The Finance Factor

The financial forensic1 experts of today possess a litany of credentials and licenses that are intended to promote and define their particular expertise. This article provides attorneys and clients the recipe for the “alphabet soup” that follows the name of an expert in order to assist in their hiring or cross examination in litigation. Simplified explanations, commentary and web page references are included for the most common and widely-held litigation-oriented credentials2.

FINANCIAL: The CPA, Certified Public Accountant, is a state-issued license that is well known and respected by judges and juries. Currently, the CPA license requires a five-year college degree, passing what is perceived as one of the most difficult of professional exams plus two years of supervised experience. CPAs are governed by the holder’s state board of accountancy3 and the AICPA, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants4. CPAs must obtain forty hours of continuing professional education per year and must adhere to a strict code of ethics. CFAs, or Chartered Financial Analysts, 5 are focused on investment analysis and valuation. The designation requires an intensive educational course, passing a rigorous exam and three years of experience, but requires no continuing education. The CFP, Certified Financial Planner6, is oriented towards personal financial planning, requires passing a comprehensive exam and completion of thirty hours of continuing education every two years. CFAs and CFPs, along with CPAs, must adhere to strict ethical and competency guidelines. The CDFA, Certified Divorce Financial Analyst7 is a credential which requires passing an online exam.

BUSINESS VALUATION: Valuation credentials have become more prevalent in the last fifteen years and are essential if one is attempting to qualify as an expert witness. The ABV, Accredited in Business Valuation8, and CVA, Certified Valuation Analyst9 are issued by the AICPA and National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts, respectively. The CVA requires an intensive valuation course or holding of another valuation credential and passing a rigorous exam. The ABV requires a similar exam and valuation experience. Both credentials require the holding of a valid CPA license, therefore the ethical and continuing education requirements apply. The American Society of Appraisers issues the ASA, Accredited Senior Appraiser10, which requires a college degree, passing a comprehensive exam, five years of experience and obtaining forty hours of continuing education very five years. ASAs are usually not CPAs therefore they generally have less of a background in accounting and tax issues.

Continue reading ‘Expert Alphabet Soup – Jumble of Letters Represent Significant Expert Titles for Litigants and Judges’ »

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All accounting firms
, in the US and foreign, that provide audited financial statements for public companies registered with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) must be registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), sometimes referred to as Peekaboo. The PCAOB is a private-sector, nonprofit corporation that was created by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 which is under the jurisdiction of the SEC. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the creation of the PCAOB were a result of the accounting fraud scandals of Enron and WorldCom. There are currently over 2,000 public accounting firms registered with the PCAOB, with more pending registration. A list of current and pending registered firms can be found on the PCAOB website.

Continue reading ‘Public Company Accounting Oversight Board Registered Firms’ »

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Before a donor can claim a tax deduction for any single contribution of $250 or more, the IRS requires a written acknowledgement of the contribution from the nonprofit organization. Nonprofit organizations typically send these acknowledgments to donors no later than January 31 of the year following the donation.

Continue reading ‘How to Prepare Year-End Donation Acknowledgement Statements in QuickBooks’ »

Have you been worried about the accounting problems like how to tally the Balance Sheet or put a particular entry in what book? Do you often worry about the fact that the accounts are not going the right way and the profit shown would not be the true representation? If you do not follow the practices mentioned on accounting by GAAP then, you could be fined or worse you could go to prison for false representation of facts. When there is a small business then hiring a CPA would turn out to be very expensive. The entrepreneur would normally do them and make a lot of errors in the process. That way he would not know the true valuation of his business. This could lead to problems not only for him but also to the business and its investors. Hence true representation of facts is extremely important. An accountant helps you end all your worries on accounting problems and gives you a brighter look for the day. Here is how: -

Continue reading ‘NJ Accountant: The Best Accounting Values Are Delivered!’ »

All Certified Public Accountant (CPA) firms, in the US and foreign, that provide audited financial statements for public companies registered with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) must be registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), sometimes referred to as Peekaboo. The PCAOB is a private-sector, nonprofit corporation that was created by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 which is under the jurisdiction of the SEC. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the creation of the PCAOB were a result of the accounting fraud scandals of Enron and WorldCom. There are currently over 2,000 public firms registered with the PCAOB, with more pending registration. A list of current and pending registered firms can be found on the PCAOB website.

