The American Bankers Association on Tuesday said it was generally pleased with a proposal by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to revise accounting standards to require certain cryptoassets be measured at fair value. In its comments, ABA noted the FASB proposal was responsive to recommendations the association made in 2021 to address the current standards that require a lower of cost or fair value model, which does not reflect the economics of the investment. Still, the association saw room for improvement and recommended changes to clarify the proposed standard and reduce compliance cost.
ABA also highlighted that by design the proposed standard does not address the accounting requirements outlined in the Securities Exchange Commission’s Staff Accounting Bulletin 121 (SAB 121). However, ABA highlighted that the commission should consider developing accounting standards in the application of SAB 121 and, specifically, use the gained knowledge of FASB’s work on this proposal to refine the current scope of SAB 121.