Includes bibliographical references (pages 284-288) and index.

When financial statements paint a rosy picture of a company one day and the same company announces massive losses the next, it can only be assumed that fortunes haven't actually changed overnight. This provocative book tells why accounting has failed to deliver the truth about a company's state of affairs or to give warning of its drift towards failure. In this lively and readable book, the authors balance broad interpretation and recommendations for reform with fine detail of particular cases, insightful analysis of contemporary practices and dissection to the pervading commercial rhetoric. The failures examined include Reid Murray in the 1960s, Cambridge Credit in the 1970s and Bond Corporation Holdings in the 1980s. They show that the cult of the individual in media coverage of those of affairs has masked serious endemic problems in the system of reporting financial information. Corporate Collapse is essential reading for professional accountants and auditors, company directors and managers, regulators, corporate lawyers, investors, and everyone aspiring to join their ranks.

SACFinal081324