Article: Transitioning to global accounting regulations: understanding IFRS for SMEs adoption in former Soviet bloc countries Journal: International Journal of Economics and Accounting (IJEA) 2026 Vol.12 No.3 pp.191 - 217 Abstract: This study investigates why fewer than half of former Soviet bloc countries (FSBCs) have adopted IFRS for SMEs to support their private sectors. Despite a shared socialist legacy, FSBCs have followed divergent post-transition trajectories, creating an informative setting for examining adoption determinants in emerging economies with large private markets. Drawing on institutional theory, we analyse coercive, mimetic, and normative pressures across 14 FSBCs from 1999 to 2018. Coercive pressures play opposing roles: reliance on international financial institutions encourages adoption, while EU-related regulatory alignment discourages it. Mimetic pressures matter as well, with countries with more open business environments and stronger regional trade integration being more likely to adopt. Normative pressures operate through regulatory feasibility rather than professional sophistication, with lower education levels and less language dispersion associated with adoption. The study highlights the importance of institutional context and competing regulatory logics in shaping the adoption of IFRS by SMEs and offers insights for international standard-setters and policymakers in transition economies. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: Transitioning to global accounting regulations: understanding IFRS for SMEs adoption in former Soviet bloc countries

Authors: Xiaoxiao Song; Madeline Trimble

Addresses: Department of Accounting, School of Business, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Edwardsville, IL, USA ' Department of Accounting, College of Business, Illinois State University, Normal, IL, USA

Abstract: This study investigates why fewer than half of former Soviet bloc countries (FSBCs) have adopted IFRS for SMEs to support their private sectors. Despite a shared socialist legacy, FSBCs have followed divergent post-transition trajectories, creating an informative setting for examining adoption determinants in emerging economies with large private markets. Drawing on institutional theory, we analyse coercive, mimetic, and normative pressures across 14 FSBCs from 1999 to 2018. Coercive pressures play opposing roles: reliance on international financial institutions encourages adoption, while EU-related regulatory alignment discourages it. Mimetic pressures matter as well, with countries with more open business environments and stronger regional trade integration being more likely to adopt. Normative pressures operate through regulatory feasibility rather than professional sophistication, with lower education levels and less language dispersion associated with adoption. The study highlights the importance of institutional context and competing regulatory logics in shaping the adoption of IFRS by SMEs and offers insights for international standard-setters and policymakers in transition economies.

Keywords: accounting; regulation; financial reporting; international accounting; institutional theory; IFRS for SME; former Soviet bloc countries; FSBCs.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEA.2026.155807

International Journal of Economics and Accounting, 2026 Vol.12 No.3, pp.191 - 217

Received: 25 Jun 2025
Accepted: 11 May 2026
Published online: 14 Aug 2026 *

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Title: Transitioning to global accounting regulations: understanding IFRS for SMEs adoption in former Soviet bloc countries

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