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Audit approach overview
Our audit approach will allow our client's accounting personnel to make the maximum contribution to the audit effort without compromising their ongoing responsibilities
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Annual and short period audit
At P&A Grant Thornton, we provide annual and short period financial statement audit services that go beyond the normal expectations of our clients. We believe strongly that our best work comes from combining outstanding technical expertise, knowledge and ability with exceptional client-focused service.
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Review engagement
A review involves limited investigation with a narrower scope than an audit, and is undertaken for the purpose of providing limited assurance that the management’s representations are in accordance with identified financial reporting standards. Our professionals recognize that in order to conduct a quality financial statement review, it is important to look beyond the accounting entries to the underlying activities and operations that give rise to them.
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Other Related Services
We make it a point to keep our clients abreast of the developments and updates relating to the growing complexities in the accounting world. We offer seminars and trainings on audit- and tax-related matters, such as updates on Accounting Standards, new pronouncements and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issuances, as well as other developments that affect our clients’ businesses.
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Tax advisory
With our knowledge of tax laws and audit procedures, we help safeguard the substantive and procedural rights of taxpayers and prevent unwarranted assessments.
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Tax compliance
We aim to minimize the impact of taxation, enabling you to maximize your potential savings and to expand your business.
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Corporate services
For clients that want to do business in the Philippines, we assist in determining the appropriate and tax-efficient operating business or investment vehicle and structure to address the objectives of the investor, as well as related incorporation issues.
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Tax education and advocacy
Our advocacy work focuses on clarifying the interpretation of laws and regulations, suggesting measures to increasingly ease tax compliance, and protecting taxpayer’s rights.
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Business risk services
Our business risk services cover a wide range of solutions that assist you in identifying, addressing and monitoring risks in your business. Such solutions include external quality assessments of your Internal Audit activities' conformance with standards as well as evaluating its readiness for such an external assessment.
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Business consulting services
Our business consulting services are aimed at addressing concerns in your operations, processes and systems. Using our extensive knowledge of various industries, we can take a close look at your business processes as we create solutions that can help you mitigate risks to meet your objectives, promote efficiency, and beef up controls.
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Transaction services
Transaction advisory includes all of our services specifically directed at assisting in investment, mergers and acquisitions, and financing transactions between and among businesses, lenders and governments. Such services include, among others, due diligence reviews, project feasibility studies, financial modelling, model audits and valuation.
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Forensic advisory
Our forensic advisory services include assessing your vulnerability to fraud and identifying fraud risk factors, and recommending practical solutions to eliminate the gaps. We also provide investigative services to detect and quantify fraud and corruption and to trace assets and data that may have been lost in a fraud event.
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Cyber advisory
Our focus is to help you identify and manage the cyber risks you might be facing within your organization. Our team can provide detailed, actionable insight that incorporates industry best practices and standards to strengthen your cybersecurity position and help you make informed decisions.
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ProActive Hotline
Providing support in preventing and detecting fraud by creating a safe and secure whistleblowing system to promote integrity and honesty in the organisation.
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Accounting services
At P&A Grant Thornton, we handle accounting services for several companies from a wide range of industries. Our approach is highly flexible. You may opt to outsource all your accounting functions, or pass on to us choice activities.
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Staff augmentation services
We offer Staff Augmentation services where our staff, under the direction and supervision of the company’s officers, perform accounting and accounting-related work.
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Payroll Processing
Payroll processing services are provided by P&A Grant Thornton Outsourcing Inc. More and more companies are beginning to realize the benefits of outsourcing their noncore activities, and the first to be outsourced is usually the payroll function. Payroll is easy to carve out from the rest of the business since it is usually independent of the other activities or functions within the Accounting Department.
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Our values
Grant Thornton prides itself on being a values-driven organisation and we have more than 38,500 people in over 130 countries who are passionately committed to these values.
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Global culture
Our people tell us that our global culture is one of the biggest attractions of a career with Grant Thornton.
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Learning & development
At Grant Thornton we believe learning and development opportunities allow you to perform at your best every day. And when you are at your best, we are the best at serving our clients
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Global talent mobility
One of the biggest attractions of a career with Grant Thornton is the opportunity to work on cross-border projects all over the world.
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Diversity
Diversity helps us meet the demands of a changing world. We value the fact that our people come from all walks of life and that this diversity of experience and perspective makes our organisation stronger as a result.
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In the community
Many Grant Thornton member firms provide a range of inspirational and generous services to the communities they serve.
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Behind the Numbers: People of P&A Grant Thornton
Discover the inspiring stories of the individuals who make up our vibrant community. From seasoned veterans to fresh faces, the Purple Tribe is a diverse team united by a shared passion.
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Fresh Graduates
Fresh Graduates
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Students
Whether you are starting your career as a graduate or school leaver, P&A Grant Thornton can give you a flying start. We are ambitious. Take the fact that we’re the world’s fastest-growing global accountancy organisation. For our people, that means access to a global organisation and the chance to collaborate with more than 40,000 colleagues around the world. And potentially work in different countries and experience other cultures.
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Experienced hires
P&A Grant Thornton offers something you can't find anywhere else. This is the opportunity to develop your ideas and thinking while having your efforts recognised from day one. We value the skills and knowledge you bring to Grant Thornton as an experienced professional and look forward to supporting you as you grow you career with our organisation.
