NEWS RELEASE 09/17/12

Representatives of the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the Accounting Standards Board of Japan Hold Biannual Meeting

Norwalk, CT, September 17, 2012—Representatives of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the Accounting Standards Board of Japan (ASBJ) met on September 13 and 14, 2012, in Tokyo, Japan. This meeting was the thirteenth in a series of biannual meetings between the FASB and the ASBJ.

The FASB has been actively holding joint meetings with the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) to improve and converge U.S. GAAP and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

The ASBJ supports this effort by the FASB and the IASB towards developing high-quality global accounting standards and has been actively involved with their ongoing developments.

At this meeting, the FASB and the ASBJ provided updates on their recent activities, respectively, and exchanged views on the opportunities for continuing cooperation among the interested organizations, including national accounting standard-setters.

The FASB and the ASBJ also discussed the following projects currently under the deliberations by the FASB and the IASB:

Furthermore, the FASB and the ASBJ exchanged views on the FASB´s Invitation to Comment, Disclosure Framework, and several research topics.

The ASBJ and the FASB agreed that they would continue to exchange views on issues faced and potential future concerns.

Leslie F. Seidman, Chairman of the FASB, stated, "We look forward to continuing to work cooperatively with the ASBJ to share information about financial reporting. For many years, the FASB and the ASBJ have met periodically to share our technical perspectives, as well as the views of companies, auditors and others in our countries. The FASB and the ASBJ are both active participants in the International Forum of Accounting Standard Setters, and I know we find those meetings relevant and helpful in working through issues. We envision that the IASB can leverage the progress of strong national or regional standard setters to advance the development of standards in other areas."

Ikuo Nishikawa, Chairman of the ASBJ, stated, "We had productive discussions with the representatives of the FASB regarding the common concerns within both the U.S. and Japan in relation to the development of global accounting standards, at a time when situations surrounding accounting standards are changing in both countries. We are committed to continue to contribute to the international development of accounting standards by having the opportunity to hold constructive discussions with the FASB, including this biannual meeting."

The next joint meeting is planned in the first half of 2013 in Norwalk.