1.
Cooperative
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Cooperatives frequently have social goals which they aim to accomplish by investing a proportion of trading profits back into their communities. As an example of this, in 2013, retail co-operatives in the UK invested 6. 9% of their profits in the communities in which they trade as compared with 2. 4% for other rival supermarkets. The International Co-operative Alliance was the first international association formed by the cooperative movement and it includes the World Council of Credit Unions. A second organization was formed later in Germany, the International Raiffeisen Union, in the United States, the National Cooperative Business Association serves as the sectors oldest national membership association. It is dedicated to ensuring that cooperative businesses have the same opportunities as other businesses operating in the country, a U. S. National Cooperative Bank was formed in the 1970s. By 2004, a new association focused on worker co-ops was founded, since 2002 cooperatives and credit unions could be distinguished on the Internet by use of a. coop domain. Since 2014, following International Cooperative Alliances introduction of the Cooperative Marque, ICA cooperatives, cooperation dates back as far as human beings have been organizing for mutual benefit. Tribes were organized as cooperative structures, allocating jobs and resources among each other, in alpine environments, trade could only be maintained in organized cooperatives to achieve a useful condition of artificial roads such as Viamala in 1472. Pre-industrial Europe is home to the first cooperatives from an industrial context, in 1761, the Fenwick Weavers Society was formed in Fenwick, East Ayrshire, Scotland to sell discounted oatmeal to local workers. Its services expanded to include assistance with savings and loans, emigration and education, owen left New Lanark to pursue other forms of cooperative organization and develop coop ideas through writing and lecture. Cooperative communities were set up in Glasgow, Indiana and Hampshire, in 1828, William King set up a newspaper, The Cooperator, to promote Owens thinking, having already set up a cooperative store in Brighton. The Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers, founded in 1844, is considered the first successful cooperative enterprise, used as a model for modern coops. A group of 28 weavers and other artisans in Rochdale, England set up the society to open their own store selling food items they could not otherwise afford, within ten years there were over a thousand cooperative societies in the United Kingdom. Other events such as the founding of a society by the Tolpuddle Martyrs in 1832 were key occasions in the creation of organized labor. Cooperatives traditionally combine social benefit interests with capitalistic property-right interests, Cooperatives achieve a mix of social and capital purposes by democratically governing distribution questions by and between equal by not controlling members. Democratic oversight of decisions to equitably distribute assets and other benefits means capital ownership is arranged in a way for social benefit inside the organization, external societal benefit is also encouraged by incorporating the operating-principle of cooperation between co-operatives. In the final year of the 20th century, cooperatives banded together to establish a number of social enterprise agencies which have moved to adopt the cooperative model. In the years 1994–2009 the EU and its member nations gradually revised national accounting systems to make visible the increasing contribution of social economy organizations, the roots of the cooperative movement can be traced to multiple influences and extend worldwide
2.
Amstelveen
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Amstelveen is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is a part of the metropolitan area of Amsterdam. The name Amstelveen comes from Amstel, a river, and veen, meaning fen, peat. KLM has its headquarters in Amstelveen, in addition Amstelveen has the international headquarters of one of the Big Four auditors, KPMG. During the French occupation between 1810 and 1814, it was the capital of a canton in the French department Zuyderzée and it is technically a large dorp, because it was never walled. The Thijssepark, was the first heempark in the Netherlands and is one of sixteen heemparks or heemgroen in Amstelveen, designed by landscape architect C. P. Broerse, following the ideas of the great Dutch naturalist and conservationist Jac. P. Thijsse, it was developed between 1940 and 1972 and covers an area of 5 hectares, and is situated just south of the Amsterdamse Bos. Amstelveen was chosen as an unlikely host of a match in the 1999 Cricket World Cup, south Africa played Kenya in the match. Former Dutch prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende started his career as member of the council for Amstelveen. As a result of the vicinity of Schiphol, and its links to Amsterdam, Amstelveen has grown, in the early 20th century Amstelveen was a small rural village. The turf industry had collapsed, so the revenues of it were gone, the village was somewhat isolated, because no major rail and waterway were connected. The main source of income was farming with some arable. In 1852 the Haarlemmermeer polder was reclaimed and the Fort at the Schiphol was created as a defense for the capital Amsterdam, forts were in those days more often named after rivers. Fort at the Schiphol was a ditch between Aalsmeer and Amstelveen, and named after a piece of land from Amstelveen. Fort Schiphol, became an airport in 1916. Four years later Schiphol became a civilian airport, Schiphol Fort was demolished in 1934. The demolition was necessary for the construction of the road from Amstelveen to Schiphol. The development of Schiphol attracted many people, many of whom settled in Amstelveen, the headquarters of KLM was established there
3.
Chairman
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The chairman is the highest officer of an organized group such as a board, a committee, or a deliberative assembly. The person holding the office is elected or appointed by the members of the group. The chair presides over meetings of the group and conducts its business in an orderly fashion. When the group is not in session, the officers duties include acting as its head, its representative to the outside world. In some organizations, this position is called president, in others, where a board appoints a president. Other terms sometimes used for the office and its holder include chair, chairperson, chairwoman, presiding officer, president, moderator, facilitator, the chairman of a parliamentary chamber is often called the speaker. The term chair is used in lieu of chairman, in response to criticisms that using chairman is sexist. In his 1992 State of the Union address, then-U. S, president George H. W. Bush used chairman for men and chair for women. A1994 Canadian study found the Toronto Star newspaper referring to most presiding men as chairman, the Chronicle of Higher Education uses chairman for men and chairperson for women. An analysis of the British National Corpus found chairman used 1,142 times, chairperson 130 times, the National Association of Parliamentarians does not approve using chairperson. In World Schools Style debating, male chairs are called Mr. Chairman, the FranklinCovey Style Guide for Business and Technical Communication, as well as the American Psychological Association style guide, advocate using chair or chairperson, rather than chairman. The Oxford Dictionary of American Usage and Style suggests that the forms are gaining ground. It advocates using chair to refer both to men and to women, the word chair can refer to the place from which the holder of the office presides, whether on a chair, at a lectern, or elsewhere. During meetings, the person presiding is said to be in the chair and is referred to as the chair. Major dictionaries state that the word derives from chair and man, some authorities, however, including Riddicks Rules of Procedure, suggest that the second part of chairman derives from the Latin manus, and thus claim gender-neutrality for the word. Vladimir Lenin, for example, officially functioned as the head of Soviet Russia not as tsar or as president, note in particular the popular standard method for referring to Mao Zedong, Chairman Mao. In the absence of the chairman and vice chairman, groups sometimes elect a chairman pro tempore to fill the role for a single meeting. In some organizations that have titles, deputy chairman ranks higher than vice chairman, as there are often multiple vice chairs
4.
Actuarial science
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Actuarial science is the discipline that applies mathematical and statistical methods to assess risk in insurance, finance and other industries and professions. Actuaries are professionals who are qualified in this field through intense education, in many countries, actuaries must demonstrate their competence by passing a series of thorough professional examinations. Actuarial science includes a number of interrelated subjects, including mathematics, probability theory, statistics, finance, economics, historically, actuarial science used deterministic models in the construction of tables and premiums. The science has gone through changes during the last 30 years due to the proliferation of high speed computers. Many universities have undergraduate and graduate programs in actuarial science. In 2010, a study published by job search website CareerCast ranked actuary as the #1 job in the United States, the study used five key criteria to rank jobs, environment, income, employment outlook, physical demands, and stress. A similar study by U. S. News & World Report in 2006 included actuaries among the 25 Best Professions that it expects will be in demand in the future. Actuarial science became a mathematical discipline in the late 17th century with the increased demand for long-term insurance coverage such as Burial, Life insurance. These long term coverage required that money be set aside to pay future benefits, such as annuity and this led to the development of an important actuarial concept, referred to as the Present value of a future sum. Certain aspects of the methods for discounting pension funds have come under criticism from modern financial economics. Contemporary life insurance programs have extended to include credit and mortgage insurance, key man insurance for small businesses, long term care insurance. The effects of consumer choice and the distribution of the utilization of medical services and procedures. These factors underlay the development of the Resource-Base Relative Value Scale at Harvard in a multi-disciplined study, actuarial science also aids in the design of benefit structures, reimbursement standards, and the effects of proposed government standards on the cost of healthcare. It is common with mergers and acquisitions that several pension plans have to be combined or at least administered on an equitable basis, benefit plans liabilities have to be properly valued, reflecting both earned benefits for past service, and the benefits for future service. Actuarial science is applied to Property, Casualty, Liability. In these forms of insurance, coverage is provided on a renewable period. Coverage can be cancelled at the end of the period by either party, Property and casualty insurance companies tend to specialize because of the complexity and diversity of risks. One division is to organize around personal and commercial lines of insurance, personal lines of insurance are for individuals and include fire, auto, homeowners, theft and umbrella coverages
5.
