问答题
Assuming you were a manager of renowned international accounting firm, Garbo & Bergman LLP,and you were in charge of the risk assessment engagement for Qihang Company(启航公司), please identify, given all the information provided, the risks that Knight Co., Ltd(the “Company”)faces and briefly explain the reasons.
【正确答案】Answer:
(1) Market Risk: Exchange Rate Risks. The Company settles in US Dollars the fees charged to its clients for proprietary information use. The Company’s local currency is Hong Kong Dollar, which is pegged against the US Dollar. Exchange rates of the US Dollar have experienced significant fluctuations in the last few years.
(2)Operational Risk: Outsourcing Risks. The Company outsources part of the financial information it publishes to other information service providers, for which the Company pays a usage fee. There is the risk that quality and acquisition cost of the outsourced financial information are out of the Company’s control.
(3)Compliance Risks. The Company possesses a Permit issued by the regulatory bodies of Hong Kong to provide securities advisory services and must pass the annual qualification inspection in order to maintain the Permit. The Company faces compliance risks.
(4)Operational Risk: Dependence on External Parties. Trading data provided by the Company are highly dependent on the major exchanges. The Company must ensure its continuous retention of authorizations from the exchanges, failure of which would directly affect the Company’s ability to provide such data.
(5)Industry Risk: Operational Performance Subject to Changes in the Securities Market.The Company’s performance is closely connected to the activeness of security markets. When the security markets do not perform, activeness of trading and investors’ enthusiasm are likely to be affected, decreasing the investor’s demand for financial information services. It has an adverse impact over the Company’s operational results.
(6)Operational Risk: Technology Risks in Security of the Network Systems.The Company heavily relies on the secure and reliable operations of its network and systems to carry out and continue its business activities. Although the Company has implemented various control measures, there are information technology risks that the equipment and systems may not function properly due to hardware failures, software defects and unauthorized access, exposing the Company to operational risks.
(7)Operational Risks: Loss of Technical Personnel. Although measures have been taken to maintain the stability of the Company’s technical teams, ongoing and intense market competition always poses the risk of losing key technical personnel, which is an impediment to the Company’s future development.
(8)Specific Project Risks. The Company is actively developing the Singapore market in the aim of providing local financial agencies and their clients with information about Hong Kong, US and Singapore stocks. The Company faces the risk that the development project may not be successful.
(9)Product Development Risks. The Company is engaging in the development of a new IOS and the Android mobile financial software applications to satisfy mobile phone users’ needs. There is significant uncertainty whether the launch of new products will be successful and generate profits for the Company.
(10)Liquidity Risks. Development of new markets and new products demands the Company to invest large amount of funds, which far exceeds the cash generated by the Company from operational activities. Although the Company has obtained financial support from local banks, there still exists a big funding gap, exposing the Company to liquidity risks.
【答案解析】
问答题
Given the cash shortage that Knight Co., Ltd(the “Company”)is facing due to its expansion of investment, what recommendations in cash flow management would you make to the Company to improve efficiency of the Company’s cash management?
【正确答案】Answer:
The following suggestions can be made:
(1)Striving to make the cash flows at the same pace. By making the time of cash inflows and cash outflows as close as possible, if not at the same time, the Company could maintain a low level of cash balance.
(2)Using cash float. There exists a period of time from the Company’s issue of a check and the actual receipt of the check by the recipient, and the bank’s actual clearance of the check. During this period, the Company can still use the fund in the bank account although the check has been issued. However, the Company must control the timing when using cash float so that possible bank overdraft can be avoided.
(3)Accelerating cash collection. This requires the Company to shorten the length of time for account receivables while keeping customers attracted through account receivables. Balance has to be made between the two considerations, which would help the Company to take proper account receivable collection strategies and actions.
(4)Postponing payment of account payables. The Company could take full advantage of credit provided by the suppliers by postponing payment of account payables to the extent possible on the condition that the Company’s reputation won’t be adversely affected. Of course, this decision requires careful consideration of advantages and disadvantages between the supplier discounts and cash needs.
【答案解析】
问答题
If you were Jack, how would you, as the audit engagement partner, assess the potential impact of John’s acceptance of the position at Knight Co., Ltd on the independence of ABC Accounting Firm as the auditor of Knight Co., Ltd, and what measures would you take to address the independence issues(if no significant connection remains between ABC Accounting Firm and John after his resignation)? Knight Co., Ltd is a subsidiary of a group in the PRC and therefore the Code of Ethics for Chinese Certified Public Accountants is applicable to the audit engagement.
【正确答案】Answer:
As a former member of the Knight audit engagement team, John’s employment with Knight could cause potential independence impacts over the audit of Knight by ABC Accounting Firm. Detailed analysis is listed below: If no significant connection remains between ABC Accounting Firm and John after his resignation, the existence and significance of any familiarity or intimidation threats will depend on factors such as:
① John’s position and responsibilities at Knight;
② Extent of any involvement John will have with the audit team at Knight;
③ The length of time since John was a member of the audit team at Knight or ABC Accounting Firm; and
④ The former position of John within the audit engagement team at Knight or ABC Accounting Firm.
Jack, as the audit engagement partner, should evaluate the extent and significance of the impact over ABC Accounting Firm’s independence and take appropriate actions to eliminate the adverse impact or lower the independence impediment risk to an acceptable level. Examples of such safeguards include:
① Modifying the audit plan;
② Assigning to the audit team individuals who have more sufficient experience to the audit team; or
③ Having a CPA who is not a member of the audit team review the work that has been performed by John.