Seventy years of accounting standards for M&A

2005 was the first year in history when the US, the UK, and the (now very substantial) jurisdiction of international standards were governed by largely harmonised standards on accounting for business combinations. This chapter charts the evolution of such standards from the beginning of accounting standard-setting some seventy years ago. It uses a geographical perspective to display the tensions between jurisdictions, and a historical perspective to chart the innovations in standards, the pressures to modify standards, and the processes of, variously, evolution and reversal, which have characterised the route to 2005’s arrangements. Finally, it reports on dissatisfaction with the current harmonised standards, divergence between standards for publicly listed and private businesses, and pressure to revert to previous arrangements for listed firms.