Determinants of IFRS for SMES Adoption Worldwide

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to analyze whether there is a relationship between macroeconomic factors and the adoption of IFRS for SMEs in order to help answer the question of why some countries adopt IFRS for SMEs while others do not. We used logistic regression analysis to investigate 150 countries, including 85 jurisdictions that have adopted IFRS for SMEs. The main results indicate that a country is more likely to adopt IFRS for SMEs if it has an unfavorable political climate and a non-Anglo-Saxon culture. Nonetheless, there is no evidence that the country’s economic growth, the existence of a capital market, the educational level, and the legal system are associated with the decision to adopt IFRS for SMEs.

This study contributes to a better understanding of the factors influencing the adoption of IFRS for SMEs on a country level and could be used to predict a country’s decision to adopt this standard. It also adds to the literature on international accounting harmonization by examining country-level determinants that influence the adoption of IFRS for SMEs by all companies.