Knowledge and Insights: Newsletters

Summer is supposed to be a chance to get away, add a little color to that sun-sheltered skin, enjoy the hot sun at the barbecue, and get some much needed rest and relaxation. Instead, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) reports that most Americans equate summer with financial anxiety. According to the AICPA…

Math has always been taught in school, but the kind of math you’re probably thinking of isn’t always practical. You’ll never need to use de Moivre’s Theorem to file your taxes, and you’ll never have to work with the polar representation of a complex number at the grocery store. Unless kids are brought up in…

A pass-through entity that receives federal awards and/or New Jersey state awards as a subrecipient must determine on a case-by-case basis whether the disbursements made under each agreement represents a subrecipient or contractor relationship. Once a determination is made that a subrecipient relationship exists, as a pass-through entity, you must: Award identification to include the…

With the latest buzz about bitcoins – a decentralized, digital currency just a few years old – it is extremely important for the banking industry to understand their use and impact. A bitcoin is a form of virtual currency that allows payment through a peer-to-peer network. Bitcoins are not tangible like cash and cannot be…

April 15th has passed and many of us are awaiting, or recently received, a tax refund.  The average U.S. taxpayer refund over the last two years has approximated $3,100.  If you got/get a nice refund, what do you plan to do with it? It is very tempting to spend it; to treat yourself or your…

Fair lending compliance remains in high focus with federal and state regulators. The Department of Justice recently created a new fair lending enforcement unit staffed with economists, attorneys and an executive-level counsel for fair lending in the assistant attorney general’s office. Several regulations are used to enforce fair lending, including the Equal Credit Opportunity, Fair…

The banking industry has seen noted changes in income margins for institutions of all sizes over the last five to ten years. Growth strategies focused solely on revenue channels are no longer effective and must be changed to ensure that income is not offset by compliance-related expenses. The regulatory landscape with which banks need to…

Keeping on top of tax compliance is one aspect of the working relationship that debtors and bankruptcy professionals have with accountants or financial advisors.  One pitfall I’ve seen is that some debtor companies neglect their informational and income tax reporting responsibilities while in bankruptcy.  Many times it’s an oversight because an accountant was retained late…

In many cases the forensic accountant is engaged too late. This usually results from lack of knowledge of the critical importance of discovery during the first five days of an investigation. Unless the forensic accountant is engaged at the time fraud is discovered, there is a high probability of the loss of critical evidence and of…

For-profit companies are always searching for ways to improve their efficiency and productivity—otherwise known as the “bottom line.” Nonprofit organizations have the same needs. Similar to public corporations, the board members plays an integral role in achieving these goals. That is why great care must be taken when selecting members. Members must possess the skill…