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.