Assurance services
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Assurance services provide independent and professional opinions that reduce information risk. In the case of an audit, the party is the management of the company, the practitioner is the audit firm. Agreed subject matter – in the case of an audit, this would be the annual accounts of a company, however it could be almost anything in practice – the systems operated by a state lottery, a companys greenhouse gas emissions, controls over a supply chain etc. Suitable criteria – this means there must be some agreed framework to which the information may be compared. In the case of an audit, this will be the form of company accounts mandated by the laws, regulations. For other subject matter, it might be the design and proper operation of the lottery systems, the practitioner must obtain sufficient appropriate evidence that the subject matter information agrees with the criteria. A conclusion expressed in a written report, audits are therefore a type of assurance service. However, audits only test the validity of the assertions in financial statements, in contrast, assurance services are designed to test the validity of past data of the business cycles. Although there is no boundary to what can be tested by assurance services, agreed–upon procedures do not constitute an assurance procedure under the above definition, because no conclusion is given. However, they are loosely referred to as assurance. Similarly compilation engagements are often described as giving assurance, but are not strictly assurance engagements, ISAE3000 Are Assurance Services Provided by Auditors on Initial Public Offerings Influenced by Market Conditions. COPLEY, PAUL A. DOUTHETT JR. EDWARD B, contemporary Accounting Research Summer2009, Vol.26 Issue 2, p453-476. Determinants of the Maximum Level of Assurance for Various Assurance Services Ruhnke, Klaus, Lubitzsch, International Journal of Auditing Nov2010, Vol.14 Issue 3, p233-255. The Different Types of Assurance Services and Levels of Assurance Provided Hasan, Mahreen, Maijoor, Steven, Mock, Theodore J. Roebuck, Peter, Simnett, Roger, Vanstraelen, International Journal of Auditing Jul2005, Vol.9 Issue 2, p91-102. The Relative Importance of Firm Incentives versus Country Factors in the Demand for Assurance Services by Private Entities FRANCIS, JERE R. KHURANA, INDER K. MARTIN, XIUMIN, PEREIRA, contemporary Accounting Research Summer2011, Vol.28 Issue 2, p487-516. Assurance Services for Sustainability Reports, Standards and Empirical Evidence Manetti, Giacomo, Becatti, jul2009 Supplement 1, Vol.87, p289-298. The Competitive Market for Assurance Engagements on Greenhouse Gas Statements, Is There a Role for Assurers from the Accounting Profession, huggins, Anna, Green, Wendy J. Simnett, Roger. 2011, Vol.5 Issue 2, pA1-A12, the International Framework for Assurance Engagements, ifac. org The Assurance Sourcebook
6.
United States dollar
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The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States and its insular territories per the United States Constitution. It is divided into 100 smaller cent units, the circulating paper money consists of Federal Reserve Notes that are denominated in United States dollars. The U. S. dollar was originally commodity money of silver as enacted by the Coinage Act of 1792 which determined the dollar to be 371 4/16 grain pure or 416 grain standard silver, the currency most used in international transactions, it is the worlds primary reserve currency. Several countries use it as their currency, and in many others it is the de facto currency. Besides the United States, it is used as the sole currency in two British Overseas Territories in the Caribbean, the British Virgin Islands and Turks and Caicos Islands. A few countries use the Federal Reserve Notes for paper money, while the country mints its own coins, or also accepts U. S. coins that can be used as payment in U. S. dollars. After Nixon shock of 1971, USD became fiat currency, Article I, Section 8 of the U. S. Constitution provides that the Congress has the power To coin money, laws implementing this power are currently codified at 31 U. S. C. Section 5112 prescribes the forms in which the United States dollars should be issued and these coins are both designated in Section 5112 as legal tender in payment of debts. The Sacagawea dollar is one example of the copper alloy dollar, the pure silver dollar is known as the American Silver Eagle. Section 5112 also provides for the minting and issuance of other coins and these other coins are more fully described in Coins of the United States dollar. The Constitution provides that a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and that provision of the Constitution is made specific by Section 331 of Title 31 of the United States Code. The sums of money reported in the Statements are currently being expressed in U. S. dollars, the U. S. dollar may therefore be described as the unit of account of the United States. The word dollar is one of the words in the first paragraph of Section 9 of Article I of the Constitution, there, dollars is a reference to the Spanish milled dollar, a coin that had a monetary value of 8 Spanish units of currency, or reales. In 1792 the U. S. Congress passed a Coinage Act, Section 20 of the act provided, That the money of account of the United States shall be expressed in dollars, or units. And that all accounts in the offices and all proceedings in the courts of the United States shall be kept and had in conformity to this regulation. In other words, this act designated the United States dollar as the unit of currency of the United States, unlike the Spanish milled dollar the U. S. dollar is based upon a decimal system of values. Both one-dollar coins and notes are produced today, although the form is significantly more common
7.
Deloitte
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Deloitte is one of the Big Four accounting firms and the largest professional services network in the world by revenue and number of professionals. Deloitte provides audit, tax, consulting, enterprise risk and financial services with more than 244,400 professionals globally. In FY2016, the company earned a record $36.8 billion USD in revenues, as of 2016, Deloitte is the 6th-largest privately owned organization in the United States. In 2016, Fortune magazine ranked Deloitte as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For, in 1845, William Welch Deloitte opened an office in Basinghall Street in London. Deloitte was the first person to be appointed an independent auditor of a public company and he went on to open an office in New York in 1880. In 1896, Charles Waldo Haskins and Elijah Watt Sells formed Haskins & Sells in New York and it was later described as the first major auditing firm to be established in the country by American rather than British accountants. At the time, there were fewer than 500 CPAs practicing in the United States, carter helped convince Congress that independent audits should be mandatory for public companies. In 1947, Detroit accountant George Bailey, then president of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, launched his own organization. The new entity enjoyed such a start that in less than a year. Headed by Bailey, the organization rapidly, in part by creating a dedicated management consulting function. It also forged links with organizations established by the co-founder of Touche Niven, George Touche, the Canadian organization Ross. In 1960, the firm was renamed Touche, Ross, Bailey & Smart, in 1968 Nobuzo Tohmatsu formed Tohmatsu Aoki & Co, a firm based in Japan that was to become part of the Touche Ross network in 1975. In 1972 Robert Trueblood, Chairman of Touche Ross, led the committee responsible for recommending the establishment of the Financial Accounting Standards Board and he led the expansion of Touche Ross in that era. In 1952, Deloitte merged his firm with Haskins & Sells to form Deloitte Haskins & Sells, in 1989, Deloitte Haskins & Sells merged with Touche Ross in the USA to form Deloitte & Touche. The merged firm was led jointly by J. Michael Cook, some member firms of Touche Ross also rejected the merger with Deloitte Haskins & Sells and merged with other firms. The name DRT International was therefore chosen, referring to Deloitte, Ross, in 1993, the international firm was renamed Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu to reflect the contribution from the Japanese firm, as well as agreements to use both of the names Deloitte and Touche. In 1995, the partners of Deloitte & Touche decided to create Deloitte & Touche Consulting Group, in 2000, Deloitte acquired Eclipse to add Internet design-based solutions to its consulting capabilities. Eclipse was later separated into Deloitte Online and Deloitte Digital, in 2002, Arthur Andersens UK practice, the firms largest practice outside the US, agreed to merge with Deloittes UK practice
8.
Ernst & Young
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EY is a multinational professional services firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom. EY is one of the largest professional services firm in the world and is one of the Big Four accounting firms, the organisation operates as a network of member firms which are separate legal entities in individual countries. It has 231,000 employees in over 700 offices around 150 countries in the world and it provides assurance, tax, consulting and advisory services to companies. The firm dates back to 1849 with the founding of Harding & Pullein in England, the current firm was formed by a merger of Ernst & Whinney and Arthur Young & Co. in 1989. It was known as Ernst & Young until 2013, when it underwent a rebranding to EY, the acronym EY was already an informal name for the firm prior to its official adoption. In 2016, Fortune magazine ranked EY as 49th of the 100 Best Companies to Work For, EY is the result of a series of mergers of ancestor organizations. The oldest originating partnership was founded in 1849 in England as Harding & Pullein, in that year the firm was joined by Frederick Whinney. He was made a partner in 1859 and with his sons in the business it was renamed Whinney Smith & Whinney in 1894, in 1903, the firm of Ernst & Ernst was established in Cleveland by Alwin C. Ernst and his brother Theodore and in 1906, Arthur Young & Co. was set up by the Scotsman Arthur Young in Chicago. As early as 1924, these American firms allied with prominent British firms, Young with Broads Paterson & Co. in the year 1979, this led to the formation of Anglo-American Ernst & Whinney, creating the fourth largest accountancy firm in the world. Also in 1979, the European offices of Arthur Young merged with large local European firms. In 1989, the four firm Ernst & Whinney merged with the then number five, Arthur Young. The merger plans were abandoned in February 1998 due to client opposition, antitrust issues, cost problems, EY had built up its consultancy arm heavily during the 1980s and 1990s. In 2002, EY took over many of the ex-Arthur Andersen practices around the world, although not those in the UK, China, in 2010, EY acquired Terco, the Brazilian member firm of Grant Thornton. In 2013, EY changed its name from Ernst & Young to EY. EY expanded further and acquired all of KPMG Denmarks operations including its 150 partners,1500 employees and 21 offices. In 2015, EY opened its first ever global Security Operations Centre at Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala in India, in 2017 EY announced it was opening an executive support center in Tucson, Arizona, creating over 125 new jobs. In 2017 the company looking for a location for a new, $4.35 million professional services center in Louisville, Kentucky, creating 125 new jobs
9.