Continue reading ‘Public Company Accounting Oversight Board Registered Certified Public Accountant Firms’ »

Another tool in the arsenal of business is accounts receivable factoring or AR Factoring. A business is owed money that is its accounts receivable. If your clients are never going to pay out, which is cost effective you will get your commercial collection agency to collect the money owed. You may also insure your accounts receivable with regular insurance. Finally, we return to AR factoring. For startup companies with little collateral for getting a traditional loan, AR factoring is a good idea. In addition if your customer base is slow payers, AR factoring can be useful to get your money for you quickly. It is usually wired for your business account. AR factoring works basically such as this.

The factor will advance you about 70%-90% of your invoice value by wiring it for your requirements. The factor will check the credit of your clients. The AR factoring company will notify your customers that the rest of the money ought to be sent to them. The discount rate, or what you really are paying to the factor ranges from 1%-5%. It may be more when they advance you greater than the 90%. When your customers pay, the factors will wire you the remaining amount, they owe you without the discount fee. Factoring is a great help to new companies that need cash faster, and it has less paperwork than a financial loan. Continue reading ‘Accounts Receivable Factoring’ »

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Knowing you are making the right choice in factoring receivables for your Canadian business is half the battle. You then have to pick the best firm to facilitate your transaction, and like most business owners you want to know you have made the right decision.

Let’s recap why A/R financing works, and more importantly, how to select the best companies to work with based on your own needs.

There are numerous reasons why you might want to use a factoring receivables strategy to finance your business. The best reason you can have is that you are growing! And growing quickly – Because in that situation you are unable to achieve the sort of traditional financing you need to run and finance your business on a daily basis. Simply speaking working capital and cash flow become your overwhelming priority on a day to day basis, and that shouldn’t be the case! Continue reading ‘Why Canadian Companies Use Factoring Receivables Solutions for Business Financing’ »

Looking for a creative, ‘outside the box’ Canadian business financing solution? You may have investigated factoring receivables already but either didn’t understand how accounts receivable financing works, or, probably more to the point weren’t comfortable with how it works for your firm on a daily basis.

We’ve got the perfect solution for those worries, and its called confidential receivable financing, in Europe its more commonly known as C I D, confidential invoice discounting.

Let’s examine why this type of business financing works in general, and then let’s focus in on why our solution makes a solid solution even better. Continue reading ‘The Disadvantage Of Factoring Receivables – Why Confidential Accounts Receivable Finance Works!’ »

For a small or medium sized business, no challenge can be as big as having to wait for the payment from customers. The delay can range from about 30 to 60 days during which, carrying on with the day to day running of the business becomes extremely difficult. This delay can cause a severe cash crunch because no matter how much money you have accumulated in the form of invoices, there is absolutely nothing in the bank accounts for you to show. This dearth in cash will make it difficult for you to pay your employees as well meeting your current orders. Thus, seeking the assistance of invoice factoring services is an extremely good idea under such circumstances.

Invoice factoring, which is also known as accounts receivable factoring is a financial service with the help of which owners of small businesses can make use of the power of their invoices. These invoice factoring services purchase the invoice from you and give you ready cash in return. An invoice is nothing but a promise from your clients that they will pay you on a later date. So these companies are the ones who wait for the payment whereas you can use the money to expand your business. Continue reading ‘Advantages Of Invoice Factoring Services’ »

Whilst all benefits and expenses do, in theory, have to be reported to H M Revenue and Customs via form P11ds and form P9ds each year, there are certain items which the Revenue accepts need not be reported. This can be a benefit for payroll services departments although it is safest to get agreement in advance from the Revenue in order to avoid any potential repercussions at a later date.

The basic requirements are that the benefits are only minor, given at irregular intervals and it is agreed (with the Revenue) that it is impracticable to deal with them in any other way. A business should never make assumptions that anything does qualify for such an arrangement however, as mistakes can be costly. If things are not done properly, there may be a charge for interest on tax paid late and even penalties for the business involved.

Working in payroll services can often be a thankless task, particularly in small to medium size businesses. Often the task of operating payroll is given to an individual such as the managing director’s secretary or assistant and they are expected to do it in addition to their normal duties. There seems to be an assumption that it will only take an hour or so a week, so does not require a full time employee or a payroll outsourcing company. In practice, as anyone in payroll services will tell you, it is far more involved than that. Continue reading ‘PAYE Settlement Agreements’ »