The Financial Services Authority will not follow the Securities and Exchange Commission in probing backdated stock options, according to Joseph Eyre, spokesman for the U.K. regulator. Eyre said current listing rules in the U.K. were sufficient and had created a sufficiently transparent system. These include strict requirements for shareholder backing on the issuing of stock options and the publication of such options in company annual reports, he added. The investigation by the SEC and criminal authorities involves whether companies manipulated dates of when they issued options to executives. The U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is currently reviewing whether to take any action in this area regarding accounting firms (CR, 7/24). The PCAOB has indicated that accountants are responsible for auditing accurately stock option grants.