PricewaterhouseCoopers
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PricewaterhouseCoopers is a multinational professional services network headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the second largest professional services firm in the world, vault Accounting 50 has ranked PwC as the most prestigious accounting firm in the world for seven consecutive years, as well as the top firm to work for in North America for three consecutive years. PwC is a network of firms in 157 countries,756 locations, as of 2015, 22% of the workforce worked in Asia, 26% in North America and Caribbean and 32% in Western Europe. The companys global revenues were $35.9 billion in FY2016, of which $15.2 billion was generated by its Assurance practice, $9.1 billion by its Tax practice, the firm was formed in 1998 by a merger between Coopers & Lybrand and Price Waterhouse. The trading name was shortened to PwC in September 2010 as part of a rebranding, as of 2016, PwC is the 5th-largest privately owned company in the United States. The firm was created in 1998 when Coopers & Lybrand merged with Price Waterhouse, both firms had histories dating back to the 19th century. In 1854 William Cooper founded a practice in London, which became Cooper Brothers seven years later when his three brothers joined. In 1898, Robert H. Montgomery, William M. Lybrand, Adam A. Ross Jr. and his brother T. Edward Ross formed Lybrand, Ross Brothers and Montgomery in the United States. In 1957 Cooper Brothers, Lybrand, Ross Bros & Montgomery, in 1973 the three member firms in the UK, US and Canada changed their names to Coopers & Lybrand. Then in 1980 Coopers & Lybrand expanded its expertise in insolvency substantially by acquiring Cork Gully, in 1990 in certain countries including the UK, Coopers & Lybrand merged with Deloitte Haskins & Sells to become Coopers & Lybrand Deloitte, in 1992 they reverted to Coopers & Lybrand. Samuel Lowell Price, an accountant, founded a practice in London in 1849. In 1865 Price went into partnership with William Hopkins Holyland and Edwin Waterhouse, Holyland left shortly afterwards to work alone in accountancy and the firm was known from 1874 as Price, Waterhouse & Co. The original partnership agreement, signed by Price, Holyland and Waterhouse could be found in Southwark Towers, by the late 19th century, Price Waterhouse had gained significant recognition as an accounting firm. As a result of growing trade between the United Kingdom and the United States, Price Waterhouse opened an office in New York in 1890, and the American firm itself soon expanded rapidly. It was said by those involved with the merger that at the end of the discussion, the partners at the table realized they had different views of business. In 1998, Price Waterhouse merged with Coopers & Lybrand to form PricewaterhouseCoopers, after the merger the firm had a large professional consulting branch, as did other major accountancy firms, generating much of its fees. Management Consulting Services was the fastest growing and often most profitable area of the practice, the major cause for growth in the 1990s was the implementation of complex integrated ERP systems for multi-national companies. PwC came under increasing pressure to avoid conflicts of interests by not providing some consulting services, particularly financial systems design and implementation, since it audited a large proportion of the worlds largest companies, this was beginning to limit its consulting market
10.
Netherlands
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The Netherlands, also informally known as Holland is the main constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a densely populated country located in Western Europe with three territories in the Caribbean. The European part of the Netherlands borders Germany to the east, Belgium to the south, and the North Sea to the northwest, sharing borders with Belgium, the United Kingdom. The three largest cities in the Netherlands are Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague, Amsterdam is the countrys capital, while The Hague holds the Dutch seat of parliament and government. The port of Rotterdam is the worlds largest port outside East-Asia, the name Holland is used informally to refer to the whole of the country of the Netherlands. Netherlands literally means lower countries, influenced by its low land and flat geography, most of the areas below sea level are artificial. Since the late 16th century, large areas have been reclaimed from the sea and lakes, with a population density of 412 people per km2 –507 if water is excluded – the Netherlands is classified as a very densely populated country. Only Bangladesh, South Korea, and Taiwan have both a population and higher population density. Nevertheless, the Netherlands is the worlds second-largest exporter of food and agricultural products and this is partly due to the fertility of the soil and the mild climate. In 2001, it became the worlds first country to legalise same-sex marriage, the Netherlands is a founding member of the EU, Eurozone, G-10, NATO, OECD and WTO, as well as being a part of the Schengen Area and the trilateral Benelux Union. The first four are situated in The Hague, as is the EUs criminal intelligence agency Europol and this has led to the city being dubbed the worlds legal capital. The country also ranks second highest in the worlds 2016 Press Freedom Index, the Netherlands has a market-based mixed economy, ranking 17th of 177 countries according to the Index of Economic Freedom. It had the thirteenth-highest per capita income in the world in 2013 according to the International Monetary Fund, in 2013, the United Nations World Happiness Report ranked the Netherlands as the seventh-happiest country in the world, reflecting its high quality of life. The Netherlands also ranks joint second highest in the Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index, the region called Low Countries and the country of the Netherlands have the same toponymy. Place names with Neder, Nieder, Nether and Nedre and Bas or Inferior are in use in all over Europe. They are sometimes used in a relation to a higher ground that consecutively is indicated as Upper, Boven, Oben. In the case of the Low Countries / the Netherlands the geographical location of the region has been more or less downstream. The geographical location of the region, however, changed over time tremendously
11.
Financial audit
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A financial audit is conducted to provide an opinion whether financial statements are stated in accordance with specified criteria. In accordance with the US GAAP, auditors must release an opinion of the financial statements in the auditors report. Auditors can release three types of other than an unqualified/unmodified opinion. The unqualified auditors opinion is the opinion that the statements are presented fairly. A qualified opinion can also be issued for a limitation that is of limited significance. Further the auditor can instead issue a disclaimer, because there is insufficient, in a disclaimer the auditor explains the reasons for withholding an opinion and explicitly indicates that no opinion is expressed. Finally, an audit opinion is issued when the financial statements do not present fairly due to departure from US GAAP. Financial audits are performed by firms of practicing accountants who are experts in financial reporting. The financial audit is one of many assurance functions provided by accounting firms, many organizations separately employ or hire internal auditors, who do not attest to financial reports but focus mainly on the internal controls of the organization. External auditors may choose to place limited reliance on the work of internal auditors, Auditing promotes transparency and accuracy in the financial disclosures made by an organization, therefore would likely reduce such corporations concealmeant of unscrupulous dealings. Internationally, the International Standards on Auditing issued by the International Auditing, almost all jurisdictions require auditors to follow the ISA or a local variation of the ISA. A misstatement is defined in ISA450 as an error, omitted disclosure or inappropriate accounting policy, material is an error or omission that would affect the users decision. Audits exist because they add value through easing the cost of asymmetry and reducing information risk. They handle the vast majority of audits for publicly traded companies as well as private companies. It is reported that the Big Four audit 99% of the companies in the FTSE100, and 96% of the companies in the FTSE250 Index, the Big Four firms are shown below, with their latest publicly available data. None of the Big Four firms is a firm, rather. Each is a network of firms, owned and managed independently, each network has established an entity to co-ordinate the activities of the network. In one case, the entity is Swiss, and in three cases the co-ordinating entity is a UK limited company
12.
KPMG Tower
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The KPMG Tower, formerly Maison des Coopérants or Place de la Cathédrale, is a 34 storey skyscraper located in downtown Montreal that was completed in 1987. It is located at 600 de Maisonneuve Ouest, and has an height of 146 m. The building is owned and operated by real estate investor. The KPMG Tower was built on a plot of land owned by the Christ Church Cathedral and it was designed by WZMH Architects and was styled in order to relate to the cathedral located directly adjacent to it. The tower incorporates a shopping centre known as Promenades Cathédrale as part of the Underground City that is directly connected to the Metro. The building was originally called Maison des Coopérants for the tenant, as can be seen on the inscription in the lobby. At the end of 2005 the tower was renamed to its current name for KPMG, part of its local claim to fame was that the Promenades Cathédrale shopping mall underneath the tower, built at the same time, was built directly beneath the existing Christ Church Cathedral. It was a sight to behold, as the Cathedral was perched on top of cement piles with the removed from under it. From time to time, the building runs a exhibit in the shopping mall displaying the construction of the complex. A consequence of this arrangement is that the no longer has its proverbial basement. The functions traditionally done in the basement are now performed in a space reserved for the church on the third floor of the towers east side. At the time of its opening, the mall had three floors with a food court occupying most of the lower floor. Later renovations converted that shopping floor into a floor of parking garage. A memorial to Raoul Wallenberg stands in a park between the office tower and church, where a bust of Wallenberg and a caged metal box stand beside each other. The building contains the headquarters of Gildan Activewear and holds offices for the services firm KPMG, law firm Blake, Cassels & Graydon. Emporis. com 600 de Maisonneuve - Technical Specifications Promenades Cathédrale shopping mall List of Montreals 10 tallest skyscrapers List of malls in Montreal
13.
