The IFRS Foundation Trustees, responsible for strategy and oversight of the Foundation and its two standard-setting boards, met in Milan on 3–5 June 2025. Among the topics discussed, the Trustees reviewed progress of the ongoing transformation programme to ensure the Foundation remains fit for the future and is well placed for the next stage in its evolution.
Standard-setting oversight
The Trustees met with the leadership of the two standard-setting boards—the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB)—to discuss progress in their respective work plans as well as to review ongoing work to ensure connectivity between their respective Standards. The board Chairs also provided updates on their horizon-scanning activities to identify emerging trends and challenges in the global corporate reporting landscape.
The Trustees’ Due Process Oversight Committee (DPOC) met to consider the IASB and the ISSB’s compliance with the due process, including a discussion on the IASB’s forthcoming Agenda Consultation. Access the meeting papers and recording from the June DPOC meeting page.
Transformation programme
As highlighted in its 2024 Annual Report, the IFRS Foundation initiated a strategic and comprehensive review of its operations and is now delivering on key elements of a transformation programme. The purpose of the programme is to ensure the organisation remains fit for the future, following a period of significant success and rapid growth, and continues to deliver on its mission to bring transparency, efficiency and accountability to capital markets globally.
As part of its transformation programme, the Foundation has:
- simplified its management structures, reporting lines and streamlined its operational decision-making across the Foundation and its boards;
- undertaken a review of operating costs to ensure the efficient and effective use of resources across the Foundation. As part of this work, the Trustees approved a reduction in governance and staff-related operating costs, and plans to reduce the costs of operating the two boards. The reduction will be achieved by making greater use of the flexibility afforded by the Constitution to determine the appropriate size of the standard-setting boards. The Trustees aim to gradually transition each board from 14 to 10 members by the end of 2028, as board members’ terms come to an end;
- introduced plans to strengthen the Foundation’s income-generating programmes, including the creation of a unified revenue team under the direction of a new Chief Development Officer; and
- begun work to refresh the Foundation’s medium-long term strategy, including future use of technology, operating models and sustainable funding arrangements.
The Foundation will continue to explore synergies between the two boards, supported by enhanced use of technology, and to facilitate connectivity between the information in companies’ financial statements and sustainability-related disclosures.
The Trustees have highlighted the importance of maintaining the boards’ independence, geographic balance and expertise in transitioning to fewer board members. They plan to consult later this year on proposed amendments to the Foundation’s Constitution to seek stakeholder feedback on how best to maintain appropriate diversity and geographic balance of the boards with fewer members, the resulting impact on voting rights from having smaller boards and related matters.
The transformation programme underscores the commitment to continue serving as the global standard-setter for corporate reporting to the capital markets, responsive to the evolving needs of stakeholders worldwide.
Engagement
In conjunction with the meeting, the Trustees met with the IFRS Foundation Monitoring Board, which consists of capital market authorities and reinforces the public oversight of the Foundation and the work of the Trustees. During the meeting, the Trustees and Monitoring Board members emphasised their mutual commitment to ensuring the continued independence, diversity and geographical balance of the boards, and upholding the quality of, and connectivity between, their respective standards as the highest priority. They reaffirmed their commitment to collaborate on the development of a long-term funding model for the Foundation. Read the Monitoring Board's statement.
The Trustees, together with the Italian standard-setter—Organismo Italiano di Contabilità (OIC)—held a stakeholder event hosted by Mediobanca. The event provided an opportunity for the Trustees and OIC representatives to discuss corporate reporting in the future and the role of the IFRS Foundation with Italian stakeholders.
A more detailed meeting summary will be published on the June Trustee meeting page shortly.
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IFRS Foundation strategy and governance
