In December 2021 the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) and the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”) released their proposed amendments to their accounting standards that will require buyers of goods/services who use supplier finance programs/arrangements[1] in respect of their payables to disclose key terms of those supplier finance programs in their financial statements.
Continue Reading Our Views on the Proposed FASB and IFRS Payables Reporting Rules

As we discussed in a previous post, last October the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) added the development of guidance on disclosure requirements with respect to trade payables programs to their agenda.  At the same meeting, FASB explicitly decided not to address the issue of how trade payables programs should be characterized for accounting

Following on from our April 2020 post (where we discussed the call from certain accounting firms and others for guidance from the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) on the treatment of trade payables programs) and our October 2020 post (where we provided an update on the FASB’s proposals in response), on June 23, 2021, the IFRS International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”) tentatively agreed to add a narrow-scope standard-setting project in respect of “supplier finance arrangements” to its work plan with the intention of amending certain IFRS and IAS standards to include additional disclosure requirements and clarifications in respect of “supplier finance arrangements.”
Continue Reading Update on IFRS Disclosure Requirements for Supplier Finance Arrangements

Many supply chain finance programs are structured on what is called a “buyer-led” or “buyer-focused” basis.  In certain of these types of programs, although the bank or other financier providing the program (the “Finance Provider”) may purchase accounts receivable represented by invoices or otherwise provide funding to a number of suppliers, the true customer of the Finance Provider is a single corporate buyer of goods and services (the “Buyer”) for whom the program has been arranged (a “payables finance program”).[1]   In certain other programs, a Finance Provider does not purchase the accounts receivable but instead relies only on a promise from the Buyer to make payment to the Finance Provider on supplier invoices the Finance Provider has funded (a “corporate payment undertaking program” and collectively with payables finance programs, “buyer-focused programs”).  Whatever method is used, the Buyer’s active support of the program is the key to making the program marketable. Although the Buyer does not typically have any involvement in the relationship between the Finance Provider and suppliers directly, the Buyer will often have considerable control over which suppliers may be approached for participation in the program and what invoices will be made available for funding (the “Approved Invoices”).
Continue Reading Irrevocable Payment Undertakings and Buyer-Led Supply Chain Finance; Mass Confusion Abounds

Financial Statement Disclosure of Supply Chain and other Trade Payables Programs

Trade payables programs have in recent years increased greatly in popularity among both large and small companies. While originally the sole domain of the large global banks and firmly based on a fairly straightforward reverse factoring model, these programs are now offered by banks

There has been increasing discussion with respect to the accounting treatment of trade payable programs and whether the obligations of the entity that owes the receivable (the “company”) under these programs should continue to be treated as trade payables on their balance sheet or, instead, be reflected as
Continue Reading Accounting and Rating Agency Treatment of Supply Chain and other Trade Payables Programs

Supply chain finance products have a well-deserved reputation of being fairly low risk propositions.  The majority of facilities are uncommitted, exposures are typically short-term and many counterparties are highly rated and well capitalized.  However, even in this product segment, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread and most developed economies face the real prospect of