Business European Journal Of And Management -Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Business European Journal Of And Management? Answer: Introducation Medibank Private Limited is the largest private health insurance provider in Australia. It operates in the health insurance industry. It insures and sells its policies under the brand names: Medibank and AHM. It has around 3.8 Million members and covers 29.1% of the market share. It operates as a public listed company on ASX. It also deals in assisting the health insurance business, thereby earning income from its Complimentary Services. Resources are also retained to compensate its regulatory reserves, which generates monetary benefits from its portfolio of investment assets. Regulatory Authority of the private health insurance sector in Australia The private health insurance sector is regulated by Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) in Australia (APRA, 2018). The organizations operating in the private health insurance sector in Australia have to comply with the APRA rules and Prudential Standards . Also it is mandatory for the private health insurers to provide information under the Financial Sector (Collection of Data) Act, 2001 and its reporting standard to APRA. The organizations have to submit certain forms and follow directions of APRA in this regard (Kokobe Gemechu, 2016). Applicable Financial Framework on Medibank Private Limited The applicable laws and legislations on the Medibank Private Limited are: Auditing and Assurance Standards Board Australian Accounting Standards Board Australian Prudential Regulation Authority Australian Securities and Investment Commission Financial Reporting Council Financial System Inquiry Standard Business Reporting Nature of Companys Operations, its governance structures and its investments The company operates in the private health insurance sector in which it provides health insurance to the people. Along with this, it also provides consultancies for health management and telehealth services for the government and corporate consumers. It also trades in the travel, life and pet insurance products and services. The health insurance business granted 91.6 % of the groups revenue and 95.4 % of the segment operating profit in 2016 (Medibank, 2016). The amount of revenue amounted to 91.9 % whereas the segment operating profit decreased to 93.3 % in 2017 (Medibank, 2017). From the overall income earned by the group in 2016 and 2017, the resident health insurance policies sold to the retail and corporate consumers contributed to 97.8 %. In 2016 and 2017, the investment portfolio was $2.5 Billion comprising of cash and other investments. It provides sufficient cash to cover the insurance obligations and the mandatory reserves to meet claims related to the Health Insurance business (Medibank, 2017). The governance structure of Medibank Private Limited is as follows: Audit committee- It supervises the financial reporting Risk Management Committee- It assesses the organizations present and future risk management. Investment and Capital Committee- It controls the investments and capital management events. People and Remuneration Committee- It supervise the policies related to remuneration and people. Nomination Committee- It controls the overall board and committee membership and hierarchy of the organization. Apart from the committees, the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Leadership Team are accountable for the performance of the company. According to the Medibank (2016) the net income after tax in 2016 amounted to $417 Million while in 2017 it was $ 452 Million. The total assets amounted to $ 3266.2 Million in 2016, while in 2017 it was $ 3462.5 Million (Medibank, 2017).The total liabilities amounted to $ 1578.7 Million in 2016 while in 2017, it was $ 1742.7 Million. The total equity which comprises of Contributed Equity, Reserves and Retained Earnings amounted to $1578.7 Million in 2016 while in 2017; it amounted to $ 1719.8 Million. The organizations investment portfolio comprises of 25 % /75% for growth and defensive assets respectively. The company invests in listed and unlisted securities which are quoted at their fair value. Application of Accounting Policies in Medibank Private Limited The financial statements of the entity are authorized to be issued according to the resolution of the directors. They are prepared for the consolidated entity (Group) comprising of Medibank and its subsidiaries. The statement of accounts has been prepared according to the Historical Cost Convention except the financial assets, land and building and liabilities quoted at their fair value or market price. Also it follows different accounting policies according to its various segments. Entitys Objectives The organization has set the following objectives for achieving better health for the human community as a whole: It aims to diversify the Medibank and AHM products to distribute the best services and consultancy to its consumers. It focuses on developing and offering the leading services to its customers. Also as a part of its corporate social responsibility, it invests $ 4 Million towards childhood obesity. The Medibank Better Health Foundation focuses to develop health awareness in the society. It has evolved ecofriendly policies as it believes that a healthy environment can create healthy humans. It has endeavored to develop the green space in urban areas up to 20% by 2020(Medibank, 2018). Assessment of related Business and Financial Risks The substantial business risk which could influence Medibanks business activities are