Public stock markets are too small. This book is an effort to rescue public stock markets in the EU and the US. There should be more companies with publicly-traded shares and more direct share ownership. Anchored in a broad historical study of the regulation of stock markets and companies in Europe and the US, the book proposes ways to create a new regulatory regime designed to help firms and facilitate people’s capitalism. Through its comparative and historical study of regulation and legal practices, the book helps to understand the evolution of public stock markets from the nineteenth century to the present day. The book identifies design principles that reflect prior regulation. While continental European company law has produced many enduring design principles, the recent regulation of stock markets in the EU and the US has failed to serve the needs of both firms and retail investors. The book therefore proposes a new set of design principles to serve contemporary societal needs.

During the 1960s and 1970s a remarkable series of books was produced by academic staff in the field of accounting at the University of Sydney. It was a period when academic research was largely analytical rather than empirically-based. For the most part, the interests of academics at Sydney were largely directed at questioning the status quo - either in the way accounting or auditing was practiced, or in the conventional wisdom expressed in textbooks of the time. The Sydney Accounting Classics series reflects the diversity of interests of the 'Sydney school' at that time. It also recognises the tremendous impact of the foundation professor of accounting, R.J. Chambers. This reprint series ensures that the ideas developed during this period remain available to new generations of scholars and researchers. The Sydney Accounting Classics series is an initiative of the Accounting Foundation, in association with Sydney University Press. Auditing as Independent Authentication: From the cover of the 1987 edition: 'This is a penetrating exposition of the role of auditing in controlling quality of the financial information on which any interested person may assess the performance and prospects of firms'.

This highly regarded reference is relied on by a considerable part of the accounting profession in their day-to-day work. This handbook is the first place many accountants look to find answers to practice questions. Its comprehensive scope is widely recognized and relied on. It is designed as a single reference source that provides answers to all reasonable questions on accounting and financial reporting asked by accountants, auditors, bankers, lawyers, financial analysts, and other preparers and users of accounting information.