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Included among the questions raised by commentators and the news media is whether the SEC will be focusing more attention on financial statement fraud.
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However, while financial statement fraud continues to be a focus of the SEC and other authorities, these kinds of cases now appear to be fewer and farther between.
FORBES: Accounting Fraud Cases Are Dead. Long Live Accounting Fraud Cases.
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Financial statement fraud remains an important risk across many jurisdictions.
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This may not ultimately affect enforcement priorities, given that perception matters and a greater enforcement focus on financial statement fraud does not necessarily depend on an increase in fraud.
FORBES: Restatements Resurrected?: Accounting Fraud By The Numbers
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Moreover, because the marquee financial statement fraud cases of the early 2000s were a significant driver of growth in white collar defense and forensic accounting practices, the decline of those kinds of cases has been duly noted in professional circles.
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According to a recent study by Mei Feng (University of Pittsburg), Weili Ge (University of Washington), Shuqing Luo (National University of Singapore) and Terry Shevlin (University of Washington), CFOs engage in financial statement fraud largely due to pressure from CEOs, not a desire to receive a personal financial gain.
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The Serious Fraud Office, the UK body which investigates and prosecutes complex financial fraud cases, issued a statement suggesting it was moving towards criminal prosecutions.
BBC: Barclays