Bristol
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Bristol is a city and county in South West England with a population of 449,300 in 2016. The district has the 10th largest population in England, while the Bristol metropolitan area is the 12th largest in the United Kingdom, the city borders North Somerset and South Gloucestershire, with the cities of Bath and Gloucester to the south-east and north-east, respectively. Iron Age hill forts and Roman villas were built near the confluence of the rivers Frome and Avon, Bristol received a royal charter in 1155 and was historically divided between Gloucestershire and Somerset until 1373, when it became a county of itself. From the 13th to the 18th century, Bristol was among the top three English cities after London in tax receipts, Bristol was surpassed by the rapid rise of Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham in the Industrial Revolution. Bristol was a place for early voyages of exploration to the New World. On a ship out of Bristol in 1497 John Cabot, a Venetian, in 1499 William Weston, a Bristol merchant, was the first Englishman to lead an exploration to North America. At the height of the Bristol slave trade, from 1700 to 1807, the Port of Bristol has since moved from Bristol Harbour in the city centre to the Severn Estuary at Avonmouth and Royal Portbury Dock. Bristols modern economy is built on the media, electronics and aerospace industries. The city has the largest circulating community currency in the U. K. - the Bristol pound, which is pegged to the Pound sterling. It is connected to London and other major UK cities by road, rail, sea and air by the M5 and M4, Bristol Temple Meads and Bristol Parkway mainline rail stations, and Bristol Airport. The Sunday Times named it as the best city in Britain in which to live in 2014 and 2017, the most ancient recorded name for Bristol is the archaic Welsh Caer Odor, which is consistent with modern understanding that early Bristol developed between the River Frome and Avon Gorge. It is most commonly stated that the Saxon name Bricstow was a calque of the existing Celtic name, with Bric a literal translation of Odor. Alternative etymologies are supported with the numerous variations in Medieval documents with Samuel Seyer enumerating 47 alternative forms. The Old English form Brycgstow is commonly used to derive the meaning place at the bridge, utilizing another form, Brastuile, Rev. Dr. Shaw derived the name from the Celtic words bras, or braos and tuile. The poet Thomas Chatterton popularised a derivation from Brictricstow linking the town to Brictric and it appears that the form Bricstow prevailed until 1204, and the Bristolian L is what eventually changed the name to Bristol. Iron Age hill forts near the city are at Leigh Woods and Clifton Down, on the side of the Avon Gorge, a Roman settlement, Abona, existed at what is now Sea Mills, another was at the present-day Inns Court. Isolated Roman villas and small forts and settlements were scattered throughout the area. Bristol was founded by 1000, by about 1020, it was a centre with a mint producing silver pennies bearing its name
14.
William Barclay Peat
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Sir William Barclay Peat was born in Forebank St Cyrus, Kincardine, Scotland. He was the son of James Peat and Margaret Barclay. Born of privilege, Peat studied law at the prestigious Montrose Academy in Scotland, instead, the eager 17-year-old moved to London in 1870 to seek his fortune. He was hired as an accounting clerk for a London firm and quickly rose through the ranks. On 29 December 1873, Peat married Edith Roberts and together they had six children, in 1891, Peat assumed leadership of the firm, renamed it William Barclay Peat & Company, and ignited an accounting legacy that has endured until today. In fact, three of Peats sons, Sir Harry, Roderick and Charles all later became partners in the firm, the Peat name lives on today in the world of accounting. His son Charles Urie Peat was MP for Darlington and served as Principal Private Secretary to Winston Churchill during the Second World War, Peat retired from the firm in 1923 and died at his home, Wykeham Rise, Totteridge, Hertfordshire. Sir William Peats great-grandson, Michael, worked for KPMG for five years, Sir Michael Peat is an Eton- and Oxford-educated accountant who has been lauded for his tough financial stance at Buckingham Palace and as Keeper of the Privy Purse and Treasurer to the Queen. Sir Michael Peats son Charlie Peat worked for the Sunday Times as a business reporter between 2002 and 2004
15.
Piet Klijnveld
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Pieter Piet Klijnveld was a Dutch accountant who started a practice that after several mergers would grow into the international accounting firm KPMG. Pieter Klijnveld was born on 16 August 1874 in Amsterdam in the Netherlands and he was the son of Pieter Klijnveld Sr. and Maria Christina Klijnveld. He married Cristina Johanna Royaards on 2 August 1906 in Amsterdam, after working at the Amsterdam office of the Twentsche Bank, he opened a small accountancy practice in 1917 in his home on the Viottastraat. It would take a few years before an office was in use on the Tesselschadestraat. Amsterdam was a trade and investment hub for European and Asian industrialists. Klijnveld became the accountant to many of these emerging businesses. To meet the demands of his client roster, he teamed up with a local tax firm called Meijburg & Company. One of these accountants was Jaap Kraayenhof, who joined Klynveld, Klijnveld died just before the liberation of the Netherlands in 1945 and his wife died in September 1947. They had an art collection that included amongst others works by Piet Mondriaan, specializing in banking and exporting, KKC kept its name and independence by serving Dutch clients who were expanding throughout Europe and South America. In 1987, KMG and Peat Marwick International combined in the first mega-merger of large accounting firms forming KPMG, who were K, P, M & G. KPMG Hungary
16.
Kamloops
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Kamloops is a city in south central British Columbia in Canada at the confluence of the two branches of the Thompson River near Kamloops Lake. It is the largest community in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District and the location of the districts offices. The surrounding region is commonly referred to as the Thompson Country. It is ranked 37th on the list of the 100 largest metropolitan areas in Canada and represents the 44th largest census agglomeration nationwide, with 90,280 residents in 2016. Prior to the arrival of European settlers, the Cree-Saulteaux band led by Chief Yawassannay had migrated to this region in the early 15th century where they met the local Secwepemc nation, the Yawassanay bands Kamloops settlement was the largest of their three tribal areas. The rival North West Company established another post - Fort Shuswap - nearby in the same year, the two operations were merged in 1813 when the North West Company officials in the region bought out the operations of the Pacific Fur Company. The logging industry of the 1970s brought many Indo-Canadians into the Kamloops area, in 1973, Kamloops annexed Barnhartvale and other nearby communities. Kamloops is the version of the Shuswap word Tkəmlúps, meaning meeting of the waters. Shuswap is still spoken in the area by members of the Tkemlúps Indian Band, an alternate origin sometimes given for the name may have come from the native names accidental similarity to the French Camp des loups, meaning Camp of Wolves, many early fur traders spoke French. Industries in the Kamloops area include primary resource processing such as Domtar Kamloops Pulp Mill, Tolko-Heffley Creek Plywood and Veneer, Lafarge Cement, Highland Valley Copper Mine, RIH is the citys largest employer. TRU serves a student body of 10,000 including an international contingent mainly from Asian countries. Thompson Rivers University, Open Learning is the biggest distance education provider in British Columbia, Kamloops is also well known for its public art including numerous pole carvings and murals. Kamloops is a hub for the region due to its connections to Highways 5 and 97. Kamloops is also a transportation hub. The Canadian Pacific and Canadian National main line routes connect Vancouver BC in the west with Kamloops, the two rail roads diverge to the north and east where they connect with the rest of Canada. Kamloops North railway station is served three times per week by Via Rails The Canadian, Kamloops is home to Kamloops Airport, a small Regional airport expanded in 2010. Airlines currently flying to Kamloops are Air Canada Express, WestJet Encore, Canadian North, greyhound Canada connects Kamloops with Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary. Local bus service is provided by the Kamloops Transit System, Kamloops is situated in the Thompson Valley and the Montane Cordillera Ecozone
17.
Initial public offering
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Through this process, a privately held company transforms into a public company. Initial public offerings are used by companies to raise the expansion of capital, possibly to monetize the investments of early private investors. A company selling shares is never required to repay the capital to its public investors, after the IPO, when shares trade freely in the open market, money passes between public investors. The IPO process is known as going public. Details of the offering are disclosed to potential purchasers in the form of a lengthy document known as a prospectus. Most companies undertake an IPO with the assistance of an investment banking firm acting in the capacity of an underwriter, underwriters provide several services, including help with correctly assessing the value of shares and establishing a public market for shares. Alternative methods such as the dutch auction have also been explored, in terms of size and public participation, the two most notable examples of this method is the Google IPO and Snapchats parent company Snap Inc. China has recently emerged as a major IPO market, with several of the largest IPOs taking place in that country, the earliest form of a company which issued public shares was the case of the publicani during the Roman Republic. Like modern joint-stock companies, the publicani were legal bodies independent of their members whose ownership was divided into shares, there is evidence that these shares were sold to public investors and traded in a type of over-the-counter market in the Forum, near the Temple of Castor and Pollux. The shares fluctuated in value, encouraging the activity of speculators, mere evidence remains of the prices for which partes were sold, the nature of initial public offerings, or a description of stock market behavior. Publicanis lost favor with the fall of the Republic and the rise of the Empire, the first modern IPO occurred in March 1602 when the Dutch East India Company offered shares of the company to the public in order to raise capital. All the shares were tradable, and the shareholders received receipts for the purchase, a share certificate documenting payment and ownership such as we know today was not issued but ownership was instead entered in the companys share register. In the United States, the first IPO was the offering of Bank of North America around 1783. An IPO, therefore, allows a company to tap into a pool of potential investors to provide itself with capital for future growth, repayment of debt. A company selling shares is never required to repay the capital to its public investors. Those investors must endure the unpredictable nature of the market to price. After the IPO, when shares trade freely in the open market, for early private investors who choose to sell shares as part of the IPO process, the IPO represents an opportunity to monetize their investment. This type of offering is not dilutive, since no new shares are being created, once a company is listed, it is able to issue additional common shares in a number of different ways, one of which is the follow-on offering
18.
