With the US under increasing pressure of investors’ shifting focus to Asian markets, it intends to soon adopt the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), Sir David Tweedie, Chairman, International Accounting Standard Board (IASB), said. The US will take a decision on this issue in the coming three months, but the actual conversion with IRRS would be possible only by 2013, he added.

Tweedie said, “There are several reasons for the US adopting IFRS. Firstly, they want to do away with 25,000 pages long accounting rules and standards. Secondly, the US based companies want to reduce high of cost of having two accounting systems for subsidiaries operating in other countries.”

India, Canada, Korea, Japan, Brazil, Chile and Israel have already decided to adopt IFRS. It is expected that by April 2011, nearly 150 countries would be using IFRS.

Recognising the need for convergence with IFRS in India, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has decided to fully converge with IFRS form April 1, 2011 for listed entities and other public interest entities such as banks, insurance companies and large sized entities subject to its confirmation from the government and other legal and regulatory authorities.

There would be separate standards for small and medium enterprises based on IFRS for SMEs. Speaking to The Indian Express, president, ICAI, Ved Jain said, “We have already prepared a detailed work plan for formulating Indian-equivalent IFRS so that by April 1, 2011 the entities may be in a position to prepare their financial statements in accordance with the said standards.