Drive success with your financial data
Accurate data on your financial position is the foundation for better decision-making.
With effective accounting processes, your financial services can access the information you need to optimize critical areas of your business, from resource allocation to compliance. But closing the books on time while ensuring that data is accurate and compliant requires significant time and talent.
Wipfli can help, with accounting for financial services support that goes beyond reporting and compliance to give you the financial insights you need to take your organization further.
Why Wipfli?
Wipfli provides industry-specific accounting services built on our deep experience working with a wide range of financial services organizations.
As a top 20 accounting firm, we have the bench strength and specialized knowledge needed to deliver value from your financial data. Whether you need support in understanding new regulations or guidance on financial planning and analysis, we help you access accurate, compliant financial reporting and drive long-term success.
How we help you
Maintaining, validating, and reporting under current expected credit loss (CECL) can be challenging, but Wipfli is ready to support you at each step. Our professionals can help validate the effectiveness of your CECL solutions, with specialized support for accounting and financial reporting, credit underwriting and analysis, process and systems management and information technology.
We also offer an ACL validation solution that can help you:
- Determine whether your ACL methodology complies with applicable regulatory requirements and accounting standards.
- Determine whether formulas within the ACL calculation are accurate.
- Evaluate the adequacy of internal controls related to your ACL calculation.
- Assess the reporting process and help ensure your board of directors receives presentations of the ACL calculation in a timely manner.
- Review your ACL policy for consistency with the current ACL methodology utilized.
- Test the accuracy of charge-off ratios used in the calculation and determine how timely management analyzes environmental factors.
- Reconcile specific impairment reserves to detailed management analysis to determine whether specific impairment reserves are reasonably supported.
- Evaluate the process for ongoing monitoring of the model, including process verification and benchmarking.
- Analyze outcomes analysis, including back-testing.
- Comply with the regulatory guidance on model risk management.
Wipfli can help you gain clarity and consistency in communicating your financial information. Our team offers guidance to give you confidence in meeting accounting requirements and GAAP compliance, with services that include:
- Business combinations, consolidations and restructurings
- Equity and debt financing arrangements
- ASC 842, leases
- ASC 606, revenue recognition
- Derivatives and hedging arrangements
- Capitalized software costs
- Stock-based compensation, including stock options and profit interests
Wipfli’s financial planning and analysis services can help you turn your financial information into action. Our team guides you in taking your financial reports beyond the numbers so that you can better prepare for what comes next.
We support your long-term planning and evaluating strategic decisions, helping position your organization to achieve the outcomes you want.
Wipfli applies our deep experience with leading business software to keep your financial statements aligned with your financial reporting framework. We can navigate your complex systems to help you convert financial information into crucial business insights.
If you’re preparing for a SOC audit, first-time financial statement or IPO, Wipfli is ready to help ease your financial compliance burden. We can help you meet the necessary accounting and assurance requirements with our support for technical accounting and internal control assessments, including:
- Technology infrastructure
- Tax planning
- SOX compliance
- Financial statement preparation
Our team
Brett D. Schwantes, CPA
Brett Schwantes has over 25 years of experience working closely with financial institutions and is the leader of the Audit and Accounting Committee for the financial institutions practice of Wipfli LLP and a member of Wipfli’s Accounting Standards Advisory Group. He advises clients on various unique and complex issues such as derivatives, fair value measurements of financial instruments, and the new CECL accounting standard. Brett also consults with clients on the impact of new accounting standards and how best to implement them to avoid negative consequences whenever possible.
Nick G. Ansley, CPA
Nick Ansley is a partner who brings more than 15 years of invaluable experience to financial institution clients. He has particular expertise with external audit and accounting and control issues that specifically impact financial institutions. Nick also has extensive commercial loan review experience. He has worked with large banks to develop internal control narratives and testing programs to assist them with FDICIA compliance requirements. Bringing additional value to his clients, Nick also assists with various agreed-upon procedure engagements and internal control reviews.
Paul T. Lally
Paul Lally leads Wipfli’s multi-disciplinary team offering services to the wealth and asset management industry. Leveraging more than 30 years of experience, he helps clients navigate the growth and long-term success of their business. As an industry speaker, Paul is known for his lively, on-target delivery of timely topics, practical strategies and thought-provoking insights. He has delivered keynote speeches to thousands of executives from a multitude of companies. Paul has extensive knowledge of wealth and asset management industry trends, the transformations going on within various companies and the realities of operating a privately-owned financial services firm in today’s market.
Anna Kooi, CPA
Anna Kooi is a partner and leads Wipfli’s financial services practice. She has more than 20 years of experience in serving a variety of public and private clients in the financial services industry. Anna has advised clients ranging from startups to Fortune 50, bringing deep industry knowledge to the clients she services.
Traci J. Hollister, CPA
Traci’s practice focuses on corporate and regulatory advising of small to large regional and national financial institution franchises, allowing her to develop an understanding of how successful financial institutions operate. With her clients exclusively in one industry, Traci has developed a deep understanding of how financial institutions operate and continues to focus her energies, professional education, and skills for the direct benefit of her clientele. Her specialization gives a value-added feature to become a resource beyond the accounting and tax compliance needs of her clients.
6 CECL methodologies
Discover which CECL methodology is right for your organization.
