By James Hamilton, J.D., LL.M.
The UK Financial Services Authority has announced that it will not be requiring use of XBRL. One of the reasons given was that, unlike other regulators, the FSA is not required to provide or facilitate access to such corporate disclosures. Thus, one of the main benefits of XBRL as a firm-oriented technology would not be realized. The FSA has opted to use standard XML since it is an established technology in the UK’s financial services industry and expertise is readily available in the UK.
However, the FSA said it will monitor the development of XBRL and it may become appropriate to reassess its position in relation to XBRL. The FSA is already taking steps to ensure that the XML-based architecture that it develops would support XBRL transformation should the future need arise.
Meanwhile, in recent remarks, Martin Wheatly, CEO of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, asked investors if they would support development of the tools necessary to enable Hong Kong listed companies to issue XBRL reports. If the necessary infrastructure was provided, he queried, would companies take the time and incur the costs needed to prepare financial reports in a machine-readable form
In September 2006, the SEC announced that it will invest $54 million to transform its public company disclosure system from a form-based electronic filing cabinet to a dynamic real-time search tool with interactive capabilities using XBRL.