What is Financial Reporting (2024)

Financial reporting (definition)

Financial reporting aims to track, analyse and report your business income. This helps you and any investors make informed decisions about how to manage the business.

These reports examine resource usage and cash flow to assess the financial health of the business.

Types of financial reports

1. Provide information to investors

Investors want to know how cash is being reinvested in the business, and how efficiently capital is being used. Financial reporting helps investors decide whether your business is a good place for their cash.

2. Track cash flow

Where is your business’s money coming from and where is it going? Is the business making a profit or a loss? The answers to these show how well your business is performing, and whether it can cover its debts and continue to grow.

3. Analyse assets, liabilities and owner's equity

By monitoring these, and any changes to them, you can work out what to expect in the future, and the growth potential for the business.

Financial reports adhere to a group of taxation, accounting and legal requirements, called the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). This is so a business’s finances can be understood all over the world – a necessity with the increase of global companies and international shareholders. The US is currently an exception to this as companies there are required to use the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP).

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Disclaimer

This glossary is for small business owners. The definitions are written with their requirements in mind. More detailed definitions can be found in accounting textbooks or from an accounting professional. Xero does not provide accounting, tax, business or legal advice.

What is Financial Reporting (2024)

FAQs

What is financial reporting in simple words? ›

Financial reporting is the process of producing financial statements that disclose an organization's financial status to stakeholders, including management, investors, creditors and regulatory agencies.

What is financial reporting quizlet? ›

Financial Reporting (purpose) provide financial information about the reporting entity that is useful to present and potential equity, investors, lenders, and other creditors in decisions about providing resources to the entity. Objective of Financial Reporting.

What is the main objective of financial reporting? ›

The objective of financial reporting is to provide financial information about the reporting entity that is useful to existing and potential investors, lenders, and other creditors in making decisions about providing resources to the entity. Financial reporting requires policy choices and estimates.

What is good financial reporting? ›

High-quality financial reporting provides information that is useful to analysts in assessing a company's performance and prospects. Low-quality financial reporting contains inaccurate, misleading, or incomplete information.

What is a summary of a financial report? ›

A summary financial report can be visualized as a bird's-eye view of a company's financial terrain. Unlike exhaustive reports that delve deep into the numbers, this summary highlights the key aspects: revenue, expenses, cash flow, assets, liabilities and equity.

What is the general purpose of financial reporting? ›

General purpose financial reports are not designed to show the value of a reporting entity; but they provide information to help existing and potential investors, lenders and other creditors to estimate the value of the reporting entity.

What are financial reports that summarize? ›

financial reports that summarize the financial condition and operations of a business are called financial statements.

What happens in financial reporting? ›

Financial reporting helps businesses track where their money is coming from and where it has been spent. From an accurate record of financial transactions and key financial KPIs, like cash flow, businesses can conduct better long term strategic planning.

What is a financial reporting role? ›

A Financial Reporting Accountant prepares financial statements and reports needed for a business to comply with regulatory requirements. Organizes and presents financial reports to company managers.

What is the focus of financial reporting? ›

Financial reporting focuses on compiling and organizing financial information, whereas accounting refers to interpreting, analyzing, and making decisions based on that information to ensure a business's financial health.

What is financial accounting in simple words? ›

Financial Accounting is the process of recording, summarizing and reporting transactions and revenue-expense generations in a time period. For example, investors or sponsors need to verify an account statement before showing interest in associating with the business.

What is the primary purpose of the financial report? ›

One, the primary objective of financial reporting is to provide useful information so that investors, creditors and other users can make rational decisions.

What is the importance of financial reporting? ›

Financial reporting allows finance teams and the business to track and analyze cash inflows and outflows to help identify current and future cash flow risks. This ensures the organization has sufficient cash flow to grow the business and take advantage of opportunities when they arise.

What is financial reporting in simple terms? ›

Financial reporting is the way businesses communicate financial data to external and internal stakeholders. External stakeholders — like regulatory agencies, current and potential shareholders and investors, and lenders — use financial reports to draw conclusions about a company's current and future financial health.

What is the purpose of financial information? ›

Financial statements provide a snapshot of a corporation's financial health, giving insight into its performance, operations, and cash flow. Financial statements are essential since they provide information about a company's revenue, expenses, profitability, and debt.

What is an example of a financial report? ›

An example of financial reporting would be a company's annual report, which typically includes the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement. The report may be released to the public, regulators, and/or creditors.

What is a financial statement in simple terms? ›

Financial statements are a set of documents that show your company's financial status at a specific point in time. They include key data on what your company owns and owes and how much money it has made and spent.

What are the 4 types of financial reporting? ›

There are four primary types of financial statements:
  • Balance sheets.
  • Income statements.
  • Cash flow statements.
  • Statements of shareholders' equity.
Nov 1, 2023

What is financial information in simple words? ›

Simply put, financial information is anything related to the financial activities and performance of a business. Most often, this information is collected through financial statements or reports that cover a specific aspect of a business's finances, such as cash flow and profitability.

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