USA’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) agreed yesterday to seek public comment on its proposed roadmap leading to the adoption by US listed companies of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), starting in 2014.

The proposed multi-year plan sets out several milestones which include a voluntary adoption of IFRS in 2010 by about 110 big multinational companies, following which the commission will make a decision in 2011 whether the adoption of IFRS is in the public interest and would benefit investors, The Daily Telegraph reports.

Sir David Tweedie, International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) chairman, welcomed the SEC's move, which he described it as ‘another important vote of confidence’ for IFRS.

Should the commission vote for a compulsory transition to IFRS, the adoption could be staggered, starting with big companies using IFRS in 2014, followed by medium-sized businesses the following year, and smaller companies in 2016.

Further reading:

Auditors protest requirments for IFRS specialists

FASB attempts US convergence with international EPS calculation

Read The Daily Telegraph story