CORPORATE GOVERNANCE-THE ROLE AND APPLICATION OF THE PRINCIPLE OF TRANSPARENCY

The aim of the current research is to clarify the concept of 'corporate governance' as we believe it is a relatively new concept at national level. At the same time, our analysis focused on the manner in which the principle of transparency has been incorporated into the recommendations and regulations/provisions of the Bucharest Stock Exchange (Romanian: BVB) and how this principle has been applied by the companies listed with the BVB. In order to accomplish the objectives of our research, we adopted a deductive approach, from general to specific, by means of which we were able to combine qualitative with quantitative studies. Therefore, our approach started from the definition found within the principles of OECD according to which 'corporate governance' is the system by which companies are run and controlled. In Romania, the concept of 'corporate governance' was first advanced in 1999 by the Strategic Alliance of the Business Associations (Romanian: ASAA), which drew up a "Voluntary code of corporate governance" in association with the Confederation of Private Entrepreneurs in Timiº county and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania and Bucharest. Another facet of our research is the principle of transparency and the manner in which entities should put it to practice in order to ensure efficient corporate governance. To this effect, since the beginning of 2009 the entities listed with the BVB have been under obligation to report which recommendations of the new Corporate Governance Code have actually been implemented by the company in the current financial year by disclosing to BVB the "Comply or Explain" Statement. The findings of our research show that the concept of 'corporate governance' has lately been a matter for intense debate due to the famous financial failures in recent years. In 2009, Transelectrica was the only company in tier I of the BVB which filled in and submitted the "Comply or Explain" Statement. Therefore, we believe that Transelectrica should serve as a fine example for the entities listed with the BVB as regards the filling in and submitting of the said Statement.The aim of the current research is to clarify the concept of 'corporate governance' as we believe it is a relatively new concept at national level. At the same time, our analysis focused on the manner in which the principle of transparency has been incorporated into the recommendations and regulations/provisions of the Bucharest Stock Exchange (Romanian: BVB) and how this principle has been applied by the companies listed with the BVB. In order to accomplish the objectives of our research, we adopted a deductive approach, from general to specific, by means of which we were able to combine qualitative with quantitative studies. Therefore, our approach started from the definition found within the principles of OECD according to which 'corporate governance' is the system by which companies are run and controlled. In Romania, the concept of 'corporate governance' was first advanced in 1999 by the Strategic Alliance of the Business Associations (Romanian: ASAA), which drew up a "Voluntary code of corporate governance" in association with the Confederation of Private Entrepreneurs in Timiº county and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania and Bucharest. Another facet of our research is the principle of transparency and the manner in which entities should put it to practice in order to ensure efficient corporate governance. To this effect, since the beginning of 2009 the entities listed with the BVB have been under obligation to report which recommendations of the new Corporate Governance Code have actually been implemented by the company in the current financial year by disclosing to BVB the "Comply or Explain" Statement. The findings of our research show that the concept of 'corporate governance' has lately been a matter for intense debate due to the famous financial failures in recent years. In 2009, Transelectrica was the only company in tier I of the BVB which filled in and submitted the "Comply or Explain" Statement. Therefore, we believe that Transelectrica should serve as a fine example for the entities listed with the BVB as regards the filling in and submitting of the said Statement.corporate governance, transparency, efficiency, recommendations, regulations

IFRS, US GAAP OR ROMANIAN REGULATIONS CAN THEY BECOME ONE?

In a period when convergence is the main driving force of IASB and FASB programmes, who needs a comparison of the two sets of standards-IFRS issued by IASB and US GAAP issued by FASB? Aren't they mainly the same after 5 years of hard work of those who establish the two sets of standards? The answer lies in the fact that mostly all people who work in a multinational company has to understand the present differences between these two sets of standards. A combination of the convergence of the national standards with the IFRS and the follow-up use of IFRS standards would mean that the two accounting languages from all over the world should be reduced rapidly only to IFRS and US GAAP. Although these two sets of standards are more and more similar to each other, they are not totally identical-yet. And until they become identical it will be necessary to state clearly and explain the differences that exist between them.IFRS, US GAAP, convergence, Romanian regulations

Aspecte conceptuale si tehnice privind viitoare reglementari contabile pentru IMM-uri in Europa

The economic theories and the accounting regulations deriving from them should be reconsidered for SMEs. At global level, there are accomplishments in this respect – IASB IFRS for SMEs – or intentions – European Commission proposals for certain simplifications of the European directives. However, for these actions to be successful, further investigations concerning the theoretical and technical implications are necessary. In this study, we present our opinion concerning the theoretic influences (reconsideration of the conceptual framework) and the technical influences (change in the disclosure requirements and change in the content of the standards, namely recognition and valuation) implied by a standard for SMEs.SMEs accounting standard, agency theory, shareholder-manager, stakeholders, IFRS for SMEs

QUALITATIVE FACTORS OF MATERIALITY - A REVIEW OF EMPIRICAL RESEARCH

Determination of materiality is a crucial step in an audit mission because it affects theentire audit process. The incorrect application of materiality can have serious negativerepercussions on both the audited entity and the auditor (Enron-Anderson). Researches conductedover time revealed the complexity of this element in an audit mission and the need to emergencesome generally accepted rules and regulations to provide support in defining and substantiating theprofessional judgment applied in this stage of the audit.materiality, quantitative factors, professional judgment, reviews of research.

PREFERENCE OF THE LISTED ENTITIES REGARDING THE SELECTION OF THE EXTERNAL AUDITOR

The present research aims to highlight the importance of the external auditing in supporting corporate governance and the preference of the listed entities to be audited by the big audit companies. Given the proposed objectives of the research, our scientific method is based on a deductive approach from general to particular that combines quantitative and qualitative studies. The role of the external audit was analyzed by conducting a study of literature on two levels: a theoretical-conceptual level in terms of economic theories and an empirical-practical level based on literature from which we extracted through a content analysis the defining elements of the audit work quality. Falling within the scope of the study, we evaluated the preference of the listed entities to be audited by the Big Four. To this end we used the content analysis of the publicly posted audit reports for the period 2005-2009. Our research results show that although we are a country with an emerging capital market development, the entities in the I-st category on the Bucharest Stock Exchange tend to an audit conducted by one of the big audit companies. Another result arising from our study is that the entities of the I-st category on the Bucharest Stock Exchange become more transparent from a year to another. Whether for the year 2005 we find only 12 audit reports publicly posted, in 2007 we can find 21 audit reports publicly posted. The trend of the large entities audited shows that the preference of the entities to be audited by one of the Big Four is higher from a year to another. The preparation of the financial statements and their audit must be done according to regulations for the currently period. The presumption found in the literature according to which the large entities are audited by the big audit companies which provide higher audit quality is confirmed in the case of our national country as well.external audit, audit report, opinion, listed companies, Big Four

The role of E-Learning generated by the COVID-19 epidemic in higher education

As key players in our society, universities have a special responsibility for sustainable development. As institutions of education, research, and services, universities are key players in the sustainable development of society and the economy. With the health crisis caused by Covid-19, it was necessary to introduce digitalized teaching. We could even say that Covid-19 is an accelerator for students’ and teachers’ acceptance of digital technologies in teaching. In many universities, there is still some impotence on how distance or short-term university teaching can take place. In the European higher education area, there has long been a commitment to greater digitalization of teaching under the keyword e-learning, so we set out to analyze these issues in the Romanian university environment. The results show that substantial efforts have been made, but these efforts must be continued to be successful and to reach a sustainable university

HARMONISIERUNG DES JAHRESABSCHLUSSES

IAS 1 regulates the contents and layout bases of the financial statements. Financial statements addressees are those who cannot demand customized reports from the company for their own information needs. A complete financial statement includes the statemeJahresabschluss, Ergebnis, Gewinn- und Verlustrechnung, Bilanzierungsfehler

Aspecte conceptuale si tehnice privind viitoare reglementari contabile pentru IMM-uri in Europa

The economic theories and the accounting regulations deriving from them should be reconsidered for SMEs. At global level, there are accomplishments in this respect – IASB IFRS for SMEs – or intentions – European Commission proposals for certain simplifications of the European directives. However, for these actions to be successful, further investigations concerning the theoretical and technical implications are necessary. In this study, we present our opinion concerning the theoretic influences (reconsideration of the conceptual framework) and the technical influences (change in the disclosure requirements and change in the content of the standards, namely recognition and valuation) implied by a standard for SMEs

Aspecte conceptuale si tehnice privind viitoare reglementari contabile pentru IMM-uri in Europa

The economic theories and the accounting regulations deriving from them should be reconsidered for SMEs. At global level, there are accomplishments in this respect – IASB IFRS for SMEs – or intentions – European Commission proposals for certain simplifications of the European directives. However, for these actions to be successful, further investigations concerning the theoretical and technical implications are necessary. In this study, we present our opinion concerning the theoretic influences (reconsideration of the conceptual framework) and the technical influences (change in the disclosure requirements and change in the content of the standards, namely recognition and valuation) implied by a standard for SMEs

Neuroinflammatory processes are augmented in mice overexpressing human heat-shock protein B1 following ethanol-induced brain injury

Background: Heat-shock protein B1 (HSPB1) is among the most well-known and versatile member of the evolutionarily conserved family of small heat-shock proteins. It has been implicated to serve a neuroprotective role against various neurological disorders via its modulatory activity on inflammation, yet its exact role in neuroinflammation is poorly understood. In order to shed light on the exact mechanism of inflammation modulation by HSPB1, we investigated the effect of HSPB1 on neuroinflammatory processes in an in vivo and in vitro model of acute brain injury. Methods: In this study, we used a transgenic mouse strain overexpressing the human HSPB1 protein. In the in vivo experiments, 7-day-old transgenic and wild-type mice were treated with ethanol. Apoptotic cells were detected using TUNEL assay. The mRNA and protein levels of cytokines and glial cell markers were examined using RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry in the brain. We also established primary neuronal, astrocyte, and microglial cultures which were subjected to cytokine and ethanol treatments. TNF alpha and hHSPB1 levels were measured from the supernates by ELISA, and intracellular hHSPB1 expression was analyzed using fluorescent immunohistochemistry. Results: Following ethanol treatment, the brains of hHSPB1-overexpressing mice showed a significantly higher mRNA level of pro-inflammatory cytokines (Tnf, Il1b), microglia (Cd68, Arg1), and astrocyte (Gfap) markers compared to wild-type brains. Microglial activation, and 1 week later, reactive astrogliosis was higher in certain brain areas of ethanol-treated transgenic mice compared to those of wild-types. Despite the remarkably high expression of pro-apoptotic Tnf, hHSPB1-overexpressing mice did not exhibit higher level of apoptosis. Our data suggest that intracellular hHSPB1, showing the highest level in primary astrocytes, was responsible for the inflammation-regulating effects. Microglia cells were the main source of TNF alpha in our model. Microglia isolated from hHSPB1-overexpressing mice showed a significantly higher release of TNF alpha compared to wild-type cells under inflammatory conditions. Conclusions; Our work provides novel in vivo evidence that hHSPB1 overexpression has a regulating effect on acute neuroinflammation by intensifying the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and enhancing glial cell activation, but not increasing neuronal apoptosis. These results suggest that hHSPB1 may play a complex role in the modulation of the ethanol-induced neuroinflammatory response.Peer reviewe