Costs and determinants of XBRL implementation as a standard for financial reporting on capital markets

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to identify the costs and determinants of implementing XBRL as a standard for financial reporting on capital markets. The results of empirical research as well as statements, reports, consultation papers of supervisors of selected capital markets regarding XBRL were reviewed and the content of the collected sources was analyzed. The use of the XBRL standard as a tool supporting finan- cial reporting can potentially bring a number of benefits, such as speeding up the reporting process and improving the flow of information, increasing the reliability and quality of data transferred, making data analysis easier, faster, more flexible, comprehensive and accurate, and increasing the comparability of financial statements. Implementation of the standard is also associated with specific costs that must be incurred by participants of information exchange. As the analyses and research show, the scale of poten- tial benefits, as well as costs related to the use of XBRL may depend on such factors as the size of the enterprise, the industry in which the enterprise operates, the standard implementation mode, rules for implementation and application of the standard provided by capital market supervisors, the XBRL imple-mentation scenario adopted by the enterprise, the level of development of technological infrastructure, and the education and training base.