Late last year I did an entry looking at whether Sarbanes-Oxley was becoming the global standard with regulators around the world putting in similar, albeit not identical, regimes that echo the US legislation.

It's not surprising therefore that the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is moving to extend its reach by meeting up with counterparts in tokyo. Meanwhile, board Member Charles Niemeier has gone to Beijing to talk turkey with the P.R. China Ministry of Finance and the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

More details in this PCAOB statement.

All part of a double act with the Securities and Exchange Commission which is training regulators throughout Asia, according to this CFO.com report.

Earlier this month, the PCAOB announced it had boosted links with European audit oversight bodies.

Interesting that for all the talk about the US losing its primacy as a financial center, and at this stage it does come across as just talk, the US regulators obviously regard the US regulatory system as the way to go.

And for the SOX bashers, that sends one very clear message - they're not gonna budge.