Historically, every country had its own accounting standards, each merging to some extent with its local corporate, labor, and tax laws. No matter how undesirable, it was natural to expect differences among nations. Globalization made these differences so impractical that from corporate leaders...

Today, 144 jurisdictions have fully adopted the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Adding the number of jurisdictions that have not adopted but have converged their national standards with IFRS, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) is the world’s standard-setter...