UK banks republishing their annual 2004 results under the new international finanical reporting standards

This week all UK banks will start republishing their 2004 annual results under the International Financial Reporting Standards that went into effect in Europe and parts of Asia on Jan. 1, 2005. I mention this because it will make some comparisons difficult (even for the people who are experts)according to press and other reports. Most banks said before the beginning of the year that adjusted earnings per share under the new rules would fall by five percent or less.

The May 9 Financial Times has an article by Jane Croft, "Banks braced for impact of IFRS: Key companies are about to reveal the effect of new accounting standards."

Under IAS 39, some products previously accounted for as insurance products are now investment products. There is some interpretation going on as to everyone is reading the fine print, says the story. The adoption of IAS 39 was quite controversial.
(I am preparing to moderate a session at the SLA conference on the changes in the international accounting standards. The speakers deal with it every day. I'll keep you posted.)

Rita