Kitagawa has set new standards for information disclosure publishing a balance sheet of his government's assets and debts, a first for any prefecture in Japan.

CNN: ASIANOW - TIME Asia | Japan: Japan's Governors Take Aim at Mighty Tokyo

Obviously if the derivative assets were included in the balance sheet as they are under the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) rules, the price-to-book ratio would be significantly lower.

FORBES: Why JPMorgan Chase Is Unsafe At Any Scale

In countries like Great Britain and Australia that use similar accounting standards, brands are sometimes put on the balance sheet, their worth determined independently.

FORBES: Asset Assessment

The Federal Accounting Standards Board is considering new rules about how financial companies account for off-balance sheet holdings.

FORBES: Magazine Article

Furthermore, even by the relatively hygienic standards of most insurers, the asset side of Lloyd's' balance-sheet is squeaky clean, while the toxic claims that brought it to its knees in the 1990s are now parcelled off to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.

ECONOMIST: Lloyd's of London

She backs tougher international standards like Basel III, which would, among other things, illuminate off-balance sheet risk.

FORBES: Sheila Bair For Treasury Secretary

In countries that use similar accounting standards, such as Great Britain and Australia, brands are sometimes put on the balance sheet, their worth determined independently.

FORBES: Asset assessment

The accounting standards for both these trades and repo-to-maturity trades allowed off-balance-sheet treatment.

FORBES: Uncontrolled Risk Taking, Not Bad Accounting, Did MF Global In