as follows (Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, 2013): Competition and retaining of consumers: The emergence of new firms, with their partnership with the existing firms can pose a threat to companys existence in the market. The private health insurers and assessment websites compete to retain the consumers regarding price, products, service and channels which results in the diversion of the customers. Health care prices and utilization: The increase in the health care costs can have an impact on product margins. This can lead to reduction in the value of products. Change in the legislations: The change in the government policy and legislations may affect the regulatory incentives, resulting in the decrease in the number of members. Product pricing and design: The products design and prices are subject to governments approval. So, if there is a change in the governments policies, it can pose a threat to the products value. Inappropriate claims: Inappropriate claims may arise due to frauds or errors resulting in the entitys outflow. Capital Management and Investment Returns: The portfolio is subject to market risks which can influence the value of the investment and income volatility. Loss of Healthcare Agreements: Non-fulfillment of the health care agreements may result in poor consumer experiences, loss of brand value and market share. Loss of data: There may be loss of data, procedures and mechanisms in the organization. Also, it may be influenced by cyber-attack (Ridha Alnaji ,2015) The Financial Risk comprises of the following risks: Market rate risk: It comprises of the risk resulting from the variations of fair value or future cash flows of the financial instruments, resulting from the variations in the market prices. It has the following parts: Interest rate risk: The fluctuations in the market interest rates resulting in the variations in the future cash flows is the risk of interest rates. The company is facing the risk of variations in the interest rates in the cash and cash equivalents and fixed income investments. In 2016, $1883.5 Million of the financial assets were exposed to Australian variable interest rate risks (Medibank, 2016). In 2017, the number increased to $ 2167.1 Million (Medibank, 2017). Foreign currency risk: The risk influencing the variations in the foreign exchange rates results in the foreign currency risk. The companys is facing transaction currency exposures, emerging from the purchase in foreign currencies. They comprise of dealings from operational cost within the business and purchase of foreign currency denominated instruments .In 2016, the financial instruments exposed to foreign currency risk amounted to $ 91.6 Million (Medibank, 2016). In 2017, the number decreased to $ 76.4 Million (Medibank, 2017). Price Risk: The risk resulting from the variations of the market prices of the fair value of future cash flows of financial instruments is price risk. The entity is subjected to equity price risk comprising of investments in the infrastructure, property and Australian and international equities (Otieno Nyangechi , 2013). Credit risk: The risk arising from the possible defaults of counterparty is termed as credit risk. The company is facing the credit risk to the amounts equal to its financial assets consisting of cash and cash equivalents and the financial assets at a fair value. Liquidity Risk: The risk faced by the company where it confronts the problems in arranging funds to fulfill its commitments associated with financial instruments. It may result from incapability to sell the financial assets at their fair value, failure of the counter party to repay its contractual liabilities or the company is unable to arrange the funds or an unexpected insurance liability due for payment (Deloitte, 2017). In the overall liquidity risk, the financial assets consist of property, plant and machinery and investments in working capital (OECD, 2014). Identification of Account Balances Subjected to Risk of Material Misstatement Specific account balance (i) (ii) (iii) Name of the account balance Liquidity Risk Credit Risk Price Risk (a) Explain why the account balance is at significant risk of material misstatement. The firm is facing the risk of raising funds to fulfil the obligations concerned with financial instruments. So, it may manipulate the accounts receivables by liquidating them and thereby increasing the amounts of cash and cash equivalents (PWC, 2016). The firm is facing the risk of possible defaults by counterparty, thus it is subjected to the risk of material misstatements. The firm does not have any financial mechanisms to lessen the credit risk .Also all the instruments are unsecured. The management can alter the amounts of the financial assets and project false accounts in the financial reports to show that it applies certain measures to mitigate the risk. The firm is facing the risk of fluctuations in the fair value of the financial instruments .It occurs due to variations in the market prices. As the firm is subjected to price risk in the fixed income investments due to changes in its credit spreads. The management can falsify the value of the investments which are influenced by the price risk. It can manipulate the value of equities in the financial statements (Flynn, 2016). (b) Explain the key assertion at risk of not being valid. Existence - The auditors believe that the amounts of the resources and financial obligations do not exist as stated in the books of accounts. Completeness- The financial events have not been recorded and the revelations are not made in the books of