BearingPoint
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BearingPoint is a multinational management and technology consulting firm headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It has operations in 21 countries with around 3,709 employees and is one of the largest management consultancies in Europe, BearingPoints origins lie in the consulting services operations of KPMG, which became a distinct business unit in 1997. Following demerger from KPMG in 2000 and an IPO in 2001, BearingPoint became one of the world’s largest providers of management and technology consulting services, with operations in more than 60 countries and approximately 17,100 employees. In February 2009 the companys US unit filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, following restructuring and a management buyout in August 2009, BearingPoints continuing operations were organized as a Netherlands-based partnership. BearingPoints origins lie in the services operations of KPMG, which were established as a distinct business unit in 1997. KPMG had been providing consulting services to clients since its first contract with the US Navy prior to World War I, on 31 January 2000, KPMG formally spun off the consulting unit as KPMG Consulting, LLC. On 8 February 2001, the company went public on the NASDAQ market at $18 a share under the ticker KCIN, over the next year and a half, the company acquired some of KPMG’s country consulting practices, plus country practices and hiring from Arthur Andersen’s business consulting unit. On 2 October 2002, the company was re-named BearingPoint and the day began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker BE. BearingPoint was late in filing its financial reports through 2007, the Company said its net loss for the first quarter ended 31 March 2007 narrowed as revenue grew and costs declined. The company recorded a net loss of $61.7 million, or 29 cents per share for the first quarter, compared with a loss of $72.7 million, or 34 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier. The company recorded a net loss of $64.0 million, or 30 cents per share for the quarter, compared with a loss of $2.85 million, or 1 cent per share. BearingPoints shareholders deficit was $365 million as of the close of the second quarter 2007 with an accumulated deficit of $1.9 billion. On 11 August 2008, the company reported its first net income in three years and, as of the quarter of 2008, had reported operating income for three consecutive quarters. During the third quarter of 2008, BearingPoint said its net loss was $30.5 million or $0.14 a share, BearingPoints shareholders deficit was $469.2 million as of the close of the third quarter 2008. BearingPoint had difficulties with several clients, including an outsourcing arrangement with Hawaiian Telcom. In exchange, Hawaiian Telcom released BearingPoint from any further liability, a day later, Hawaiian Telcom announced that it had signed a contract with Accenture to take over BearingPoints role in their systems development. In June 2007, in a surprising and perhaps foreboding move, signage, business cards and letterheads were replaced to reflect this new aggressive color scheme.01 per share, at a ratio of one-for-fifty. The filing included only the companys U. S. operations, by May 2009, the companys Japan business unit and North American Commercial Services practice had been sold to PwC and its North American Public Services practice had been sold to Deloitte
19.
Commonwealth of Independent States
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The Commonwealth of Independent States, also called the Russian Commonwealth, is a regional organization formed during the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Nine out of the 15 former Soviet Republics are member states, Georgia withdrew its membership in 2008, while the Baltic states chose not to participate. The CIS has few supranational powers but aims to be more than a purely symbolic organization, nominally possessing coordinating powers in the realms of trade, finance, lawmaking and it has also promoted cooperation on cross-border crime prevention. Furthermore, eight of the nine CIS member states participate in the CIS Free Trade Area, three organizations are under the overview of the CIS, namely the Collective Security Treaty Organization, the Eurasian Economic Union, and the Union State. While the first and the second are military and economic alliances, in March 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev, the president of the Soviet Union, proposed a federation by holding a referendum to preserve the Union as the Union of Sovereign States. The new treaty signing never happened as the Communist Party hardliners staged a coup in August that year. Following the events of August, the republics had declared their independence fearing another coup, at the same time they announced that the new alliance would be open to all republics of the former Soviet Union, and to other nations sharing the same goals. The CIS charter stated that all the members were sovereign and independent nations, Georgia joined two years later, in December 1993. At this point,12 of the 15 former Soviet Republics participated in the CIS, the three Baltic states did not, reflecting their governments view that the post-1940 Soviet occupation of their territory was illegitimate. In May 2009, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine joined the Eastern Partnership, there are nine full member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States. The Creation Agreement remained the main constituent document of the CIS until January 1993, the charter formalised the concept of membership, a member country is defined as a country that ratifies the CIS Charter. Turkmenistan has not ratified the charter and changed its CIS standing to associate member as of 26 August 2005 in order to be consistent with its UN-recognised international neutrality status, thus it does not regard itself as a member of the CIS. In 1993 Ukraine became an Associate Member of CIS, following the 2014 parliamentary election, a new bill to denounce the CIS agreement was introduced. In September 2015 the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed Ukraine will continue taking part in CIS on a selective basis, since that month Ukraine has had no representatives in the CIS Executive Committee building. Since its inception, one of the goals of the CIS has been to provide a forum for discussing issues related to the social. To achieve this goal member states have agreed to promote and protect human rights, even before the 1995 human rights treaty, the Charter of the CIS that was adopted in 1991 created, in article 33, a Human Rights Commission sitting in Minsk, Belarus. This was confirmed by decision of the Council of Heads of States of the CIS in 1993, in 1995, the CIS adopted a human rights treaty that includes civil and political as well as social and economic human rights. This treaty entered force in 1998
20.
Canton of Zug
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The canton of Zug is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. It is located in central Switzerland and its capital is Zug, at 239 km2 the canton is one of the smallest of the cantons in terms of area. It is not subdivided into districts, but eleven municipalities, the earlier history of the canton is practically identical with that of its capital Zug. From 1728 to 1738 it was distracted by violent disputes about the distribution of the French pensions, in 1798 its inhabitants opposed the French. The canton formed part of the Tellgau and was later a district of the canton of the Waldstätten in the Helvetic Republic. The canton of Waldstätten also included what are today the cantons of Schwyz, Lucerne, Unterwalden, in 1803, under the Act of Mediation, the canton of Zug regained its independence as a separate canton. The constitution of 1814 abolished public assemblies, which had existed in the canton since 1376, in 1845 the canton of Zug became a member of the Sonderbund and participated in the war of 1847 which was lost to the Swiss confederation. In 1848 the remaining functions of the Landsgemeinde were abolished, both in 1848 and in 1874 the canton voted against the federal constitutions. The constitution of 1876 was amended in 1881, and replaced by a new one in 1894, near the southern shore of the lake of Ägeri is the site of the Battle of Morgarten, won by the Swiss in 1315. In this battle the powerful Habsburgs were defeated, the hamlet of Morgarten borders the Canton of Schwyz and is home to the Morgarten Battle Monument. The actual battle ground is just across the border in the hamlet of Schornen in the Canton of Schwyz, the canton of Zug is located in central Switzerland and covers an area of 239 square kilometres. The cantons of Lucerne and Aargau lie to its west, to the north, the canton is bounded by the canton of Zurich, whereas to the east and south lies the canton of Schwyz. Most of the land is considered productive, the Lake of Zug and Lake Ägeri make up a considerable part of the cantons area. Lake Ägeri is wholly within the canton, whereas the Zugersee is shared with the cantons of Lucerne, the canton is located on a hilly plateau. The Höhronen is the highest elevation in the east of the canton, the Zugerberg in the south is another notable elevation. It connects in the south with the Rossberg massif which rises to the Wildspitz east of the Zugersee and this massif separates the Zugersee from the basin and Ägerisee. It also separates the district of Menzingen from the Zugersee. The river Lorze is the drainage in the canton
21.
Professional services networks
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Professional services networks are networks of independent firms who come together to cost-effectively provide services to clients through an organized framework. They are principally found in law and accounting and they may also be found in investment banking, insurance, real estate and architectural services. Any profession that operates locally, but has clients in multiple locations, are members of a network. This entry focuses on accounting, legal, multidisciplinary and specialty practice networks, today members of these networks employ more than one million professionals and staff and have cumulative annual revenues that exceed $200 billion. The accounting networks and associations developed first to meet the requirement of the SEC of public company audits and they include the well-known accounting networks like PwC, Deloitte, Ernst & Young and KPMG as well as more than 30 other accounting networks and associations. The law firm network developed in the late 1980s and they include legal and law firm based multidisiplinary networks like Lex Mundi, World Services Group, TerraLex, Meritas, and the State Capital Group. There are more than 175 known networks in law,40 in accounting, individual networks have revenues exceeding $20 billion. Every network from accounting networks like PwC and KPMG to law firm networks like Lex Mundi and it further states that generally the network does not practice a profession or otherwise provide services to clients of the network’s members. This independence is the foundation of network operations and governance. One of the factors influencing the need for networks is the globalization of the economy. Supply and demand are no longer local but global, the price of commodities is affected by the weather halfway across the world or by demand in developing countries. Production takes place wherever the assets and human resources can most effectively deploy, professional services providers must be able to reach out globally to represent their clients everywhere in the world. Networks are the practical and cost-effective method to accomplish these objectives, members of networks have access to other members who understand the local economic, legal and political factors. From a theoretical point of view, networks are an effective model, the members and the networks are different parts of the resource equation for providing members seamless, high quality, reliable, local and global services. There is no limit of what can be accomplished through a network when the network. This collaboration is at the heart of the network, networks do not practice a profession or provide the services that their members provide to their clients. Networks do not provide accounting or legal services and they operate for the benefit of the members by supporting their operations. The network can combine the resources of the members without risking the loss of their personal identities or financial independence
22.
