Industry Articles

Like many industries, accounting firms and CPAs must contend with labor shortages, wringing more efficiency out of already overworked staff. Forbes estimates that more than 300,000 accountants and auditors resigned during the Great Resignation of 2020 and 2021. The same article notes that the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that there have been nearly 16% […]

In this episode of Risky Records, John Pastore from Integrated Partners and I discussed the benefits of accounting firms partnering with advisors for investment advisory services. John emphasized clear communication, transparency, ongoing dialogue, and adapting to the evolving accounting industry.  To close out the session, we put on David Bowie’s Changes One album. Changes to the accounting […]

2022 was a challenging year for the cryptocurrency (aka crypto) industry, caused by the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX (the third-largest crypto exchange at the time). The result has been a shift in the cryptocurrency industry, with newly minted crypto millionaires facing sudden losses. Many have had to sell their cryptocurrencies at a lower […]

According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Americans didn’t pay $688 billion in taxes on their 2021 returns—highlighting an increase of more than $138 billion from 2017-2019 estimates. To address this ‘tax gap,’ the IRS is taking new actions such as increasing auditing and capitalizing on new laws such as the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). […]

Insufficient coverage can be costly in the RFP process By Gary Sutherland, CIC, MLIS Recently I was asked to review a fidelity bond in a RFP that was in the final due diligence phase of acceptance. The investment professional carried their current bond for five-plus years and believed that it met or exceeded what was needed […]

Gaining new clients, and maintaining your current clients, is obviously a priority in growing your practice. As an Investment Advisor this involves several challenges including compliance issues and the overall stigma created by high publicity Ponzi schemes. But, are you be overlooking a valuable asset in marketing and retaining clients? Your insurance. Your clients and […]

What is an ERISA Bond ? An ERISA Bond is an amended Fidelity bond that meets the requirements of ERISA law. Unlike a Fidelity Bond, which pays losses to the insured, an ERISA Bond pays losses directly to the client whose assets are managed. It has no deductible, calculates limits on plan assets up to […]

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law in 2010. One provision of the Act required that in 2014 all Americans must have qualified health insurance or face a “Shared Responsibility Payment.” Additionally, the Act allowed insurance providers and large employers a one-year delay in reporting the coverage in 2014 to both the IRS […]

The impact of revisions to Circular 230 Should I drop my disclaimer? In June 2014 the IRS issued final regulations that make significant changes to Circular 230. The final regulations recognize that the Covered Opinion Rules are no longer necessary, and have been replaced with new standards for issuing written tax advice. As a result, […]

SSARS No. 21 Engagement Letter In October 2014, the AICPA announced a significant revision to its Standards for Accounting and Review Services. The updated standard, SSARS No. 21, which goes into effect on December 15, 2015, will allow accountants to provide clients with financial statements but does not require them to provide accompanying audits, reviews […]