Beyer, Anne & Cohen, Daniel A. & Lys, Thomas Z. & Walther, Beverly R., 2010. "The financial reporting environment: Review of the recent literature," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(2-3), pages 296-343, December.
    14. Mitchell A. Petersen, 2009. "Estimating Standard Errors in Finance Panel Data Sets: Comparing Approaches," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(1), pages 435-480, January.
    15. Aboody, D, 1996. "Recognition versus disclosure in the oil and gas industry," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34, pages 21-32.
    16. Karl A. Muller III & Edward J. Riedl, 2002. "External Monitoring of Property Appraisal Estimates and Information Asymmetry," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(3), pages 865-881, June.
    17. Spiegel, Mark M. & Yamori, Nobuyoshi, 2007. "Market price accounting and depositor discipline: The case of Japanese regional banks," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 769-786, March.
    18. 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.
    19. Leuz, C & Verrecchia, RE, 2000. "The economic consequences of increased disclosure," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38, pages 91-124.
    20. Robert Bushman & Wayne Landsman, 2010. "The pros and cons of regulating corporate reporting: A critical review of the arguments," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(3), pages 259-273.
    21. Beatty, A & Chamberlain, Sl & Magliolo, J, 1995. "Managing Financial Reports Of Commercial-Banks - The Influence Of Taxes, Regulatory Capital, And Earnings," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(2), pages 231-261.
    22. 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.
    23. Barth, James R.*Caprio,Gerard*Levine, Ross, 2001. "The regulation and supervision of banks around the world - a new database," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2588, The World Bank.
    24. Peter Wysocki, 2011. "New institutional accounting and IFRS," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 41(3), pages 309-328, August.
    25. Hirshleifer, David & Teoh, Siew Hong, 2003. "Limited attention, information disclosure, and financial reporting," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(1-3), pages 337-386, December.
    26. Peter Fiechter, 2011. "Reclassification of Financial Assets under IAS 39: Impact on European Banks' Financial Statements," Accounting in Europe, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(1), pages 49-67, June.
    27. Ball, Ray & Kothari, S. P. & Robin, Ashok, 2000. "Corrigendum to "The effect of international institutional factors on properties of accounting earnings"; [Journal of Accounting and Economics 29 (2000) 1-51]," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 241-241, October.
    28. Huang, Roger D & Stoll, Hans R, 1997. "The Components of the Bid-Ask Spread: A General Approach," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 10(4), pages 995-1034.
    29. Mary E. Barth & Greg Clinch & Toshi Shibano, 2003. "Market Effects of Recognition and Disclosure," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(4), pages 581-609, September.
    30. 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.
    31. Altamuro, Jennifer & Beatty, Anne, 2010. "How does internal control regulation affect financial reporting?," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(1-2), pages 58-74, February.
    32. Paul André & Anne Cazavan-Jeny & Wolfgang Dick & Chrystelle Richard & Peter Walton, 2009. "Fair Value Accounting and the Banking Crisis in 2008: Shooting the Messenger," Accounting in Europe, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(1), pages 3-24, June.
    33. Eccher, Elizabeth A. & Ramesh, K. & Thiagarajan, S. Ramu, 1996. "Fair value disclosures by bank holding companies," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(1-3), pages 79-117, October.
    34. Ball, Ray & Kothari, S. P. & Robin, Ashok, 2000. "The effect of international institutional factors on properties of accounting earnings," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 1-51, February.
    35. Philip Brown & Ann Tarca, 2005. "A commentary on issues relating to the enforcement of International Financial Reporting Standards in the EU," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(1), pages 181-212.
    36. Diamond, Douglas W & Verrecchia, Robert E, 1991. "Disclosure, Liquidity, and the Cost of Capital," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 46(4), pages 1325-1359, September.
    37. Basu, Sudipta, 1997. "The conservatism principle and the asymmetric timeliness of earnings," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(1), pages 3-37, December.
    38. repec:dau:papers:123456789/5008 is not listed on IDEAS
    39. Bernard, Vl & Merton, Rc & Palepu, Kg, 1995. "Mark-To-Market Accounting For Banks And Thrifts - Lessons From The Danish Experience," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(1), pages 1-32.
    40. Gunther Gebhardt & Zoltan Novotny-Farkas, 2011. "Mandatory IFRS Adoption and Accounting Quality of European Banks," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(3-4), pages 289-333, April.
    41. Mary Barth & Wayne Landsman, 2010. "How did Financial Reporting Contribute to the Financial Crisis?," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 399-423.
    42. Jordan, John S. & Peek, Joe & Rosengren, Eric S., 2000. "The Market Reaction to the Disclosure of Supervisory Actions: Implications for Bank Transparency," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 9(3), pages 298-319, July.
    43. Robert W. Holthausen, 2009. "Accounting Standards, Financial Reporting Outcomes, and Enforcement," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(2), pages 447-458, May.