accounts. Accuracy- The auditors have a doubt on the valuations of the assets and liabilities (ACCA, 2016). (c) Detail one (1) relevant substantive audit procedure to address the assertion at risk as identified in b) above. Planning: According to KPMG (2015),the auditors shall analyse the possible risks and frauds by contrasting the various amounts related to accounts receivables. Testing Controls and transactions: The auditors shall evaluate the internal controls and examine the appropriateness of the dealings. Testing Balance: The auditors shall examine the companys performance by using the financial ratios and statistical sampling (ICPAK , 2017). (d) Detail one (1) relevant practical internal control that would mitigate the risk in relation to the assertion at risk as identified in b) above. Reconciliations: Sudden accounting reconciliations can guarantee that the balances in the companys books can match with those of the other entities (KPMG, 2018). Trial Balances: With the help of double entry book keeping system, the reliability regarding the balancing of books of accounts can be ensured. Approval Authority: Specified managers should be allocated the various responsibilities regarding the authenticity of transactions (AICPA, 2014). Conclusion To, conclude, the auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers have conducted an analysis of the financial statements of Medibank Private Limited regarding the assessment of its environment and business risks. It has evaluated its various account balances and stated the results pertaining to its study. They have identified the various risks of substantial mismanagement which can be minimized with the help of key audit procedures (PWC, 2017). The auditors have reviewed various audit policies and procedures complied by the firm with respect to the rules and regulations of the APRA and other legislations as mentioned in the above paragraphs. Also the firm follows the Corporate Governance Principles and has formed various committees for better administration and accomplishment of its strategies and objectives. Also, the environment in which the organization operates is full of vulnerabilities and market fluctuations. So, the auditors have observed all the accounting policies of the organization and with the help of various audit procedures and assertions; they tried to regulate the risks of material misstatements. References ACCA(2016). The Audit of Financial Statement Assertions. Retrieved from https://www.accaglobal.com/in/en/student/exam-support-resources/fundamentals-exams-study-resources/f8/technical-articles/assertions.html# AICPA(2014). The Importance of Internal Control in Financial Reporting and Safeguarding Plan Assets. Retrieved from https://www.aicpa.org/content/dam/aicpa/interestareas/employeebenefitplanauditquality/resources/planadvisories/downloadabledocuments/plan-advisoryinternalcontrol-hires.pdf APRA(2018). About APRA. Retrieved from https://www.apra.gov.au/AboutAPRA/Pages/Default. Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (2013). Auditing Standard ASA 315 Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement through Understanding the Entity and Its Environment. Retrieved from https://www.auasb.gov.au/admin/file/content102/c3/Nov13_Compiled_Auditing_Standard_ASA_315.pdf Deloitte(2017). 2017 Insurance Regulatory Trends. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from https://deloitte.wsj.com/riskandcompliance/2017/03/21/2017-insurance-regulatory-trends/ Flynn, K.(2016). Financial fraud in the private health insurance sector in Australia: perspectives from the industry. Journal of Financial Crime. 23(1).143-158. ICPAK (2017).Conducting Risk Assessment Auditing the Internal Control System. Retrieved from https://www.icpak.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/RISK-ASSESSMENT-AUDITING-ICS1.pdf Kokobe, S.A. Gemechu, D.(2016). Risk Management Techniques and Financial Performance of Insurance Companies. International Journal of Accounting Research.4(1). KPMG(2015). Audit quality . Retrieved from https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmg/pdf/2016/03/audit-quality-report-2015.pdf KPMG(2018). Internal controls over Financial Reporting. Retrieved from https://home.kpmg.com/be/en/home/insights/2017/12/internal-controls-over-financial-reporting.html Medibank(2016). Annual Report 2016. Retrieved from https://www.medibank.com.au/content/dam/medibank/About-Us/reporting-centre-2016/Annual%20report/Medibank_Annual_Report_2016.pdf Medibank(2017). Annual Report 2017. Retrieved from https://www.medibank.com.au/content/dam/medibank/About-Us/pdfs/MPL_Annual_Report_2017.pdf Medibank(2018). Corporate responsibility : Our Approach. Retrieved from https://www.medibank.com.au/about/corporate-responsibility/community-fund/ OECD (2014). Corporate Governance: Risk Management and Corporate Governance. OECD Publishing. Otieno ,S. Nyangechi ,E. O. (2013). Effectiveness of Internal Control Procedures on Management Efficiency of Free Primary Education Funds: a case of Public Primary schools in Kisii central District, Kenya. Journal of Sociology and Social Work. 1(1).22-41. PWC(2016). Aligning Growth and Risk. Retrieved from https://www.pwc.com.au/pdf/how-enterprise-resilience-can-help-drive-growth-in-financial-services.pdf PWC(2017).Understanding a financial statement audit. Retrieved from https://www.pwc.com/im/en/services/Assurance/pwc-understanding-financial-statement-audit.pdf Ridha, M. B. Alnaji , L. (2015). Analysis and Measurement of Risks in Business: A Case Study on the Jordan Valley Authority. European Journal of Business and Management. 7(9).