Toward sustainable accounting information: Evidence from IFRS adoption in Korea

The harmonization of accounting standards has been an international trend in the past two decades. As of 2018, 144 of 166 profiled jurisdictions require the use of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Nevertheless, there is mixed evidence on the effect of IFRS on sustainable accounting information. This study examines whether IFRS adoption improves earnings sustainability, focusing on emerging markets. Specifically, it tests the effect of IFRS on earnings quality by comparing earnings management and financial statement comparability of Korean listed firms for the pre- and post-IFRS periods. The results show that firms report less managed earnings in the post-IFRS period than in the pre-IFRS period. Furthermore, the results suggest the enhancement of financial statement comparability in the post-IFRS period compared to the pre-IFRS period. In particular, this paper documents that the effect of IFRS on sustainable accounting information is more pronounced in competitive industries. Moreover, it shows that small firms benefit more from adopting IFRS. Overall, this study finds that IFRS adoption in Korea improves the overall sustainability of accounting information.