ACCA: Technical articles

ACCA: Technical articles

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ACCA: Technical articles episodes

  • Episode 3: Diversifying the board - a step towards better governance
    The board of directors forms one of the pillars of a robust corporate governance framework. Recent academic literature suggests that one of the ways to enhance corporate governance is to diversify the board and this is included in the Strategic Business Leader syllabus. This podcast attempts to elaborate on this topic by first introducing the concept of board diversity and how it may benefit the organisation, followed by a discussion of the possible costs of board diversity and a comment on the current regulatory initiatives of board diversity.
    16 min
  • Episode 2: Behavioural finance

    Learning outcome F4c of the Financial Management (FM) syllabus is as follows: Describe the significance of investor speculation and the explanations of investor decisions offered by behavioural finance. The learning outcome is at intellectual level 1, meaning that knowledge and comprehension of this topic is required. This podcast briefly looks at what behavioural finance is and some important terms related to behavioural finance which students should know.


    5 min
  • Episode 1: Intangible assets – can’t touch this

    IAS® 38 Intangible Assets is one of the key standards in the Financial Reporting (FR) exam, covering how companies should account for intangible assets. This standard can be examined in all sections of the exam. A well-prepared candidate needs to be able to understand and explain the key principles of the standard, in addition to preparing calculations. 

    1 hr 21 min
  • Group audits
    The audit of group financial statements is an area frequently examined in the Advanced Audit and Assurance examination. It can be tested at any stage of the audit cycle and therefore in any section of the examination. It is important that candidates are able to identify risks arising from aspects of group audits and the responsibility of auditors in this regard. This podcast focuses on the key areas of group audit, highlighting sections of ISA 600, Special Considerations – Audits of Group Financial Statements (Including the Work of Component Auditors). Candidates should be familiar with the standard prior to sitting the Advanced Audit and Assurance exam.
    17 min
  • Episode 161: Relevant costs
    ‘Relevant costs’ can be defined as any cost relevant to a decision. A matter is relevant if there is a change in cash flow that is caused by the decision. This podcast looks at the different kinds of costs that can be considered as either relevant or irrelevant, and then considers some specific examples that might be found in an exam question.
    26 min
  • The audit of assertions
    This podcast is relevant to Foundations in Audit (FAU) and Audit and Assurance (AA). It focuses on assertions as identified by ISA 315 (Revised) and also provides useful guidance to candidates on how to tackle questions dealing with these.
    17 min
  • SBL: Cybersecurity and the strategic business leader
    Syllabus area E4 of the SBL study guide requires students to discuss, assess and evaluate the security of IT systems. This podcast explains why these skills are crucial for those seeking to become effective strategic business leaders and demonstrates how they can be applied in practice.
    12 min
  • Introduction to Islamic finance
    Islamic finance rests on the application of Islamic law, or Shariah, whose primary sources are the Qur'an and the sayings and practice of the Prophet Muhammad. Shariah, and very much in the context of Islamic finance, emphasises justice and partnership. The ACCA Financial Management syllabus contains a section on Islamic finance (Section E3). This podcast explores the main tenets of Islamic finance and how it applies in a contemporary business world.
    1 min
  • SBR: Business models
    Understanding the business model of an entity is helpful in analysing and communicating the essence of a business and for predicting the implications of a change in circumstance on a business. Strategic Business Reporting (SBR) candidates should use this technique to improve their answers to SBR questions and this podcast should help them to do this.
    11 min
  • SBR: Accounting for cryptocurrencies
    There are many issues that accountants may encounter in practice for which no accounting standard currently exists; one example is cryptocurrencies. For example, as no accounting standard currently exists to explain how cryptocurrency should be accounted for, accountants have no alternative but to refer to existing accounting standards. This podcast demonstrates to Strategic Business Reporting (SBR) candidates how this can be done using cryptocurrencies as an example.
    11 min

About ACCA: Technical articles

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Listen to our technical article podcasts to help with specific areas of the syllabus