Financial asset

A general definition/description is:

A financial asset is a tangible liquid asset that gets its value from a contractual claim. Cash, stocks, bonds, bank deposits and the like are examples of financial assets. Unlike land, property, commodities or other tangible physical assets, financial assets do not necessarily have inherent physical worth. See also general information on Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_asset

For IFRS financial reporting purposes financial assets  exclude cash and cash equivalents, trade and other receivables, biological assets carried at fair value through profit or loss and  investments in associates.

In general under IFRS financial-assets comprise:

• financial-assets at amortised cost
• financial-assets at fair value through profit or loss;
• financial-assets  at fair value through other comprehensive income;
• Derivatives in a hybrid contract that contains a financial-asset, as the host, in the scope of IFRS 9 [IFRS 9 4.3.2];
• Loans and receivables (IAS 39, deleted in IFRS 9, but may be voluntarily used);
• Held-to-maturity financial-assets (IAS 39, deleted in IFRS 9, but may be voluntarily used);
• Available-for-sale financial-assets (IAS 39, deleted in IFRS 9, but may be voluntarily used).

Other commonly used names for IFRS financial-assets comprise:

• Investments in associates and joint arrangements (valued using the equity method);
• Other investments (valued at amortised cost or using the equity method).

See also what is useful information and more details to present useful information for guidance to separate or combine financial reporting lines in the main financial statements or notes thereto.

---

Classification of financial-assets:

---

Financial assets at amortized costs

A financial-asset is measured at amortized cost if both of the following criteria are met:

• The asset is held to collect its contractual cash flows; and
• The asset’s contractual cash flows represent ‘solely payments of principal and interest’ (“SPPI”).

financial-assets included within this category are initially recognized at fair value and subsequently measured at amortized cost.

Financial assets fair value through other comprehensive income

A financial-asset is measured at fair value through other comprehensive income (“FVOCI”) if both of the following criteria are met:

• The objective of the business model is achieved both by collecting contractual cash flows and selling financial-assets; and
• The asset’s contractual cash flows represent SPPI.

financial-assets included within the FVOCI category are initially recognized and subsequently measured at fair value. Movements in the carrying amount should be recorded through OCI, except for the recognition of impairment gains or losses, interest revenue and foreign exchange gains and losses which are recognized in profit and loss.

Where the financial-asset is derecognized, the cumulative gain or loss previously recognized in OCI is reclassified from equity/other comprehensive income to profit or loss (‘recycled’).

Financial assets fair value through profit or loss

Under IFRS 9, fair value through profit or loss is the residual category. financial-assets should be classified as fair value through profit or loss if they do not meet the criteria of FVOCI or amortized cost. financial-assets included within the fair value through profit or loss category should be measured at fair value with all changes recorded through profit or loss.

IAS 32 Financial Instruments: Presentation

A financial-asset is any asset that is:

1. cash;
2. an equity instrument of another entity;
3. a contractual right:
   1. to receive cash or another financial asset from another entity; or
   2. to exchange financial assets or financial liabilities with another entity under conditions that are potentially favourable to the entity; or
4. a contract that will or may be settled in the entity’s own equity instruments and is:
   1. a non-derivative for which the entity is or may be obliged to receive a variable number of the entity’s own equity instruments; or
   2. a derivative that will or may be settled other than by the exchange of a fixed amount of cash or another financial-asset for a fixed number of the entity’s own equity instruments. For this purpose the entity’s own equity instruments do not include puttable financial instruments classified as equity instruments in accordance with IAS 32 paragraphs 16A and 16B, instruments that impose on the entity an obligation to deliver to another party a pro rata share of the net assets of the entity only on liquidation and are classified as equity instruments in accordance with IAS 32 paragraphs 16C and 16D, or instruments that are contracts for the future receipt or delivery of the entity’s own equity instruments.

Financial asset