Audit
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It also attempts to ensure that the books of accounts are properly maintained by the concern as required by law. Auditing has become such a phenomenon in the corporate and the public sector that academics started identifying an Audit Society. Any subject matter may be audited, Audits provide third party assurance to various stakeholders that the subject matter is free from material misstatement. The term is most frequently applied to audits of the information relating to a legal person. Other areas which are commonly audited include, secretarial & compliance audit, internal controls, quality management, project management, water management, and energy conservation. As a result of an audit, stakeholders may effectively evaluate and improve the effectiveness of management, control. The word audit is derived from a Latin word audire which means to hear, an information technology audit, or information systems audit, is an examination of the management controls within an Information technology infrastructure. These reviews may be performed in conjunction with a financial statement audit, internal audit, due to strong incentives to misstate financial information, auditing has become a legal requirement for many entities who have the power to exploit financial information for personal gain. Traditionally, audits were mainly associated with gaining information about financial systems, financial audits are performed to ascertain the validity and reliability of information, as well as to provide an assessment of a systems internal control. As a result of this, a party can express an opinion of the person / organisation / system in question. The opinion given on financial statements will depends on the evidence obtained. Due to constraints, an audit seeks to provide reasonable assurance that the statements are free from material error. Hence, statistical sampling is often adopted in audits, but recently, the argument that auditing should go beyond just true and fair is gaining momentum. And the US Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has come out with a release on the same. Cost accounting is a process for verifying the cost of manufacturing or producing of any article, on the basis of measuring the use of material. In simple words, the term, cost audit means a systematic and accurate verification of the cost accounts and records, in most nations, an audit must adhere to generally accepted standards established by governing bodies. There are also new types of integrated auditing becoming available that use unified compliance material and this is a very new but necessary approach in some sectors to ensure that all the necessary governance requirements can be met without duplicating effort from both audit and audit hosting resources. The purpose of an assessment is to something or calculate a value for it
23.
Tax avoidance
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Tax avoidance is the legal usage of the tax regime in a single territory to ones own advantage to reduce the amount of tax that is payable by means that are within the law. Tax sheltering is very similar, although unlike tax avoidance tax sheltering is not necessarily legal, Tax havens are jurisdictions which facilitate reduced taxes. While forms of tax avoidance which use tax laws in ways not intended by governments may be considered legal, many corporations and businesses which take part in the practice experience a backlash, either from their active customers or online. Since 1995, trillions of dollars have been transferred from OECD, though the specifics may vary according to jurisdiction, these rules invalidate tax avoidance which is technically legal but not for a business purpose or in violation of the spirit of the tax code. Related terms for tax avoidance include tax planning and tax sheltering, Tax evasion, on the other hand, is the general term for efforts by individuals, corporations, trusts and other entities to evade taxes by illegal means. Both tax evasion and some forms of tax avoidance can be viewed as forms of tax noncompliance, a company may choose to avoid taxes by establishing their company or subsidiaries in an offshore jurisdiction. Individuals may also avoid tax by moving their tax residence to a tax haven, such as Monaco and they may also reduce their tax by moving to a country with lower tax rates. However, a number of countries tax their citizens on their worldwide income regardless of where they reside. As of 2012, only the United States and Eritrea have such a practice, whilst Finland, France, Hungary, Italy, in cases such as the US, taxation cannot be avoided by simply transferring assets or moving abroad. U. S. citizens therefore cannot avoid U. S. taxes simply by emigrating from the U. S, the 2012 limit on the amount that can be excluded is US$95,100. Most countries impose taxes on income earned or gains realized within that country regardless of the country of residence of the person or firm, to avoid tax, it is usually not enough to simply move ones assets to a tax haven. One must also move to a tax haven to avoid tax. Without changing country of residence, personal taxation may be avoided by the creation of a separate legal entity to which ones property is donated. The separate legal entity is often a company, trust, or foundation and these may also be located offshore, such as in the case of many private foundations. Assets are transferred to the new company or trust so that gains may be realized, or income earned, if assets are later transferred back to an individual, then capital gains taxes would apply on all profits. Also income tax would still be due on any salary or dividend drawn from the legal entity, for a settlor to avoid tax there may be restrictions on the type, purpose and beneficiaries of the trust. For example, the settlor of the trust may not be allowed to be a trustee or even a beneficiary, Tax results depend on definitions of legal terms which are usually vague. For example, vagueness of the distinction between business expenses and personal expenses is of concern for taxpayers and tax authorities
24.
Luxembourg Leaks
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Luxembourg Leaks is the name of a financial scandal revealed in November 2014 by a journalistic investigation conducted by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. It is based on information about Luxembourg’s tax rulings set up by PricewaterhouseCoopers from 2002 to 2010 to the benefits of its clients. This investigation resulted in making available to the public tax rulings for over three hundred multinational companies based in Luxembourg, the LuxLeaks disclosures attracted international attention and comment about tax avoidance schemes in Luxembourg and elsewhere. This scandal contributed to the implementation of measures aiming at reducing tax dumping and regulating tax avoidance schemes beneficial to multinational companies, the judicial aspects of this case concern the persons charged by Luxembourg justice for participating in the revelations. The LuxLeaks trial took place in spring 2016 and led to the condemnation of the two whistleblowers, the appeal trial’s judgment will be delivered in March 2017. On 5 November 2014, the Washington D. C. based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists releases LuxLeaks investigation, eighty journalists from media organizations around the globe had been involved in collaboratively reviewing 28,000 pages of documents. All documents are online in a searchable database categorized by industry and corporation published by the ICIJ. The documents disclose tax rulings between Luxembourg and more than 340 companies worldwide aiming at reducing their tax payments, the Luxembourg Leaks provide insight into 548 tax rulings, dating from 2002 to 2010. On 9 December 2014, ICIJ reveals new names of about 30 large companies benefiting from tax rulings and this second wave is labeled “LuxLeaks 2” in complement to the first revelation wave in November labeled “LuxLeaks 1”. After publishing LuxLeaks investigation, ICIJ was awarded one of the United States’ top journalism awards, ICIJ was also awarded ‘Investigation of the Year’ for the LuxLeaks and SwissLeaks investigations at the Data Journalism Awards in June 2015. Although the ICIJ LuxLeaks and WikiLeaks show similarity in names and operating mode, LuxLeaks revelations shed light on the Luxembourgish tax regime, highly beneficial to multinational companies. Tax rulings are set up by large accounting firms for the benefits of their clients, multinational companies, Tax rulings include schemes to transfer revenues to Luxembourg. Transfer pricing is one of the used by multinational corporations to reallocate profits. Intra-group loans are another possible mechanism, a company based in a high-tax country gives a loan at a low interest rate to a subsidiary in Luxembourg, the interest rate reflects the credit rating of the company group, for example 1%. The subsidiary in Luxembourg is typically set up with the purpose of loaning money at high interest rates, for example 9%, since the tax regime in Luxembourg is tailored to be advantageous for financial arm of multinational companies, the profits generated there are taxed at very low rates. Such mechanisms are effective means to erode tax bases in countries with high tax rates, in many cases the companies’ presence in Luxembourg is only symbolic. For instance,1,600 companies are registered at the same address –5, the legality of tax rulings is under question. Even if they exist in many European countries, tax rulings tend to become considered as state aids able to distort competition, the European Commission Directorate-General for Competition launched several investigations in the last years
25.
Fortune (magazine)
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Fortune is a multinational business magazine, published and owned by Time Inc. and headquartered in New York City. The publication was founded by Henry Luce in 1929, the magazine competes with Forbes and Bloomberg Businessweek in the national business magazine category and distinguishes itself with long, in-depth feature articles. The magazine is best known for the Fortune 500, a ranking of companies by revenue that it has published annually since 1955, in late October 1929, the Wall Street Crash of 1929 occurred, marking the onset of the Great Depression. In a memo to the Time Inc. board in November 1929, Luce wrote and we will recognize that this business slump may last as long as an entire year. The publication made its debut in February 1930. Its editor was Luce, managing editor Parker Lloyd-Smith, and art director Thomas Maitland Cleland, single copies of the first issue costed US$1. In fact, there were 30,000 subscribers who had signed up to receive that initial 184-page issue. By 1937, the number of subscribers had grown to 460,000, Fortune was also noted for its photography, featuring the work of Margaret Bourke-White, Ansel Adams, and others. Walker Evans served as its editor from 1945 to 1965. The magazine became an important leg of Luces media empire, after the launch of Time in 1923 and Fortune in 1930, Luce went on to launch Life in 1936. From its launch in 1930 to 1978, Fortune was published monthly, in January 1978, it began publishing biweekly. In October 2009, citing declining advertising revenue and circulation, Fortune began publishing every three weeks, marshall Loeb was named managing editor in 1986. During the years when Time Warner owned Time Inc, Fortune articles were hosted at CNNMoney. com. In June 2014, after Time Inc. spun off from its corporate parent, in the human resources field, for example, it publishes a list of the Best Companies to Work For. Lists include companies ranked in order of gross revenue and business profile, following the elimination of the editor-in-chief role at Time Inc. in October 2013, the top editors title was changed from managing editor to editor in 2014. In JSTOR Official website Fortune India Fortune China Fortune Turkey List of 100 Best Companies to Work For Fortune Data Store, complete downloadable list of Fortune 500/1000 Companies – 1955–2008
26.
