At their last meeting in August, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) advanced the staff-backed portions of its Discussion Paper (DP), Preliminary Views on an Improved Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting: The Objective of Financial Reporting and Qualitative Characteristics of Decision-Useful Financial Reporting Information.  Specifically, the Board addressed concerns raised by constituents about the role of stewardship in the overall objective of financial reporting.  Among other recommendations, the Board decided to expand the objective’s scope to encompass information useful to investors and creditors, present and potential, in their capacity as capital-providers—including information related to protecting/enhancing their claims on the entity’s resources.   Copies of handouts for this and prior FASB meetings are available here.

This past week, the FASB also published its proposed Staff Position (FSP) No. APB 14-a, Accounting for Convertible Debt Instruments That May Be Settled in Cash Upon Conversion; for more information, click here.  Comments are due by October 15, 2007.