Luxembourg (European Financial Reporting)

The smallest country in the European Community, Luxembourg is a melting pot of diverse cultural, legal and financial traditions. Its civil law is inspired by France, its company law by Belgium and its tax system has German origins. Luxembourg boasts French and German as official languages, alongside the national language, Letzebuergesch. The first part of the book gives an overview of the economic and institutional background. Luxembourg has grown into a major international financial centre in recent years and the many foreign banks, promoters and administrators of investment funds should welcome the detailed coverage of the financial sector. The survey of the tax system pays particular attention to the important topic of financial holding companies. The second part of the book is a detailed study of financial reporting practices. Formal accounting requirements are relatively new and only appeared in the wake of the European Community's Fourth and Seventh Company Law Directives. The lack of little official or institutional assistance in interpreting the laws has led to considerable diversity in accounting practices.