Last two minutes to adopt PFRS 9
05 Dec 2018This past week has been a roller-coaster ride of emotions for Filipino sports fans like myself. The University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, after more than three decades, are finally back in the UAAP Men’s Basketball finals against the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles. The jubilation was somewhat dampened by the heartbreaking losses of our national basketball team, Gilas, against Kazakhstan and Ira while our national football team, the Azkals, lost the first leg of their semifinals match against Vietnam.
Life as a sports fan can sometimes be emotionally taxing, even irrational at times.
My desire to enjoy being a fan without much emotional investment led me to fantasy sports. Fantasy sports, such as fantasy basketball, allows fans to simulate the role of the general manager of their own basketball team. I will join a league composed of other individuals whom I may or may not know; we will compete using real National Basketball Association (NBA) players that we put together to complete our respective teams.
Our individual performance in our fantasy league, whether you win or lose, depends on the actual performance of the players in our fantasy teams. I create and modify the composition of my team based on three factors: first, the player’s performance during past NBA seasons; second, the player’s current performance; and third, the player’s projected performance for the remainder of the NBA season. There are trillions of internet statistics and analyses that can help me make decisions about my team. As a sports fan, participating in fantasy basketball leagues is less emotional than rooting for a real-life team. Decisions made within fantasy basketball are mostly based on historical and projected data, but still allow a participant to make use of one’s expert judgment.
Fantasy basketball, or at least the factors considered in decision making, is much like an entity’s expected credit loss (ECL) model. The ECL model was brought about by the adoption of Philippine Financial Reporting Standards (PFRS) 9, Financial Instruments, in the Philippines beginning Jan. 1, 2018. The ECL model allows an entity to measure the required amount of provision as it holds financial instruments that are either measured at amortized costs or at fair value through other comprehensive income (FVOCI). Under this impairment model, entities recognize impairment losses even prior to the incurrence of a credit event. This means that, even in the absence of any indications of impairment, entities are required to recognize impairment losses on its receivables. By now, almost all entities in the Philippines that are preparing their financial statements in accordance with PFRS should already be well underway in creating their respective ECL models in time for the filing of their financial statements no later than April 2019.
Banks and other financial institutions are significantly affected by this new impairment methodology. Entities outside banking, however, are also affected by PFRS 9, even if their financial assets are only composed of cash and trade receivables.
Here are some important reminders to entities reporting under the PFRS framework:
The date of initial application of PFRS 9 is Jan. 1, 2018. Even though an entity will only be computing its impairment requirements using the new ECL model during the last quarter of 2018, an entity still needs to prepare a transition adjustment as of Jan. 1, 2018.
The entity’s trade receivables will also be subject to the new ECL model. Impairment for trade receivables can be measured using a simplified approach. The simplified approach will not require the assessment on the changes of credit risk. However, it will always require the recognition of a lifetime ECL.
Don’t forget to incorporate forward-looking information. One of the significant changes introduced by PFRS 9 compared to the incurred loss model being implemented under Philippine Accounting Standards (PAS) 39 is to include forward-looking information in the model design. This forward-looking information is a component of the ECL model, regardless of whether an entity is using the general approach or the simplified approach.
Equity investments are no longer tested for impairment. Since equity investments are either measured at fair value through profit or loss or FVOCI, there is no need to determine the impairment of these financial instruments.
Offstatement of financial position accounts (e.g., financial guarantee contracts, unused loan commitments) are subject to impairment. Let us say your organization is a parent entity, and one of your subsidiaries obtained a loan from a bank. As part of the subsidiary’s loan agreement, the parent entity committed to guarantee the settlement of the loan. Though the subsidiary pays its loan amortization on time, the parent entity needs to assess the amount of provision it needs to recognize in relation to the financial guarantee contract.
If credit risk information is available at the instrument level, the credit risk assessment can be made on an individual basis at the instrument level. If such credit risk information is not available, though, the credit risk assessment will be made on a collective basis based on shared credit risk characteristics.
No matter how compliant the model is with PFRS 9, if the inputs used by an entity are wrong or insufficient, the result of the ECL model will also be inappropriate. Therefore, those adopting PFRS 9 must identify the limitations and issues with the historical data that will be used in the ECL model so that those can be addressed accordingly. Much like my reliance on historical data to compete in my fantasy sports leagues, the ECL model will also heavily depend on historical information about the behavior and performance of an entity’s receivables portfolio.
Speaking of impairments that would ultimately lead to writing off receivables, I hope my beloved UP Fighting Maroons will not be fully written off in their second match against the Ateneo Blue Eagles later today.
UP fight!
Anton Ng is a Partner for the Audit and Assurance Division of P&A Grant Thornton. P&A Grant Thornton is one of the leading Audit, Tax, Advisory, and Outsourcing firms in the Philippines, with 21 Partners and over 900 staff members. We’d like to hear from you! Tweet us: @PAGrantThornton, like us on Facebook: P&A Grant Thornton, and email your comments to anton.ng@ph.gt.com or pagrantthornton@ph.gt.com. For more information, visit our Website: www.grantthornton.com.ph.