Creative accounting exposed

Revenue recognition : Introduction: Lucent Technologies ; Revenue recognition methods and associated problems ; Premature revenue recognition ; The recognition of revenues without transferring the sale risk of payment obligation: Sunbeam ; Recognition of cost reductions as revenues: Ahold ; Recognition of financial revenues as revenues of sales: Parmalat ; Recognition of taxes as sales: Heineken ; Other techniques for recognizing revenues ; Seven techniques for recognizing fictitious revenues ; Case study: recognition of revenues from sales of licenses in the software industry ; Case study: revenue recognition in the semiconductors sector: ASML ; How to detect doubtful revenues in company accounts ; Applicable accounting standards ; Impact of revenue recognition on the value of companies: priceline.com

Stock options : the great accounting fallacy : Delta and Gamma: identical companies with different accounting systems ; What are stock options? ; How to value stock options ; A brief history of stock options ; Why companies issue stock options ; Why stock options are an expense ; Impact of stock options on valuation ; Backdating

Off-balance-sheet financing : The case of the banks ; Factoring and credit sales in general ; Changes in working capital: ACS ; Obligations ; Capital leases v. operating leases: synthetic leases ; Sale and lease back operations ; Unconsolidated entities ; Parking of shares ; Equity swapping ; Special purposes entities ; Case study: off-balance-sheet financing in the systems integration industry ; Guarantees ; Securitization ; Case study: off-balance-sheet financing in the banking sector ; Epilogue: credit crisis and creative accounting

Risk management, derivatives and hybrid instruments : Publicis ; Futures contracts: Deutsche Bank ; Preferred stock: Balfour Beatty ; Convertible shares ; Reclassification of convertibles: ST Microelectronics ; Mandatory convertibles: Adidas ; Synthetic convertibles: Novartis

Recognition of expenses, balance sheet fluctuations, cash flow and quality of earnings Stocks and inventory variations ; Provisions in accounting ; Recognizing amortization/depreciation ; Extraordinary items ; 'Pro forma' accounts and dilution of earnings-per-share: Proctor & Gamble ; Capitalization of expenses ; Deferred tax assets and liabilities ; Alteration of short-term assets ; Recognition of reserves: Royal Dutch Shell and Repsol ; Pension funds ; Cash flow ; Case study: accounting in the film industry ; Case study: the American International Group (AIG) accounting scandal

Subjectivity in the consolidation of companies : Proportional or global consolidation: Ahold ; Goodwill: Vivendi Universal ; The equity method: L'Oreal ; Provisions recorded during acquisition: ATOS

Creative accounting in public and private entities : Public entities ; Parmalat ; WorldCom ; Enron

Conclusion.