Business &amp; Accountancy Daily

Image for sfo shuts down ps17m solar panel investment scam

Business | SFO shuts down £17m solar panel investment scam

Six men have been found guilty of running a £17m fraudulent scheme to install solar panels which defrauded 1,500 victims including elderly, retired and vulnerable people, following a four-year investigation spearheaded by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO)

30 Aug 2018

Finance | FASB updates accounting for cloud computing service arrangements

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has issued an accounting standards update (ASU) which is designed to reduce the complexity of the accounting for costs of implementing a cloud computing service arrangement

30 Aug 2018

Finance

Accounting Standards

Financial Reporting

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Business | Online gambling companies to remove cash withdrawal restrictions

Two online gambling companies have been ordered to make it easier and fairer for players to withdraw their cash following action by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) against unfair practices in the industry

30 Aug 2018

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Business | Warning on defined benefit pension transfers

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has warned the trustees of defined benefit (DB) schemes about potential risks to funds from allowing members to transfer out of their schemes to defined contribution (DC) schemes, suggesting that in some cases transfer valuations are too high

30 Aug 2018

Business | Agency boss fined over withheld wages

The former director of an employment agency has been fined and banned for five years after pleading guilty to withholding wages

30 Aug 2018

Image for sec charges nfl football player insider trading

Business | SEC charges NFL football player with insider trading

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged a National Football League (NFL) professional football player and a former investment banker with insider trading in advance of corporate acquisitions facilitated through coded text messages and FaceTime conversations

30 Aug 2018

Image for browne brexit opportune moment simplify tax code

Tax | Browne: Brexit is an opportune moment to simplify tax code

As government publishes papers outlining what would happen to VAT and financial services in the event of a no deal Brexit, Andrew Browne, head of tax at Bishop Fleming, sees Brexit as an opportunity for simplifying complex tax code

30 Aug 2018

Tax | Tax data: CGT data, HMRC rates of interest - Sep 2018

Download the HMRC CGT indexation allowance for December 2017 onwards, RPI Index for July 2018 and HMRC rates of interest, and the current stamp duty land tax (SDLT) and land and buildings transaction tax (LBTT) rates, and more

30 Aug 2018

29 Aug 2018

Image for vat claims hmrc may require additional security

Tax | VAT claims: HMRC may require additional security

People with a history of poor compliance or in unusual circumstances may be required to give extra security to HMRC when making VAT claims, says Stan Dencher, specialist tax writer at Croner-I

29 Aug 2018

Tax | Call to scrap ‘ineffective’ entrepreneurs’ relief

Entrepreneurs’ relief should be scrapped as an expensive, ineffective, and regressive option, with the £2.7bn saved used by the government towards funding its £20bn NHS pledge, according to claims by the Resolution Foundation

29 Aug 2018

Tax

Business Tax

HMRC

Image for frc fines grant thornton ps4m independence failings

Finance | FRC fines Grant Thornton £4m for independence failings

Grant Thornton has been fined £4m and reprimanded for misconduct by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) in relation to a lack of independence in the audits of Nichols plc and the University of Salford, with additional sanctions for a former senior partner and three former senior statutory auditors

29 Aug 2018

Tax | Dodwell: historic approach to tax fails to recognise reality

Bill Dodwell LLB CTA, senior policy adviser at OTS, considers how the history of PAYE will impact engagers and online platforms following the release of two HMRC consultations

29 Aug 2018

Business | 12-year ban for debt management boss

The director of three Birmingham debt management companies has been banned for 12 years after an Insolvency Service investigation found he had failed to ensure companies provided regulated advice to their customers

29 Aug 2018

Called to Account

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Business | Growing opposition to FTSE 100 pay

Shareholder rebellions at listed companies rose by over a quarter in 2018, with pay proposals attracting particular scrutiny, according to analysis of voting trends during the 2018 AGM season by the Investment Association

29 Aug 2018

Leadership & Management

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Business | Data protection complaints double

Complaints to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) about potential data breaches have more than doubled since the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect, with financial services companies in the firing line for potential large fines, according to research by law firm EMW

29 Aug 2018

Business | US regulator fines Moody’s $16.5m over ratings failures

Moody’s Investors Service is to pay $16.5m (£12.8m) in penalties to settle charges brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) involving internal control failures and failing to clearly define and consistently apply credit rating symbols in its assessment of residential mortgage-backed securities

29 Aug 2018

Image for businesses losses staff fraud double

Business | Businesses’ losses from staff fraud double

The amount businesses lose as a result of employee fraud has doubled in the past year, according to analysis by RSM

29 Aug 2018

28 Aug 2018

Image for international reporting iasb simplifies assets and liabilities

Finance | International reporting: IASB simplifies assets and liabilities

The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has recently published a number of discussion papers with the aim of clarifying some of its existing projects and providing a clearer view for investors. Jeroen Van Doorsselaere, Wolters Kluwer vice president of risk and finance, examines several key issues

28 Aug 2018

Finance

Financial Reporting

IFRS

Image for hmrc take football clubs tax match

Tax | HMRC to take on football clubs in tax match

Despite some high-profile run-ins between elite football players and the taxman, while football club finance directors remain concerned about tax compliance risks, few are expecting difficulties in defending any actions HMRC may take, according to analysis by BDO

28 Aug 2018

Finance | EFRAG responds to financial instruments discussion paper

The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) is seeking feedback on its draft comment letter in response to the International Accounting Standards Board's (IASB) discussion paper 2018/1 Financial Instruments with Characteristics of Equity, which seeks to clarify the distinction between liabilities and equity

28 Aug 2018

Finance

Accounting Standards

Financial Reporting

Image for insolvency overhaul tackle phoenixing

Business | Insolvency overhaul to tackle ‘phoenixing’

The government has unveiled proposals to shake-up the insolvency regime, including hefty fines or disqualifications for directors who dissolve companies to avoid paying workers or pensions, in response to a consultation on corporate governance within companies which are in or are approaching insolvency

28 Aug 2018

Restructuring & Insolvency

Law & Guidance

Image for hmrc makes ps343k payments tax informants

Tax | HMRC makes £343K payments to tax informants

HMRC paid informants more than £343,000 last year for providing information on potential tax evasion, down from a peak of £605,000 in 2015, but still a potential ethical challenge according to City law firm RPC

28 Aug 2018

Tax | ‘Game on’ for UK developers with tax incentive

The use of tax incentives to drive growth in the UK’s video game industry has risen by over 30% in the last year and is helping to reverse the sector’s decline in recent years, according to analysis by Moore Stephens

28 Aug 2018

Business | Deloitte’s revenues rise 5.9%

Deloitte saw revenue increase by 5.9% in the financial year ended 31 May 2018, up from £3.38bn to £3.58bn, marking the eighth consecutive year of revenue growth

28 Aug 2018