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Financial Reporting System Act soon

Sunday, 17 June 2007


Siddique Islam
The government is going to legislate a Financial Reporting System (FRS) Act for the first time to ensure accountability and transparency of the country's financial sector.
A draft has already been prepared for the proposed law, which will be finalised shortly after receiving recommendations and opinions from the stakeholders, official sources said.
"Opinions have already been sought from the institute of chartered accountants and the institute of cost and management accountants of Bangladesh to finalise the draft of the proposed act," the Bangladesh Bank Governor Salehuddin Ahmed told the FE Saturday.
He also said the act will help to establish a transparent and accountable financial reporting system in the country.
Under the proposed act, a council will be formed, headed by the BB governor, to oversee the implementation of the act by way of monitoring the financial reporting.
Meanwhile, the bankers welcomed the move, saying that the act will help establish a transparent financial reporting system that would also enable the stakeholders as well as investors to access the real financial picture of business entities concerned.
"It is a good initiative…it certainly would help the business entities make their financial disclosures in a more transparent way so that stakeholders can get a true financial picture of the enterprises concerned," Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Agrani Bank told the FE.
He also said many countries have already enacted such law to ensure accountability and transparency of the financial reporting system.
Under such law, the business entities will be penalised if they fail to make disclosures properly in their financial reporting, the Agrani Bank CEO added.
It will be similar to the international accounting standard (IAS-30) that compels business entities to disclose all financial matters in their reports, he noted.