Fair value accounting: not so bad after all

There is an excellent write-up at The Baseline Scenario recapping the SEC’s defense of fair value accounting and mark-to-market in particular.

The SEC should be applauded — even during these times of Ponzi schemes and short sale schizophrenia — for having the sensibility to keep fair value accounting in place during the height of the myopia. There were a LOT of people supporting its suspension on a daily basis, from CNBC talking heads to Wall Street Journal opinion articles. Thankfully, the SEC understood the alternative was worse.

January 4th, 2009