The Implementation of Inline XBRL (iXBRL) and the IFRS-based XBRL Taxonomy in the EU and U.S. - The Case of SAP SE

ABSTRACT: This case provides students the opportunity to examine the accelerating move toward digitizing international financial reporting through XBRL and IFRS. In 2021, over 140 nations require IFRS, with 60 countries implementing national XBRL projects. The European Union (EU) mandates IFRS-based XBRL financial statements since January 2021. The SEC, since December 2017, requires foreign-based IFRS filers to submit IFRS-based XBRL statements. Furthermore, EU regulators and the U.S. SEC have recently transitioned to XBRL’s newest requirement, Inline XBRL (or iXBRL). Students learning objectives require investigating these EU and U.S. XBRL developments. Students also examine the efforts of SAP SE, the German technology multinational corporation, which since 2005 files IFRS financials, and since 2009, produces IFRS-based XBRL statements. SAP SE has pioneered the integration of the IFRS-XBRL taxonomy, and iXBRL into their reporting process. Student learning objectives also include SAP SE’s XBRL motivation and adoption process, and XBRL online tools for financial statement analysis. The case is designed for Information Systems, International Accounting, and Analytics courses. Keywords: XBRL, iXBRL, inline XBRL, ESMA, ESEF, IFRS, structured data, SAP SE