The government may be pressured to deviate from accounting principles and exclude the temporarily-owned banks from its balance sheet, write Ian Sanderson and Frans van Schaik.

The credit crisis has not only affected private sector accountants and auditors; it has also raised numerous issues and challenges for public sector accountants and auditors.

Governments have extended credit to banks, guaranteed the liabilities of banks, purchased impaired debt instruments and, in some instances, assumed control of banks.