    44. Robert E. Verrecchia & Joseph Weber, 2006. "Redacted Disclosure," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(4), pages 791-814, September.
    45. Sefcik, Se & Thompson, R, 1986. "An Approach To Statistical-Inference In Cross-Sectional Models With Security Abnormal Returns As Dependent Variable," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(2), pages 316-334.
    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. Brian Bratten & Monika Causholli & Urooj Khan, 2016. "Usefulness of fair values for predicting banks’ future earnings: evidence from other comprehensive income and its components," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 280-315, March.
    2. Kirsten Schmidt & Felix Noth & Lena Tonzer, 2022. "A Note of Caution on Quantifying Banks' Recapitalization Effects," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 54(4), pages 1123-1133, June.

    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. Beatty, Anne & Liao, Scott, 2014. "Financial accounting in the banking industry: A review of the empirical literature," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(2), pages 339-383.
    2. Katja Kisseleva & Daniela Lorenz, 2016. "Are level 3 fair values reflected in firm value? Evidence from European banks," ESMT Research Working Papers ESMT-16-03, ESMT European School of Management and Technology.
    3. Christensen, Hans B. & Hail, Luzi & Leuz, Christian, 2013. "Mandatory IFRS reporting and changes in enforcement," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(2), pages 147-177.
    4. Marton, Jan & Runesson, Emmeli, 2017. "The predictive ability of loan loss provisions in banks – Effects of accounting standards, enforcement and incentives," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(2), pages 162-180.
    5. Daifei Yao & Majella Percy & Jenny Stewart & Fang Hu, 2018. "Determinants of discretionary fair value measurements: the case of Level 3 assets in the banking sector," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 58(2), pages 561-597, June.
    6. De George, Emmanuel T. & Li, Xi & Shivakumar, Lakshmanan, 2016. "A review of the IFRS adoption literature," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 67599, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    7. George Serafeim, 2011. "Consequences and Institutional Determinants of Unregulated Corporate Financial Statements: Evidence from Embedded Value Reporting," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(2), pages 529-571, May.
    8. Emmanuel T. De George & Xi Li & Lakshmanan Shivakumar, 2016. "A review of the IFRS adoption literature," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 898-1004, September.
    9. Liao, Lin & Yao, Daifei (Troy) & Kang, Helen & Morris, Richard D., 2020. "The impact of legal efficacy on value relevance of the three-level fair value measurement hierarchy," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    10. repec:zbw:bofitp:2014_019 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Kanagaretnam, Kiridaran & Lim, Chee Yeow & Lobo, Gerald J., 2014. "Effects of international institutional factors on earnings quality of banks," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 87-106.
    12. Marco Fasan & Carlo Marcon, 2014. "Accounting Tradition and other drivers of the Fair Value choice: An Opportunistic Management perspective," Working Papers 13, Department of Management, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia.
    13. Fang, Yiwei & Dbouk, Wassim & Hasan, Iftekhar & Li, Lingxiang, 2014. "Banking reform, risk-taking, and accounting quality : Evidence from post-Soviet transition states," BOFIT Discussion Papers 19/2014, Bank of Finland, Institute for Economies in Transition.
    14. Benkraiem, Ramzi & Bensaad, Itidel & Lakhal, Faten, 2022. "How do International Financial Reporting Standards affect information asymmetry? The importance of the earnings quality channel," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 46(C).
    15. Marco Fasan & Carlo Marcon, 2018. "Accounting Choice under IFRS: The Role of Accounting Tradition and Managerial Opportunism," International Journal of Academic Research in Accounting, Finance and Management Sciences, Human Resource Management Academic Research Society, International Journal of Academic Research in Accounting, Finance and Management Sciences, vol. 8(3), pages 209-223, July.
    16. Manganaris, Panayotis & Beccalli, Elena & Dimitropoulos, Panagiotis, 2017. "Bank transparency and the crisis," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(2), pages 121-137.
    17. Peter Fiechter & Zoltán Novotny-Farkas, 2017. "The impact of the institutional environment on the value relevance of fair values," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 392-429, March.
    18. Fargher, Neil & Wee, Marvin, 2019. "The impact of Ball and Brown (1968) on generations of research," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 55-72.
    19. 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.
    20. Fang, Yiwei & Hasan, Iftekhar & Li, Lingxiang, 2014. "Banking reform, risk-taking, and earnings quality – Evidence from transition countries," BOFIT Discussion Papers 19/2014, Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT).
    21. Onali, Enrico & Ginesti, Gianluca, 2015. "New Accounting Rules for Loan Loss Provisions in Europe: Much Ado about Nothing?," MPRA Paper 64266, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 10 May 2015.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Bank Regulation; Fair Value Accounting; Financial Crisis; IAS 39; IFRS 7;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • G28 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • M41 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Accounting
    • M48 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Government Policy and Regulation

    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:hum:wpaper:sfb649dp2012-010. 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: RDC-Team (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/sohubde.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.