The impact is likely to surpass that of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the tough anti-corporate fraud law of the Enron era that cost individual businesses millions of dollars in accounting fees. Whether U.S. companies like it or not, the new era of global accounting appears unstoppable, and businesses that ignore the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) will fall behind.

SEC Chairman Christopher Cox has called the move "a revolutionary development" that will streamline global reporting standards and create "a true lingua franca" for accounting. Business leaders such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce say it would help the USA compete in the world economy, leading to more cross-border commerce.