Leases: Off-Balance Sheet Financing and the Strive for Transparency Today

In today’s world, leases appear far and wide; they are commonplace throughout the business and accounting frontiers. Accounting for leases, however, is not so clear cut. Since there are various ways to account for leases, many companies pick and choose which they feel best suits their situation, even when this sweeps dirt under the rug along the way. The financial procedures for dealing with leases should entail benefits as well as limitations to ensure each company is fairly representing all of its financial information. Off-balance sheet financing is one of the hot topics in accounting for leases because of the implications it imposes on financial reporting. This thesis will discuss these implications, as well as the continuing search for convergence of FASB and IASB as they strive to make leases as transparent and honest as possible