An insider's view of the current state and future direction of international accounting standard setting

The development of an internationally acceptable set of high-quality accounting standards ultimately depends upon the establishment of an internationally acceptable accounting standard-setting body. To date, the IASC has held itself out as the international standard-setting body by virtue of its broadly based membership and stated goals. Irrespective of who might currently be regarded as the international standard-setting body, the international accounting standard-setting environment is on the brink of major reform. The IASC has signaled its willingness to consider major structural reform with the recent publication by its Strategy Working Party of a discussion paper Shaping IASC for the Future. A discussion of the IASC IFAC, FASB, European Union, and G4, the key players that are setting the course for the future, is presented.