By DANIEL LIBERTO

Reviewed by MICHAEL J BOYLE

编写人：DANIEL LIBERTO

审核人：MICHAEL J BOYLE

What Is a Contingent Asset?

什么是或有资产？

A contingent asset is a potential economic benefit that is dependent on some future event(s) largely out of a company’s control. A contingent asset is thus also known as a potential asset.

或有资产是一种潜在的经济利益，这种经济利益取决于一些在很大程度上不受公司控制的未来事件。因此，或有资产也称为潜在资产。

Not knowing for certain whether these gains will materialize, or being able to determine their precise economic value, means these assets cannot be recorded on the balance sheet. However, they can be reported in the accompanying footnotes of financial statements, provided that certain conditions are met.

就上述资产而言，是否能够实现收益，或者得知其准确的经济价值，均无法确定，因此，或有资产无法在资产负债表上列示，但是，在满足特定条件的情况下，可以在财务报表附注部分列报。

KEY TAKEAWAYS

关键要点

·A contingent asset is only valuable if certain events or conditions that are independent of a company's own actions come to pass in the future.

或有资产仅在特定事件或条件（与公司自身行为无关）在未来发生时才有价值。

·Upon meeting certain conditions, contingent assets are reported in the accompanying notes of financial statements.

满足特定条件后，或有资产可在财务报表附注部分列报。

·A contingent asset can be recorded on a firm's balance sheet only when the realization of cash flows associated with it becomes relatively certain.

或有资产仅在与其相关的现金流实现变得相对确定的情况下才能在公司资产负债表上列示。

Understanding Contingent Assets

了解或有资产

A contingent asset becomes a realized asset recordable on the balance sheet when the realization of cash flows associated with it becomes relatively certain. In this case, the asset is recognized in the period when the change in status occurs.

或有资产仅在与其相关的现金流实现变得相对确定的情况下才能作为已变现资产在资产负债表上列示。在这种情况下，资产在状态转变期间进行确认。

Contingent assets may arise due to the economic value being unknown. Alternatively, they might occur due to uncertainty relating to the outcome of an event in which an asset may be created. A contingent asset appears because of previous events, but the entirety of all asset information will not be collected until future events happen.

或有资产产生的原因可能是经济价值不明，亦或是资产创造事件的结果具有不确定性。或有资产是因过去的事件而产生，但直到未来事件发生时才能得知完整的资产信息。

There also exists contingent or potential liabilities. Unlike contingent assets, they refer to a potential loss that may be incurred, depending on how a certain future event unfolds.

此外，还存在或有负债或潜在负债。与或有资产不同的是，或有负债是一种可能发生的潜在损失，具体取决于特定未来事件发生的方式。

Examples of Contingent Assets

或有资产示例

A company involved in a lawsuit that expects to receive compensation has a contingent asset because the outcome of the case is not yet known and the dollar amount is yet to be determined.

一家涉诉公司预期从诉讼中获得赔偿，此时，案件结果尚不清楚，赔偿金额也尚未确定，于是就产生了或有资产。

Let’s say Company ABC has filed a lawsuit against Company XYZ for infringing a patent. If there is a decent chance that Company ABC will win the case, it has a contingent asset. This potential asset will generally be disclosed in its financial statement, but not recorded as an asset until the lawsuit is settled.

比如，ABC公司以专利侵权为由向XYZ公司提起诉讼，而且ABC公司有很大机会胜诉，那么ABC公司就产生了或有资产。这种潜在资产通常在财务报表中披露，但在结案前不得记为资产。

Based on this same example, Company XYZ would need to disclose a potential contingent liability in its notes and then later record it in its accounts, should it lose the lawsuit and be ordered to pay damages.

在上述示例中，XYZ公司需要在其财务报表附注部分披露潜在或有负债，之后，如果败诉并被责令支付赔偿金，需将负债入账。

Contingent assets also crop up when companies expect to receive money through the use of a warranty. Other examples include benefits to be received from an estate or other court settlement. Anticipated mergers and acquisitions are to be disclosed in the financial statements.

公司预期通过保修获得资金时也会产生或有资产。此外，或有资产还包括从遗产或其他法院和解中获得的利益。预期并购将会在财务报表中披露。

Reporting Requirements

报告要求

Both generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) require companies to disclose contingent assets if there is a decent possibility that these potential gains will eventually be realized. For U.S. GAAP, there generally needs to be a 70% likelihood that the gain occurs. IFRS, on the other hand, is slightly more lenient and generally permits companies to make reference to potential gains if there is at least a 50% likelihood that they will occur.

公认会计准则（GAAP）和国际财务报告准则（IFRS）要求公司在潜在收益最终实现的可能性很大的情况下披露或有资产。美国公认会计准则规定，实现收益的可能性通常需要达到70%。另一方面，国际财务报告准则的规定稍微宽松点，通常允许公司披露可能性至少为50%的潜在收益。

International Accounting Standard 37 (IAS 37), applicable to IFRS, states the following: “Contingent assets are not recognized, but they are disclosed when it is more likely than not that an inflow of benefits will occur. However, when the inflow of benefits is virtually certain an asset is recognized in the statement of financial position because that asset is no longer considered to be contingent.”

适用于国际财务报告准则的国际会计准则37（IAS 37）规定，或有资产不能确认，只有在很可能导致经济利益流入企业时进行披露。但是，经济利益基本肯定会流入时，该资产不再视为或有资产，可在资产负债表进行确认。

Contingent asset accounting policies for GAAP, meanwhile, are mainly outlined in the Financial Accounting Standards Board's (FASB) Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) Topic 450.

同时，公认会计准则的或有资产会计政策主要在财务会计准则委员会（FASB）会计准则汇编（ASC）主题450中概述。

Special Considerations

特别说明

Companies must reevaluate the potential asset continually. When a contingent asset becomes likely, firms must report it in financial statements by estimating the income to be collected. The estimate is generated using a range of possible outcomes, the associated risks, and experience with similar potential contingent assets.

公司必须不断重新评估潜在资产。若或有资产很有可能发生，公司必须对拟获收益进行估计，并在财务报告中披露。估计是根据一系列可能发生的结果、相关风险及类似潜在或有资产方面的经验得来的。

Contingent assets are ruled under the conservatism principle, which is an accounting practice that states that uncertain events and outcomes should be reported in a manner that results in the lowest potential profit. In other words, companies are discouraged from inflating expectations and are generally advised to utilize the lowest estimated asset valuation.

或有资产需按照保守主义原则进行管理。保守主义原则规定，不确定的事件和结果应该按最低潜在利润进行报告。换句话说，公司不应该夸大预期，建议采用最低估计资产估值。

In addition, no gain may be recorded from a contingent asset until it actually occurs. The conservatism principle supersedes the matching principle of accrual accounting, meaning the asset may not be reported until a period after associated costs were incurred.

此外，或有资产在实际发生之前，不得记入其收益。保守主义原则取代了权责发生制的配比原则，也就是说，资产只有在相关成本发生后一段期间才能列报。