Current Topics in Financial Reporting - (F) - Q4

Course Content

Intangible assets

In this course, we will discuss the financial reporting for intangible assets, a topic that is academically interesting and highly relevant for company managers, investors, analysts, and other users of financial statements.

Today, the value of many companies is derived not primarily from tangible assets such as buildings, machinery, or inventory, but from technology, brand names, platforms, data, and other intangibles. However, companies are usually not allowed to recognize self-generated intangibles on their balance sheets, in particular because of uncertainties associated with their measurement. Thus, investments in technology (research and development), brands (advertising, etc.), and human resources (intellectual capital, training and development) are immediately expensed in the period in which they arise.

Critics argue that the failure to adequately report on intangibles makes financial accounting less and less relevant to investors and other decision-makers. Over recent years, the debate on the accounting for intangibles has intensified. In 2024, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) started a comprehensive review of its accounting requirements for intangibles, and the US Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is also pursuing a research project on intangibles. During our course, we will discuss how standard setters could reform the accounting and reporting for intangibles so as to make financial statements more insightful and, thus, more decision-relevant for investors and other capital-market participants.

The course will also acquaint you with academic research and writing in general, and in the area of financial reporting in particular. Gaining skills and experience in conducting research will equip you with essential expertise for your subsequent Master thesis. A further benefit of the course is that you will train your presentation skills, an important competency for executives and academics alike.

The course will be jointly taught by Profs Martin Glaum, Professor of International Accounting, and Andreas Barckow, former Chair of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), providing for a stimulating combination of both an academic and a practice-oriented perspective. 

Intended Learning Outcomes and Competencies

• Introduction to academic research
• Academic writing
• Improved presentation skills

Instruction Type

Präsenzstudium

Please note that, given the seminar nature of this course, it is required that students attend
all course sessions in person.

Please also note that during the seminar the use of electronic devices will not be permitted, except for presentations.

Form of Examination

Literature

The relevant literature depends on the chosen topic and will be announced in class.