Britain is slightly ahead on this, since its own rules ensure more fair-value reporting, although some important requirements will not apply to non-listed companies until next year.
This month the Private Equity Industry Guidelines Group, a collection of big investors and private-equity funds, unveiled guidelines intended to help standardise the valuation of investments in non-listed companies.
U.S. investors burned by alleged Chinese accounting fraud, such as at Longtop Financial, know that financial statements by even listed companies (especially for gullible, non-Chinese speaking foreigners) can be way off.