Bloomberg Businessweek
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Bloomberg Businessweek is an American weekly business magazine published by Bloomberg L. P. Businessweek was founded in 1929, the magazine was created to provide information and interpretation about what was happening in the business world and it is headquartered in New York City. Megan Murphy was appointed editor of the magazine in November 2016, Businessweek was first published in September 1929, weeks before the stock market crash of 1929. The magazine provided information and opinions on what was happening in the world at the time. Businessweek was originally published to be a resource for business managers, however, in the 1970s, the magazine shifted its strategy and added consumers outside of the business world. Since 1975, Businessweek has carried more annual advertising pages than any magazine in the United States. Stephen B. Shepard served as editor-in-chief from 1984 until 2005 when he was chosen to be the dean of the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism. Under Shepard, Businessweeks readership grew to more than six million in the late 1980s and he was succeeded by Stephen J. Adler of The Wall Street Journal. Businessweek suffered a decline during the recession as advertising revenues fell one-third by the start of 2009. In July 2009, it was reported that McGraw-Hill was trying to sell Businessweek and had hired Evercore Partners to conduct the sale. Because of the liabilities, it was suggested that it might change hands for the nominal price of $1 to an investor who was willing to incur losses turning the magazine around. In late 2009, Bloomberg L. P. bought the magazine—for a reported price between $2 million to $5 million plus assumption of liabilities—and renamed it Bloomberg BusinessWeek. It is now believed McGraw-Hill received the high end of the price, at $5 million. Currently, the magazine still loses $30 million per year, about half of the $60 million it was reported losing in 2009, Adler resigned as editor-in-chief and was replaced by Josh Tyrangiel, who had been deputy managing editor of Time magazine. In early 2010, the title was restyled Bloomberg Businessweek as part of a redesign. Megan Murphy is the editor of the magazine in the eight years of Bloomberg ownership. The magazine is losing between $20-$30 million a year. The magazine is to undergo changes in the second quarter of 2017
27.
Canada's Top 100 Employers
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Canadas Top 100 Employers is an annual editorial competition that recognizes the best places in Canada to work. First held in 1999, the aims to single out the employers that lead their industries in offering exceptional working conditions. Winners are announced each October in The Globe and Mail newspaper, from 1999 to 2006, the list was published as an annual paperback book in Canada. Beginning in 2007, the list and the editors Reasons for Selection were published each year. Beginning in 2014, the winners were announced in a national magazine published in The Globe. The competition is organized by Mediacorp Canada Inc. a specialty publisher of employment-related periodicals, Employers are compared to other organizations in their field to determine which offers the most progressive and forward-thinking programs. Selections are made by a team of editors, who publish detailed reasons for choosing each of the winners, any employer, whether private or public sector, operating in Canada may apply to be considered. Applications are generally released each February and must be submitted to the approximately eight weeks later. This event, called the Top Employer Summit, is nations Canadas largest annual event for senior-level human resources professionals, kennedy Jr. Peter Mansbridge, and Richard Bolles
28.
Maclean's
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Macleans is a Canadian news magazine that was founded in 1905, reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian perspective on current affairs and to entertain and its publisher since 1994, Rogers Media, announced in September 2016 that Macleans would become a monthly beginning January 2017, while continuing to produce a weekly issue on the Texture app. The Business Magazine was founded in October 1905 by 43-year-old publisher, John Bayne Maclean, who wrote the magazines aim was not merely to entertain but also to inspire its readers. Maclean renamed the magazine after himself in 1911, dropping the title as too evocative of a business magazine for what had become a general interest publication. Costain was ordered to remove an article by Maclean himself as it was too critical of war policy, in 1919, the magazine moved from monthly to fortnightly publication and ran an exposé of the drug trade by Emily Murphy. In 1925 the circulation of the magazine was 82,013 copies, costain left the magazine to become a novelist and was replaced by J. Vernon Mackenzie who remained at the helm until 1926. During his tenure, Macleans achieved national stature, after Mackenzie, H. Napier Moore became the new editor. An Englishman, he saw the magazine as an expression of Canadas role in the British Empire, under Irwins influence, the magazines covers promoted Canadian scenery and imagery. The magazine also sponsored a short story contest on Canadian themes. Irwin was also responsible for orienting the magazine towards both small and big L Liberalism, during the Second World War, Macleans ran an overseas edition for Canadian troops serving abroad. By the time of its run in 1946, the bantam edition had a circulation of 800,000. Macleans war coverage featured war photography by Yousuf Karsh, later an internationally acclaimed portrait photographer, Allen became editor upon Irwins acceptance of a diplomatic posting in 1950. This era of the magazine was noted for its articles on the Canadian landscape and profiles of town, the feature article, Canadas North, by Pierre Berton, promoted a new national interest in the Arctic. Prominent writers during this period included Robert Fulford, Peter Gzowski, Newman, Trent Frayne, June Callwood, McKenzie Porter, Robert Thomas Allen and Christina McCall. Exposés in the 1950s challenged the criminal justice system, explored LSD, Macleans published an editorial the day after the 1957 federal election announcing the predictable re-election of the St. Laurent Liberal Party. Written before the results were known, Allen failed to anticipate the upset election of the Progressive Conservative Party under John Diefenbaker. Templeton quit after a time at the helm due to his frustration with interference by the publishing company. In 1961, Macleans began publishing a French-language edition, Le Magazine Maclean, which survived until 1976, Newman became editor in 1971, and attempted to revive the magazine by publishing feature articles by writers such as Barbara Frum and Michael Enright, and poetry by Irving Layton
29.
Toronto Star
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The Toronto Star is a Canadian broadsheet daily newspaper. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Ltd. a division of Star Media Group, the Star was first printed on Toronto World presses, and at its formation The World owned a 51% interest in it as a silent partner. That arrangement only lasted for two months, during time it was rumoured that William Findlay Billy Maclean, the Worlds proprietor, was considering selling the Star to the Riordon family. After an extensive fundraising campaign among the Star staff, Maclean agreed to sell his interest to Hocken, the paper did poorly in its first few years. Hocken sold out within the year, and several owners followed in succession until Sir William Mackenzie bought it in 1896 and its new editors, Edmund E. Sheppard and Frederic Nicholls, moved the entire Star operation into the same building used by the magazine Saturday Night. This would continue until Joseph E, holy Joe Atkinson, backed by funds raised by supporters of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, bought the paper. The supporters included Senator George Cox, William Mulock, Peter Charles Larkin, Atkinson was the Stars editor from 1899 until his death in 1948. Its early opposition and criticism of the Nazi regime saw the paper one of the first North American papers to be banned in Germany. He championed many causes that would come to be associated with the welfare state, old age pensions, unemployment insurance. The Government of Canada Digital Collections website describes Atkinson as a radical in the best sense of that term, the Star was unique among North American newspapers in its consistent, ongoing advocacy of the interests of ordinary people. The friendship of Atkinson, the publisher, with Mackenzie King, Atkinson became the controlling shareholder of the Star. The Star was frequently criticized for practising the yellow journalism of its era, for decades, the paper included heavy doses of crime and sensationalism, along with advocating social change. From 1910 to 1973, the Star published a weekend supplement, shortly before his death in 1948, Joseph E. Atkinson transferred ownership of the paper to a charitable organization given the mandate of continuing the papers liberal tradition. In 1949, the Province of Ontario passed the Charitable Gifts Act, barring charitable organizations from owning parts of profit-making businesses. It would continue to supply sponsored content to the CRBCs station CRCT, in 1971, the newspaper was renamed The Toronto Star and moved to a modern office tower at One Yonge Street by Queens Quay. The original Star Building at 80 King Street West was demolished to make room for First Canadian Place, the new building originally housed the papers presses. In 1992, the plant was moved to the Toronto Star Press Centre at the Highway 407 &400 interchange in Vaughan. In September 2002, the logo was changed, and The was dropped from the papers, during the 2003 blackout, the Star printed the paper at a press in Welland, Ontario
30.
