This introductory essay reviews recent advances in the emergent field of social studies of finance (SSF) and, subsequently, sets out to illustrate how a closer engagement with SSF might benefit research interests in accounting and vice versa. Finally, it provides a sketch of how mutual...

This paper analyses the use and circulation of nternational auditing standards within a large post-Soviet Russian audit firm, as it faces up to the challenges of international harmonisation. It describes this process as one of ‘connecting worlds’ and translation. In a detailed field study...

This paper studies the roles that images and ideas of market creation played in the re-articulation of relations between government, audit expertise and professional organisation in post-Soviet Russia. It examines the change from state-led inspection to market-oriented auditing between 1985 and...

This paper examines the key issues relating to the UK pension system. It reviews the current system of pension provision, describes and analyses the reforms since 1980, examines the legal regulatory and accounting framework for occupational pension schemes, assesses the different types of risks...

This paper investigates the estimation of long-term VaR. It also suggests a simple approach to the estimation of long-term VaR that avoids problems associated with the square-root rule for extrapolating VaR, as well as those associated with attempts to extrapolate day-to-day volatility forecasts...

The Myners Report will have a number of significant consequences for pension fund management and performance measurement in the UK. It changes the way in which assets are selected. The strategic asset allocation will have overriding importance in pension fund management. Asset classes will be...

As a result of population ageing and declining fertility, the UK state pension system is unlikely to remain viable without a steady inflow of young immigrant workers from abroad. Using plausible assumptions we show that up to 500,000 immigrant workers pa. will be needed to save the state pension...

This paper proposes new performance decomposition measures that allow one to analyse the sources of returns on the international equity holdings of a large cross-section of UK pension funds. Our results suggest that the pension funds earned negative returns both from international market timing...

There are three key types of political risk facing state and personal pension schemes: those induced by demographic, economic and pure political considerations. The state scheme in the UK has been susceptible to all three types of political risk with the result that the annual real internal rate...

This paper examines the financial system prerequisites needed for the successful delivery of funded private pensions. In particular, it examines the financial instruments and investment strategies required during both the accumulation and decumulation stages. It does so within the context of a...