ASC 230 Statement of Cash Flows: What You Need to Know

If you’re like most business owners, you’re probably looking for ways to improve your financial statement. Well, look no further! ASC 230 Statement of Cash Flows is a critical component of financial statement analysis. This Topic provides guidance on reporting cash flows in general purpose financial statements and provides information about where to find guidance related to industry-specific issues. In this blog post, we will discuss the basics of the Statement of Cash Flows and how it can be improved. Stay tuned!

What is GAAP?

GAAP is a common set of accounting principles, standards, and procedures. Public companies in the United States must follow GAAP when they compile their financial statements. To that end, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) maintains GAAP. Moreover, the board issues new rules as necessary to ensure that GAAP remains up-to-date.

Where Can I Research GAAP?

FASB provides free online access to the Accounting Standards Codification, which is the only authoritative source for US GAAP. FASB and the AICPA also provide access to other authoritative literature that supplements the GAAP Hierarchy.

To access the Accounting Standards Codification, visit asc.fasb.org. Anyone can access the codes using a basic account. For more advanced features you can set up a professional account. To that end, if you work at a company subject to GAAP rules, your company likely has a professional account.

What is ASC 230?

ASC 230 is a set of guidelines that public companies in the United States must follow when compiling their financial statements. The guidelines cover the basics of presenting a company’s statement of cash flows.

• 230-10 provides an overview of presenting the statement of cash flows
• 230-830 provides additional detail on the treatment of foreign currency
• 230-915 provides guidance on the treatment of companies in development
• 230-920 / 230-926 provide guidance for the entertainment industry
• 230-942 / 230-946 provide guidance for the financial services industry
• 230-958 provides guidance for non-profit companies
• 230-970 / 230-978 provides guidance for real estate

What Is A Statement of Cash Flows?

The statement of cash flows is one of the three primary financial statements that companies use to report their financial performance. The other two are the balance sheet and income statement.

The statement of cash flows reports a company’s inflows and outflows of cash during a given period. It has three sections: operating activities, investing activities, and financing activities.

Operating Activities

Operating activities are a company’s core business activities. For example, things like selling products or services, manufacturing goods, and providing services.

Investing Activities

Investing activities are a company’s non-operating activities. For example, things like buying or selling property, plant, and equipment (PP&E), investing in other companies and making loans.

Financing Activities

Financing activities are a company’s activities that involve raising or spending cash. For example, things like issuing bonds, selling shares of stock, and taking out loans.

Why Does It Matter?

The presentation and disclosure of financial statements can have a major impact on the decisions made by users of those statements. For example, if a company or individual is considering investing in another company, the investor will want to know the total income of that company and how it may impact future returns.

ASC 230 follows the framework set by ASC 205 and requires companies to adequately disclose and present their statement of cash flows at a certain level of detail. This section specifically requires the level of detail in your presentation. To that end, the more complex your business, the more disclosures the codes require.

This section ensures that investors have enough information to make informed decisions and that companies cant mask their performance.

ASC 230 specifically covers the following:

1. Classifying in the statement of cash flows of cash receipts and payments as either operating activities, investing activities, or financing activities
2. Applying the direct method and the indirect method of reporting cash flows
3. Presenting the required information about noncash investing and financing activity and other events
4. Classifying cash receipts and payments related to hedging activities.

Let’s Recap

If you’re not already familiar with ASC 230, then you should know that it’s a set of guidelines that public companies in the United States must follow when compiling their financial statements. The guidelines cover the basics of presenting a company’s statement of cash flows.

ASC 230 is important because it ensures that investors have enough information to make informed decisions and that companies can’t mask their performance.

Have any questions? Are there other topics you would like us to cover? Leave a comment below and let us know! Make sure to subscribe to our Newsletter to receive exclusive financial news right to your inbox.