Differential corporate reporting in South Africa – the state of the art

Differential corporate reporting exists in one form or another in many countries and it is currently on the agenda of the International Accounting Standards Board’s (IASB’s). This article provides some background on this practice and, in particular, on the current position of the IASB and the accounting profession in South Africa with regard to differential corporate reporting. The article also reports on the results of a postal survey of South African Registered Accountants’ and Auditors’ views on the form that differential corporate reporting should take. It was found that there is some support for limited deviations from Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP), in agreement with DP 163 – Limited Purpose Financial Statements issued by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA).