Value allocation – contribution and risk to the reliability of financial reporting

Our study argues in favor of the reliability of fair value estimates for correct decision making by the stakeholders of the financial reporting market. The analysis is singularized to emergent contexts, as the Romanian market is the case study, and it is focused on the process of value allocation between the components of a group of assets. Having an application on fixed assets, the paper shows how fair value estimation is critical and implies risks on such an atypical market. The process of value allocation may bring a high level of arbitrariness to fair value accounting, this being crucial to apply correctly the valuation methodology in relation to the nature of the asset and market information available, and the selection of the allocation keys. The empirics of our study show a consistent expertise of Romanian valuators, as the most frequently used method for value allocation is the deduction of the value of those assets that was estimated based on the market approach, and not the values that were estimated based on the cost or income approach. Other findings show the frequent use of replacement cost, gross or net, to the detriment of book value, a very important aspect for an emergent market, even more so as revaluation in Romania does not guarantee that dedicated valuation methodology was used. These results are all the more important as land and buildings were the majority of fixed assets valuated, with the highest values as a result of the real estate bubble prior to the financial crisis, and with an essential role in the activity of the companies.