IFAC welcomes the opportunity to provide input to the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants' (IESBA) Exposure Draft (ED) for the proposed revisions to the IESBA Code relating to using the work of an external expert.
The IFAC SMP Advisory Group (SMPAG) welcomes the opportunity to provide input to the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board’s (IAASB’s) Exposure Draft for the Proposed International Standard on Auditing 570 (Revised 202X) Going Concern and Proposed Conforming and Consequential Amendments to Other ISAs.
The IFAC Small- and Medium-Sized Practices Advisory Group (SMPAG) welcomes the opportunity to provide input to the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) Strategy and Work Plan 2024-2027 Consultation Paper.
The IFAC Small- and Medium- Practices Advisory Group (SMPAG) welcomes the opportunity to provide input to the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) Exposure Draft on the proposed revisions to the Code addressing tax planning and related services.
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) will hold a series of four global roundtables to obtain stakeholder input to help shape the development of new ethics and independence standards for sustainability reporting and assurance.
Demand for timely, relevant, and trustworthy sustainability information has risen dramatically in recent years as such information is increasingly being used to support capital allocation or other decisions by investors, customers, workers, government agencies, and other stakeholders. In response to such demand, the IESBA announced in June 2022 its commitment to take timely action to develop fit-for-purpose, globally applicable ethics and independence standards as a critical part of the infrastructure needed to support transparent, relevant, and trustworthy sustainability reporting and assurance. Importantly, this strategic commitment sets up the IESBA’s ethics and independence standards as the third pillar to trustworthy sustainability reporting and assurance, alongside the standards being developed by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) and the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB).
In December 2022, the IESBA approved two new standard-setting projects that will develop profession-agnostic ethics and independence standards for sustainability reporting and assurance and on the related topic of “use of experts.”
The quality of the standards to be developed and their ability to meet the needs of the users and any providers of sustainability information will critically depend on timely contributions and input from stakeholders globally. The roundtables being organized aim at providing stakeholders the opportunity to convey relevant information to be addressed in developing the standards.
Save the dates! The roundtables will be held in person at the following times and locations:
Friday, March 24 - Paris, France
Thursday, March 30 - Sydney, Australia
Monday, April 3 - Singapore
Thursday, April 6 - New York, USA
The agenda for the roundtables will be available in due course. Videoconferencing facilities will be made available for participants who are not able to attend in person, where available.
Would you like to attend?
As space is limited, attendance will be by invitation only. Register your interest at IESBA@ethicsboard.org by February 1, 2023, indicating your name, job title, organization, location, and session. An invitation will follow shortly to the selected interested stakeholders!
Who should attend?
Members of the investor and corporate governance communities, data aggregators, rating agencies, and other users of sustainability information; C-suite executives including those leading corporate sustainability initiatives; regulators and oversight bodies; international policy-making organizations; national standard setters; preparers; professional accountancy organizations; and sustainability assurance providers, including accountancy firms and independent providers outside the accountancy profession.
Exploring the IESBA Code - A Focus on Technology looks at challlenges professional accountants might face when applying the conceptual framework of the IESBA Code to technology-related matters.
65 organizations today endorse a joint statement calling for stronger alignment of regulatory and standard-setting efforts around sustainability disclosure.
They encourage major actors, including the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) to continue to work closely together.
Capital market participants are supportive of establishing a global baseline of sustainability disclosure requirements, on top of which local jurisdictions can add their own interoperable reporting requirements.
Sixty-five companies, investors and professional accounting firms from across the world add their voices to the call for major standard-setting efforts to more closely align with and support a global baseline for reporting sustainability-related information.
The endorsed statement was developed jointly by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), and the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). In addition to formal consultation responses, this public statement makes clear the momentum and encouragement behind stronger alignment between sustainability standard-setting efforts.
Significant efforts by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the European Commission together with the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG), all aim to address the need to enhance and evolve corporate reporting to include and consider sustainability information. However, current draft standards and initiatives are not technically compatible in terms of concepts, terminologies, and metrics.
As these proposed sustainability-related disclosure requirements are refined and finalized, leading financial market participants are asking financial market regulators to avoid regulatory and standard setting fragmentation by aligning on key concepts, terminologies, and metrics on which disclosure requirements are built.
A comprehensive global baseline of sustainability disclosures is required for reporting entities to avoid undue burden and for investors to make investment decisions that truly contribute to sustainable outcomes.
A globally consistent, comparable, reliable, and assurable corporate reporting system is indispensable in providing all stakeholders with a clear and accurate picture of an organization’s ability to create sustainable value over time.
The endorsed statement released today is signed by:
Achmea Investment Management
ADM
Arçelik Global
Assicurazioni Generali
Ayala Corporation
Baloise Asset Management
BCSD Taiwan X Taiwan Sustainable Finance Platform
BDO
Beach Point Capital Management
Borealis Group
Boston Trust Walden
Brunel Pension Partnership
Bühler Group
Calvert Research and Management
CentraRSE
Dalton Investments
Dana Investment Advisors
DBS Group
de Pury Pictet Terrettini
Deloitte
Desjardins Global Asset Management
DNV
East Capital Group
Ecofi
EFG Asset Management
EmergeVest
Empresas CMPC S.A.
ENI S.p.A.
Equitile Investments
Ernst & Young Global Limited
Etica Funds – Responsible Investments
Future Super
GAM Investments
Grant Thornton International, Ltd.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise
HÖ Sabanci Holding
Holcim Ltd
Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
Ingka Group
Investment Management Corporation of Ontario
Kieger
KPMG International
Lyrical Asset Management
Mercedes-Benz Group AG
Nestlé
Newton Investment Management
Northern Ireland Local Government Officers’ Superannuation Committeee
About IFAC IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 180 members and associates in 135 jurisdictions, representing more than 3 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.
About PRI The Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) is the world’s leading proponent of responsible investment. Supported by the United Nations, it works to understand the investment implications of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors and to support its international network of investor signatories in incorporating these factors into their investment and ownership decisions. The PRI acts in the long-term interests of its signatories, of the financial markets and economies in which they operate and ultimately of the environment and society as a whole. Launched in New York in 2006, the PRI has grown to more than 5,000 signatories, managing over US$121 trillion. For more information visit www.unpri.org
About the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) WBCSD is the premier global, CEO-led community of over 200 of the world’s leading sustainable businesses working collectively to accelerate the system transformations needed for a net zero, nature positive, and more equitable future. We do this by engaging executives and sustainability leaders from business and elsewhere to share practical insights on the obstacles and opportunities we currently face in tackling the integrated climate, nature and inequality sustainability challenge; by co-developing “how-to” CEO-guides from these insights; by providing science-based target guidance including standards and protocols; and by developing tools and platforms to help leading businesses in sustainability drive integrated actions to tackle climate, nature and inequality challenges across sectors and geographical regions.
Our member companies come from all business sectors and all major economies, representing a combined revenue of more than USD $8.5 trillion and 19 million employees. Our global network of almost 70 national business councils gives our members unparalleled reach across the globe. Since 1995, WBCSD has been uniquely positioned to work with member companies along and across value chains to deliver impactful business solutions to the most challenging sustainability issues.
Together, we are the leading voice of business for sustainability, united by our vision of a world in which 9+ billion people are living well, within planetary boundaries, by mid-century.
Accrual-based financial information is the bedrock for decision making, transparency and accountability in the public sector, but transitioning to accrual-based reporting can be a lengthy and arduous process with each jurisdiction undertaking the reforms facing its own unique ch
