Modernization of Accounting Standards: Catching up with the West
Japan’s pre-World War II business accounting system largely rested with the CC, which
was under the influence of Continental Europe. However, this does not necessarily mean that
businesses relied solely on bank loans to meet their funding needs during the prewar era. On
the contrary, stock and bond markets already accounted for a substantial part of fund
procurement by businesses before the war regime2
. Against this backdrop, the postwar reform
began with the effort to graft a disclosure system based on a US-style SEL onto the CC. This
move itself did not intend to switch Japan to direct financing. Rather, it is said to have been
intended to address a range of issues, including the democratization of securities markets as a
means to secure funds for industrial rehabilitation through improvements to financial disclosure3
. At any rate, the modernization of the accounting system in Japan did not suddenly
begin after the war. The prewar initiatives, including the Working Rules for Financial
Statements drafted by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (1934) and the Draft Standards
for Financial Statements for the Manufacturing Industry created by the Planning Bureau
(1941), were more fully implemented after the disruption caused by the war.
As far as the accounting system is concerned, the driving force behind the reform was
the Investigation Committee on Business Accounting Systems (now called the Business
Accounting Council), which was established in 1947, a year before the introduction of the
SEL4
. In 1948, the old registered public accountant system was replaced with the certified
public accountant (CPA) system, which enabled front-line implementation of the audit system.
In 1949, the Investigation Committee on Business Accounting Systems released its Business
Accounting Principles and Working Rules for Financial Statements as guidelines for the
disclosure and auditing of financial information. These regulatory rules were also meant as
tools that could be used to seamlessly integrate the two accounting systems, one based on the
CC and the other on the SEL. This was seen as the greatest challenge of the postwar reforms,
an attempt to standardize auditor qualifications under the two accounting systems and unify
the criteria used to audit financial statements by incorporating the SEL-based CPA system into
the CC
Modernization of Accounting Standards: Catching up with the West
Japan’s pre-World War II business accounting system largely rested with the CC, which
was under the influence of Continental Europe. However, this does not necessarily mean that
businesses relied solely on bank loans to meet their funding needs during the prewar era. On
the contrary, stock and bond markets already accounted for a substantial part of fund
procurement by businesses before the war regime2
. Against this backdrop, the postwar reform
began with the effort to graft a disclosure system based on a US-style SEL onto the CC. This
move itself did not intend to switch Japan to direct financing. Rather, it is said to have been
intended to address a range of issues, including the democratization of securities markets as a
means to secure funds for industrial rehabilitation through improvements to financial disclosure3
. At any rate, the modernization of the accounting system in Japan did not suddenly
begin after the war. The prewar initiatives, including the Working Rules for Financial
Statements drafted by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (1934) and the Draft Standards
for Financial Statements for the Manufacturing Industry created by the Planning Bureau
(1941), were more fully implemented after the disruption caused by the war.
As far as the accounting system is concerned, the driving force behind the reform was
the Investigation Committee on Business Accounting Systems (now called the Business
Accounting Council), which was established in 1947, a year before the introduction of the
SEL4
. In 1948, the old registered public accountant system was replaced with the certified
public accountant (CPA) system, which enabled front-line implementation of the audit system.
In 1949, the Investigation Committee on Business Accounting Systems released its Business
Accounting Principles and Working Rules for Financial Statements as guidelines for the
disclosure and auditing of financial information. These regulatory rules were also meant as
tools that could be used to seamlessly integrate the two accounting systems, one based on the
CC and the other on the SEL. This was seen as the greatest challenge of the postwar reforms,
an attempt to standardize auditor qualifications under the two accounting systems and unify
the criteria used to audit financial statements by incorporating the SEL-based CPA system into
the CC
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