Abstract: In November 2007, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) took the historic decision to allow foreign issuers of securities in US public markets the option of stating their accounts using international financial reporting standards (IFRS), without reconciliation to US generally accepted accounting principles (US GAAP), for financial years ending after November 15, 2007. Such foreign issuers could also, as some have already done, continue to state their accounts in US GAAP. This naturally raised the issue as to whether US issuers should be given the same option, or even more radically, whether such issuers should be required, as of a date certain, to state their accounts in IFRS. My view is that US issuers need an option to permit operational cost savings and perhaps even achieve a lower cost of capital. But for now, the option should neither be perpetual nor conditioned upon a plan to require US issuers to use IFRS.