Information Content of IFRS versus Domestic Accounting Standards: Evidence from Finland

Abstract

This paper compares the information content of financial statements based on IFRS with those based on Finnish Accounting Standards (FAS) using a sample of mandatory IFRS adopters. Finland is particularly well suited for this comparison because it has a high-quality reporting environment, its domestic standards differ significantly from those of IFRS, and it allowed early adoption of IFRS. The results show that earnings under IFRS are no more timely in reflecting publicly available news than earnings under FAS. Furthermore, book values of assets and liabilities measured under IFRS are no more value relevant than they are under FAS. However, additional analyses reveal that IFRS earnings provide marginally greater information content than FAS earnings for predicting future cash flows. Several possible reasons for these results are discussed.

Keywords: International Financial Reporting Standards, mandatory IFRS adoption, value relevance

JEL Classification: M41, G15