Advanced Group Accounting [HS 18]

The principal objective of this course is to deepen students’ education through the examination of more complex accounting issues related to firms organized in economic groups. The primary course objectives are the following:

  1. Expand the technical proficiency in accounting for transactions involving mergers and acquisitions, affiliated businesses, and in the preparation of consolidated financial statements.
  2. Improve the ability to interpret and use financial statements describing the financial condition and operating result of affiliated business entities, including multinational organizations
  3. Develop a thorough understanding of different national and international accounting regulations with respect to group accounting, in particular to Swiss GAAP FER, IFRS and US-GAAP.
An important supplementary objective is to develop students’ ability to research accounting pronouncements and to use their judgmental skills to provide opinions on the appropriate treatment for unfamiliar accounting problems.


After this course, students will be able to:

1. perform a control analysis in accord with IFRS 10;

2. calculate the acquisition costs of a business combination and allocate these costs to acquired assets, liabilities, contingent liabilities; record reevaluation entries in accord with IFRS 3;

3. measure, recognize, and impair goodwill/gain on a bargain purchase (initial and subsequent accounting) in accord with IFRS, US-GAAP, and Swiss GAAP/FER;

4. apply the equity method for investments in associates in accord with IAS 28;

5. apply a capital consolidation at the acquisition date and subsequent to the acquisition date;

6. record the elimination entries necessary to eliminate intercorporate profits and losses resulting from intragroup transfers of assets, liabilities, and services;

7. present and analyze a group’s consolidated financial statements;

8. record the elimination entries necessary to consolidate joint arrangements in accord with IFRS 11;

9. record the accounting entries on separate financial statements and the elimination entries on consolidated financial statements for foreign currency transactions and translations in accord with IAS 22.