China: Adopted Interim Provisions on Accounting Treatment of Enterprise Data Resources introducing operating conditions

On 1 August 2023, the Chinese Ministry of Finance adopted the Interim Provisions on Accounting Treatment of Enterprise Data Resources, which will be implemented on 1 January 2024. These provisions are in accordance with China's Accounting Law and corporate accounting standards. The aim is to improve transparency in accounting information related to data resources. The Interim Provisions concern the application of existing accounting rules for intangible assets and inventory to data assets of companies. The Interim Provisions apply to internally generated and used data as well as to data involved in external transactions. The Interim Provisions include precise provisions on the accounting of data, requiring extensive disclosures including the nature of the data, its scale, source, ownership, acquisition method, and book value. Firms are also required to explain the basis for the value attributed to each parameter in the disclosures, including application scenarios, risk assessments, and geographical restrictions.