In a sample of 102 non-European Union countries, we study variations in the decision to adopt
International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). There is evidence that more powerful
countries are less likely to adopt IFRS, consistent with more powerful countries being less
willing to surrender standard-setting authority to an international body. There is also evidence
that the likelihood of IFRS adoption at first increases and then decreases in the quality of
countries’ domestic governance institutions, consistent with IFRS being adopted when
governments are capable of timely decision making and when the opportunity and switching cost
of domestic standards are relatively low. We do not find evidence that levels of and expected
changes in foreign trade and investment flows in a country affect its adoption decision: thus, we
cannot confirm that IFRS lowers information costs in more globalized economies. Consistent
with the presence of network effects in IFRS adoption, we find that a country is more likely to
adopt IFRS if its trade partners or countries within in its geographical region are IFRS adopters.