A Model for the Convergence of Accounting Standards

Abstract

The globalization of capital markets has greatly impacted the harmonization of accounting standards. The International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) has contributed to the harmonization of accounting standards by issuing the International Accounting Standards (IAS). In 2001, the International Accounting Standard Board (IASB), which succeeded the IASC, made a commitment to achieve full convergence to a single set of high-quality global accounting standards. While the IASB established IAS of high quality, both understandable and enforceable, the international harmonization of accounting or the convergence of accounting standards is still a much-debated issue in accounting research. Using a simple game theoretic model, this paper examines the mechanism by which various countries in the global economy may come to adopt a single accounting standard. This standard would dominate the domestic standard of each country and would be called Global Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GGAAP).