Understanding XBRL

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Understanding XBRL Hendrika Tibbits University
Western Sydney and Jim Richards Murdoch University
Co- Chairs Education Working Group XBRL
Australia Limited
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Agenda

• A Brief History of XBRL
• Introduction to XBRL
• XBRL Australia Limited
• An Overview of the XBRL Process
• Workshop exercise Why International?
• Discussion of the solutions
• How it will affect the Accounting profession
• Current and Future developments
• Key Websites for further information

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A Brief History of XBRL

• October 1999
• XBRL committee formed
• More than a dozen member organisations in USA
• April 2000
• Released first specification for public comment
• July 2000
• First taxonomy released in the USA

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A Brief History of XBRL

• December 2000
• Membership gt70 organisations
• February 2001
• First IASB draft taxonomy released
• Membership gt100 internationally,
• UK XBRL launched

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A Brief History of XBRL

• June 2001
• XBRL for US GAAP Financial Statements
• XBRL harmonised with new W3C Recommendations
• XBRL for GL announced
• August 2001
• APRA announce XBRL project
• October 2001
• XBRL Australia and Japan launched

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A Brief History of XBRL

• December 2001
• Specification 2.0 released
• January 2002
• XBRL Australia Limited formed
• February 2002
• IASB Taxonomy publicly released
• Recognised XBRL jurisdictions include
• Australia, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan,
  Singapore, UK
• Many others following shortly in Europe, China
  and Taiwan

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Introduction to XBRL

• eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL)
• global effort to build the digital language of
  business
• participants of the business reporting supply
  chain
  (www.xbrl.org)

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Business Reporting Supply Chain
Processes
Participants
Adapted from XBRL for CFOs (www.xbrl.org)
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Introduction to XBRL

• eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL)
• Communicate financial information
• Without the need to re-key data
• Easier and cheaper than EDI
• Create digital version of any financial
  information using a common language

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Introduction to XBRL

• XBRL is built upon
• eXtensible Markup Language (XML)
• Free public standard for defining data sharing,
  publishing, and exchange systems
  (Hoffman Strand, p. 1.)
• Separates information from style
• Single source can be output to any format

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Introduction to XBRL

• The foundation of XBRL is XML
• Recommendation of the World Wide Web Consortium
  (W3C) (www.w3c.org)
• Next step up from HTML
• Mark-up-language has been given added benefits by
  including user-definable tags
• Tags are understood by a wide variety of computer
  programs and operating systems
• It allows more relevant searches once data has
  been tagged with XML
• Transferring data becomes easier

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Introduction to XBRL

• How many people here today have read or heard
  about XBRL?

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Transfer of financial data

• Financial Information on the Internet
• Easier to access financial data from than hard
  copy
• Finding the information requires precise searches
• Without XBRL transfer of Financial information
  needs to be re-keyed
• Financial Statements produced with XBRL can be
  downloaded into a software package such as Excel
• Allows for faster evaluation of data as XBRL
  separates information from style

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Today A Convoluted Information Supply Chain
Operational Data Stores
Investors
Corp.
Auditor
Adapted from XBRL for CFOs (www.xbrl.org)
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With XBRL Multiple Outputs from a Single
Specification
Printed Financials
Accounting System
Regulatory Filings
XBRL
Web Site
Tax Returns
Other Sources of Information
Bank Filings
Source XBRL for CFOs (www.xbrl.org)
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XBRL Information flow TO stakeholders
XBRL
Source XBRL for CFOs (www.xbrl.org)
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XBRL Working Model Achieved and Planned
Specifications
Internal
Investment
Business
Processes
Processes
Financial
Financial
and Lending
Operations
Reporting
Reporting
Analysis
Financial
Publishers
Companies
Investors
Participants
Participants
and Data
Aggregators
Trading
Management
Auditors
Regulators
Partners
Accountants
Software Vendors
Adapted from XBRL for CFOs (www.xbrl.org)
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XBRL Australia

• Hosted 3rd XBRL International Symposium
• Launched October 2001 (www.xbrl.org.au)
• XBRL Australia Limited
• Formed January 2002
• Shareholders
• CPA Australia
• ICAA
• Members include banks, major accounting firms,
  universities, professional bodies, government
  agencies, computing consultants, ASX

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XBRL Australia

• Organisational Structure
• Steering Committee
• Working Groups
• Each has co-chairs
• STRAT(egy)
• LIAIS(on)
• DOM(ain)
• EDUC(ation)
• SPEC(ification)
• Yahoo Groups

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Overview of the XBRL process
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Workshop ExerciseWhy XBRL Needs to be an
International ProcessBuilding a Taxonomy
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Overview of the XBRL process
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How XBRL will affect the Accounting profession

• Streamlines financial information supply chain
• Gives accounting firms and accountants a
  competitive edge
• Knowledge of XBRL
• Enhances relationships with clients
• Generates increased revenues through value added
  activities
• Positions them as premier knowledge
  professionals

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How XBRL will affect the Accounting profession

• XBRL relies on existing accounting standards
• Regular statement formats can continue to be used
• Simplification through XBRL will improve
  flexibility

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Recent developments

• Australia
• Draft CFS Taxonomy released 30th April 2002
• International
• XBRL General Ledger Taxonomy released February
  for public discussion internationally
• IAS CFS draft Taxonomy released April 2002

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Recent developments

• UK IRS to accept XBRL filings for 2003-2004
• GE adopted XBRL for end-of-year consolidation
• 150 distinct GL systems
• Incompatible
• XBRL solution will streamline process

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Future developments

• Availability of software tools
• Further XBRL specifications to move backwards
  through the supply chain
• Additional jurisdictional taxonomies
• Danish currently under development
• Updates to specification as XML develops
• Security/encryption solutions

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Where to Get More Information

• XBRL Australia Website
• http//www.xbrl-au.org
• XBRL Website
• http//www.XBRL.org
• CPA Australia
• http//www.cpaonline.com.au/
• Institute Chartered Accountants Australia
• http//www.icaa.org.au/

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Where to Get More Information

• CFO Magazine, How the Web was Won
• http//www.cfonet.com/html/Articles/CFO/2000/00FEh
  owt.html
• Scientific American, XML and the
  Second-Generation Web
• http//www.sciam.com/1999/0599issue/0599bosak.html
  
• FASBs Electronic Distribution of Business
  Reporting Information
• http//www.rutgers.edu/Accounting/raw/fasb
• IASCs Business Reporting on the Internet
• http//www.iasc.org.uk/frame/cen3_26.htm

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Where to Get More Information

• Books on XBRL
• Available
• Hoffman and Strand
• XBRL Essentials
• Publisher - AICPA
• Forthcoming
• Hannon and Coffin
• Understanding XBRL
• Publisher - Prentice-Hall
• Watson and Vasarhelyi
• Essentials of XBRL
• Publisher - John Wiley

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Thank you for your attendance and attention Time
for Questions
XBRL Australia Limited would like to thank the
National Office of the Information Economy for
their support in assisting in the development of
this initiative.