New data tags promise better information for investors
XBRL US invites investors, creators and other users of mutual fund and other investment company information to review and comment on the draft dictionaries of financial and business terms (taxonomy) for the risk/return section of mutual fund prospectuses and the schedule of investments.
XBRL US, the national consortium for XML standards for business and financial information reporting, announced that they had completed the set of data elements which will be used to put key mutual fund information contained in the risk/return summary section of the prospectus, as well as investment company portfolio holdings information, in structured data format.
XML-based data tags will make mutual fund and investment company data more useable, searchable and extractable, resulting in a higher level of accountability from mutual funds and other investment management companies and better quality reporting, so that investors are better able to make informed and responsible decisions with confidence.
The risk/return summary contains key information about a fund’s investment objectives and strategies, costs, risks, and past performance. Mutual funds and other investment companies are required to disclose their portfolio holdings in their schedule of investments as part of their financial statements. XBRL formatting of this content may make mutual fund disclosure more accurate and improve accessibility for investors and others. The data elements are now available on the XBRL US Web site (http://xbrl.us/imtaxonomies). All users and creators of investment company information are encouraged to download the full taxonomy or review it in an XBRL Review Tool that allows visitors to provide comments on the individual elements. Comments received will be reviewed and potentially incorporated into the final taxonomy that is likely to be used in mutual fund filing starting in 2009. The comment period will close on November 24, 2008.
The terms developed were created under contract with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). On June 10, 2008, the SEC published a rule proposal that would require mutual funds to submit their risk/return summary information as tagged exhibits with their registration statements. The rule proposal would also extend the SEC’s voluntary interactive data filing program to permit investment companies to submit voluntarily their schedule of investments on a stand-alone basis.
“We strongly encourage users and producers of data for mutual funds and other investment vehicles to review and comment on these taxonomies,” said David Blaszkowsky, Director of the Office of Interactive Disclosure, Securities and Exchange Commission, “Interactive data will make important fund information more discoverable and usable, and thereby help investors make better, more informed decisions.”
The taxonomies are built on the framework developed by XBRL US for the US GAAP Taxonomies which were completed in April 2008 and continues to widen the footprint of XBRL for business information reporting.
“The XBRL framework is a solid foundation for building useful and eventually interoperable taxonomies for business reporting,” said Campbell Pryde, Chief Standards Officer, XBRL US, “XML for business reporting is not just about US GAAP. The Mutual Fund Risk/Return Taxonomy and the Schedule of Investments Taxonomy are two more viable applications that show how XBRL can make it easier for investors to get the answers they need.”
The taxonomies and sample XBRL-formatted documents will be available at http://xbrl.us/imtaxonomies. Comments concerning definitions of the elements as well as elements that should be added or revised can be submitted using an XBRL review tool that is posted online.
The taxonomies and Preparers Guide for the XBRL US GAAP Taxonomies can be viewed at http://xbrl.us/pages/us-gaap.aspx. Public company financial executives can find out more about how to get started creating XBRL-formatted financials, register for free educational webcast programs and get information on the breadth of tools and services available at www.xbrl.us.
About XBRL
XBRL (Extensible Business ReportingLanguage) is a royalty-free, open specification for software that uses XML data tags to describe business and financial information for public and private companies and other organizations. XBRL benefits all members of the information supply chain by utilizing a standards-based method with which users can prepare, publish in a variety of formats, exchange and analyze financial statements and the information they contain. XBRL International is a non-profit consortium of approximately 550 organizations worldwide working together to build the XBRL language and promote and support its adoption. XBRL International is responsible for the technical XBRL specification and each country-specific jurisdiction works to facilitate the development and adoption of local XBRL taxonomies, or dictionaries, consistent with accounting, regulatory, and market standards and practices.
About XBRL US
XBRL US is the non-profit consortium for XML business reporting standards in the United States and is a jurisdiction of XBRL International. It represents the business information supply chain, including accounting firms, software companies, financial databases, financial printers and government agencies. Its mission is to support the implementation of XML business reporting standards through the development of taxonomies relevant for use by US public and private sectors, working with a goal of interoperability between sectors, and by promoting adoption of these taxonomies through the collaboration of all business reporting supply chain participants. XBRL US has developed taxonomies to support U.S. GAAP and common reporting practices under a contract with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The XBRL US GAAP Taxonomies are available for review at http://xbrl.us/pages/us-gaap.aspx.
Source: XBRL US, Inc.
CONTACT:
Michelle Savage, Vice President, Communication, XBRL US, Inc.
(917)747 1714
michelle.savage@xbrl.us
links:
xbrl.us
XBRL US Taxonomies for Mutual Fund Risk/Return Summary and Schedule of Investments
XBRL US GAAP Taxonomies and supporting documentation
SEC Rule proposal announcement