Rite Aid
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Rite Aid Corporation is an American drugstore chain in the United States and a Fortune 500 company headquartered in East Pennsboro Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, near Camp Hill. Rite Aid is the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast, Rite Aid began in 1962 as a single store opened in Scranton, Pennsylvania called Thrift D Discount Center. After several years of growth, Rite Aid adopted its current name, today, Rite Aid is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker RAD. Its major competitors are CVS and Walgreens, the latter announced on October 27,2015, that it would acquire Rite Aid for $17.4 billion pending approval. Alex Grass founded the Rite Aid chain in Scranton, Pennsylvania in September 1962, the first store was called Thrift D Discount Center, a health and beauty aids store, without a pharmacy. It was an offshoot of Rack Rite Distributors, a subsidiary of his father-in law’s Lehrman & Sons which Alex Grass launched in 1958, the company rented and stocked racks with health and beauty aids in grocery stores. In 1965, Thrift Ds 23rd store added a pharmacy and the name was changed to Rite Aid. Through acquisitions and new stores, Rite Aid quickly expanded into 5 northeast states by 1965, the chain was officially named Rite Aid Corporation in 1968 and made its debut on the American Stock Exchange. It moved to the New York Stock Exchange in 1970, in 2011, Rite Aid was ranked #100 on Fortune 500 Largest U. S. Corporations. Ten years after its first store opened, Rite Aid operated 267 locations in 10 states,1983 marked a sales milestone of $1 billion. A 420-store acquisition along the east coast expanded Rite Aids holdings beyond 2,000 locations, among the companies acquired was Baltimore, Marylands Reads Drug Store. On April 10,1989, Peoples Drugs 114 unit Lane Drug of Ohio was purchased by Rite Aid, Rite Aid acquired twenty-four Hooks Drug stores from Revco in 1994, selling nine of those stores to Perry Drug Stores, a Michigan-based pharmacy chain. One year later, in turn, the 224-store Perry chain was acquired by Rite Aid, the 1, 000-store West Coast chain Thrifty PayLess was later acquired in 1996. The acquisition of Thrifty PayLess included the Northwest-based Bi-Mart membership discount stores, acquisitions of Harco, Inc. and K&B, Inc. brought Rite Aid into the Gulf Coast area. In the 1990s, Rite Aid partnered with Carl Paladinos Ellicott Development Co. to expand the presence in Upstate New York. In 2015, Rite Aid purchased EnvisionRx, a pharmacy manager, which owns subsidiary PBMs MedTrak, Connect Health Solutions. General Nutrition Corporation and Rite Aid formed a partnership in January 1999, a partnership with drugstore. com in June 1999 allowed customers of Rite Aid to place medical prescription orders online for same-day, in-store pickup. Rite Aid had an accounting scandal that led to the departure of several top ranking executives
31.
Fannie Mae
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The Federal National Mortgage Association, commonly known as Fannie Mae, is a United States government-sponsored enterprise and, since 1968, a publicly traded company. Its brother organization is the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, better known as Freddie Mac, the Great Depression wrought havoc on the U. S. housing market. By 1933, an estimated 20 to 25% of the outstanding mortgage debt was in default. Fannie Mae was established in 1938 by amendments to the National Housing Act as part of Franklin Delano Roosevelts New Deal, for the first thirty years following its inception, Fannie Mae held a monopoly over the secondary mortgage market. Fannie Mae was acquired by the Housing and Home Finance Agency from the Federal Loan Agency as a constituent unit in 1950. In the 1968 change, arising from the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968, Fannie Maes predecessor was split into the current Fannie Mae, Ginnie Mae, which remained a government organization, supports FHA-insured mortgages as well as Veterans Administration and Farmers Home Administration insured mortgages. As such, Ginnie Mae is the only home-loan agency explicitly backed by the full faith, in 1970, the federal government authorized Fannie Mae to purchase conventional mortgages, the same year it went public on New York and Pacific Exchanges, i. e. In 1981, Fannie Mae issued its first mortgage passthrough and called it a mortgage-backed security, the Fannie Mae laws did not require the Banks to hand out subprime loans in any way. In 1992, President George H. W. Bush signed the Housing, the initial annual goal for low-income and moderate-income mortgage purchases for each GSE was 30% of the total number of dwelling units financed by mortgage purchases and increased to 55% by 2007. Additionally, Community Reinvestment Act regulators, under the direction of HUD secretary Andrew Cuomo, in essence, banks were rewarded for by-passing loan standards, and instead, approving loans to those who were at high risk of defaulting. But the government-subsidized corporation may run into trouble in a downturn, prompting a government rescue similar to that of the savings. In 2004, these rules were dropped and high-risk loans were again counted toward affordable housing goals and we sought to bring the standards we apply to the prime space to the subprime market with our industry partners primarily to expand our services to underserved families. Unfortunately, Fannie Mae-quality, safe loans in the market did not become the standard. Borrowers were offered a range of loans that layered teaser rates, interest-only, negative amortization and payment options, in early 2005 we began sounding our concerns about this layered-risk lending. Those products are for more sophisticated buyers, does it make sense for borrowers to take on risk they may not be aware of. Are we setting them up for failure, as a result, we gave up significant market share to our competitors. Alex Berenson of The New York Times reported in 2003 that Fannie Maes risk is much larger than is commonly held. Nassim Taleb wrote in The Black Swan, The government-sponsored institution Fannie Mae, but not to worry, their large staff of scientists deem these events unlikely
32.
Financial statement
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Financial statements is a formal record of the financial activities and position of a business, person, or other entity. Relevant financial information is presented in a manner and in a form easy to understand. A profit and loss statement provides information on the operation of the enterprise and these include sales and the various expenses incurred during the stated period. A Statement of changes in equity, also known as equity statement or statement of retained earnings, a cash flow statement reports on a companys cash flow activities, particularly its operating, investing and financing activities. For large corporations, these statements may be complex and may include a set of footnotes to the financial statements and management discussion. The notes typically describe each item on the sheet, income statement. Notes to financial statements are considered a part of the financial statements. Financial statements should be understandable, relevant, reliable and comparable, reported assets, liabilities, equity, income and expenses are directly related to an organizations financial position. Financial statements may be used by users for different purposes, Owners and managers require financial statements to make important business decisions that affect its continued operations, Financial analysis is then performed on these statements to provide management with a more detailed understanding of the figures. These statements are used as part of managements annual report to the stockholders. Prospective investors make use of statements to assess the viability of investing in a business. Financial analyses are used by investors and are prepared by professionals. Financial institutions use them to decide whether to grant a company with fresh working capital or extend debt securities to finance expansion, the rules for the recording, measurement and presentation of government financial statements may be different from those required for business and even for non-profit organizations. They may use either of two accounting methods, accrual accounting, or cost accounting, or a combination of the two, a complete set of chart of accounts is also used that is substantially different from the chart of a profit-oriented business. Personal financial statements may be required from persons applying for a loan or financial aid. Typically, a financial statement consists of a single form for reporting personally held assets and liabilities, or personal sources of income and expenses. The form to be filled out is determined by the organization supplying the loan or aid, although laws differ from country to country, an audit of the financial statements of a public company is usually required for investment, financing, and tax purposes. These are usually performed by independent accountants or auditing firms, results of the audit are summarized in an audit report that either provide an unqualified opinion on the financial statements or qualifications as to its fairness and accuracy
33.
Siemens
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Siemens AG is a German conglomerate company headquartered in Berlin and Munich and the largest manufacturing and electronics company in Europe with branch offices abroad. The principal divisions of the company are Industry, Energy, Healthcare, and Infrastructure & Cities, the company is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index. Siemens and its subsidiaries employ approximately 362,000 people worldwide, the von Siemens family remain the largest shareholder with a stake of 6. 9% percent. Siemens & Halske was founded by Werner von Siemens and Johann Georg Halske on 12 October 1847, based on the telegraph, their invention used a needle to point to the sequence of letters, instead of using Morse code. The company, then called Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske, opened its first workshop on 12 October, in 1848, the company built the first long-distance telegraph line in Europe,500 km from Berlin to Frankfurt am Main. In 1850, the younger brother, Carl Wilhelm Siemens, later Sir William Siemens. The London agency became an office in 1858. In the 1850s, the company was involved in building long distance telegraph networks in Russia, in 1855, a company branch headed by another brother, Carl Heinrich von Siemens, opened in St Petersburg, Russia. In 1867, Siemens completed the monumental Indo-European telegraph line, in 1867, Werner von Siemens described a dynamo without permanent magnets. A similar system was independently invented by Charles Wheatstone. In 1881, a Siemens AC Alternator driven by a watermill was used to power the worlds first electric lighting in the town of Godalming. The company continued to grow and diversified into electric trains and light bulbs, in 1890, the founder retired and left running the company to his brother Carl and sons Arnold and Wilhelm. In 1887, it opened its first office in Japan, Siemens & Halske was incorporated in 1897, and then merged parts of its activities with Schuckert & Co. Nuremberg in 1903 to become Siemens-Schuckert, in 1907, Siemens had 34,324 employees and was the seventh-largest company in the German empire by number of employees. In 1919, S & H and two companies jointly formed the Osram lightbulb company. During the 1920s and 1930s, S & H started to manufacture radios, television sets, in the 1920s, Siemens constructed the Ardnacrusha Hydro Power station on the River Shannon in the then Irish Free State, and it was a world first for its design. The company is remembered for its desire to raise the wages of its workers only to be overruled by the Cumann na nGaedheal government. Siemens exploited the forced labour of deported people in extermination camps, the company owned a plant in Auschwitz concentration camp
US$26.40 billion (2017)[4]
