Dear national standard-setters,
Welcome to our newsletter dedicated to keeping you up to date on the activities of the IFRS Foundation.
In this edition
- Debrief on 2023 World Standard-setters Conference in London
- IASB recent highlights
- ISSB recent highlights
- News for national standard-setters
- Open for comments
Debrief on 2023 World Standard-setters Conference in London
More than 120 delegates from 69 countries and jurisdictions joined the IFRS Foundation’s 22nd World Standard-setters Conference on 25 and 26 September 2023.
Delegates attended in person in London and online to hear a range of speakers specialising in accounting and sustainability reporting. The sessions broadcast on LinkedIn and via the IFRS Foundation website attracted around 10,000 views.
Partnering with national standard-setters
Andreas Barckow, International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) Chair, kicked off the two-day conference that marked half a century of comparability and transparency in the global standard-setting partnership.
Andreas and Nili Shah, Executive Technical Director, presented an IASB update. Andreas said how invaluable the understanding of accounting issues in jurisdictions is in developing high quality IFRS Accounting Standards and indicated the key role national standard-setters play in maintaining their consistent application.
IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards enhances global accounting language
Emmanuel Faber, Chair of the International Sustainability Board (ISSB), spoke about the use of the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards issued in June 2023, and the support that will be available to jurisdictions before the effective date of the Standards in 2024.
He said that the Standards provide an accounting language to be used with the financial statements to assist investors in decision-making.
The ISSB has responded to demand from jurisdictions for implementation support by creating capacity building materials that will be available at the end of November when the COP28 meeting starts and publishing an adoption guide available by the end of the year.
IFRS S1 connects accounting and sustainability
In an international perspectives panel on ISSB's Standards, Cecilia Kwei from the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants, reminded her audience that IFRS S1 General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information includes requirements companies already apply in financial reports based on IFRS Accounting Standards. Given IFRS S1 uses terminology and concepts that will already be familiar to those applying the IFRS Accounting Standards, companies will be in a stronger footing to begin implementing the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards when they come into effect next year.
Reducing unnecessary costs
Regulators from Mexico, New Zealand, Poland and the UK shared their perspectives on the prospective Accounting Standard for subsidiaries without public accountability.
Bertrand Perrin, IASB Member, emphasised that this new Accounting Standard will reduce unnecessary costs for companies that prepare financial statements.
Close to the finishing line
In the conference’s final plenary session, the audience quizzed the Primary Financial Statements project team, which is drafting a new IFRS Accounting Standard on presentation and disclosure that the IASB plans to issue in 2024.
Nick Anderson, IASB Member, said that the IASB is reviewing minor issues, and is now focusing on delivering the new Standard.
You can watch the recordings of these sessions here.
Breakout sessions
Seven breakout sessions covered the following topics:
- the implementation of the first two IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards;
- the SASB Standards usage in IFRS S1 and IFRS S2;
- the financial instruments projects, including an upcoming consultation on Financial Instruments with Characteristics of Equity;
- the IASB project Business Combinations—Disclosures, Goodwill and Impairment;
- possible amendments to IAS 37 Provisions, Contingent Liabilities and Contingent Assets that could change the timing of recognition of some provisions;
- first impressions after applying IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts, since it came into effect in January 2023; and
- how the IFRS Interpretations Committee supports consistent application of IFRS Accounting Standards.
You can find the materials for the breakout sessions here.
The WSS Conference was a truly fantastic networking event, filled with valuable insights on accounting and sustainability. The IFRS Foundation looks forward to reconnecting with national standards-setters at the WSS Conference in September 2024.
Breakout session on update on financial instruments projects. IASB Technical Staff Jaco Jordaan presenting.
Breakout session on Proportionality and application of IFRS S1 and IFRS S2. ISSB Member Ndidi Nnoli-Edozien presenting.
Breakout session on Provisions—Targeted Improvements. IASB Member Patrina Buchanan presenting.
Breakout session on Consistent application of IFRS Accounting Standards: hot topics. IASB Member and IFRS Interpretations Committee Chair Bruce Mackenzie presenting.
IASB recent highlights
The IASB met on 19 September 2023 to discuss its project on Business Combinations—Disclosures, Goodwill and Impairment. The IASB decided to publish an Exposure Draft containing proposed amendments:
- to IFRS 3 Business Combinations—to improve the information companies disclose about business combinations; and
- to IAS 36 Impairment of Assets—to clarify the impairment test of cash-generating units containing goodwill.
The IASB’s proposals build on its preliminary views in the Discussion Paper Business Combinations—Disclosures, Goodwill and Impairment.
The IASB is now working to publish an Exposure Draft in the first half of 2024.
ISSB recent highlights
On 16 October 2023, the IFRS Foundation signed a protocol with the ASEAN Capital Markets Forum (ACMF) during its Annual Conference in Indonesia. The protocol serves as a guide for ACMF’s future engagement with the ISSB in the ASEAN region including for discussions on pathways to adoption of the ISSB's Standards in the region, capacity building initiatives to support the implementation of IFRS S1 and IFRS S2, and to facilitate the provision of input by the ACMF into ISSB's Standards development.
The Brazilian Ministry of Finance and the Comissão de Valores Mobiliários (CVM) have announced that the ISSB's Standards will be incorporated into the Brazilian regulatory framework, setting out a roadmap to move from voluntary use starting in 2024 to mandatory use on 1 January 2026.
On 11 October 2023, the ISSB published blackline documents detailing revisions to the SASB Standards. These revisions are informed by feedback on the Exposure Draft Methodology for Enhancing the International Applicability of the SASB Standards and SASB Standards Taxonomy Updates, published in May 2023. Comments are not requested on these blackline documents. The documents will be available online until 10 November 2023 to allow stakeholders to familiarise themselves with the revisions. The revisions will not be final until ratified and issued by the ISSB, anticipated in December 2023. The blackline documents can be found on the SASB.org project page.
News for national standard-setters
We’ve rounded up news from the IFRS Foundation’s NSS Team.
IFRS Foundation updates
- The IFRS Foundation has recently announced the appointments of five new Trustees and the re-appointments of five Trustees. The newly appointed IFRS Foundation Trustees bring a diverse range of skills and expertise from Asia, Europe and North America. The appointments broaden the Trustees’ insights into accounting and sustainability to reflect the Foundation’s new dual board structure—with the IASB and the ISSB.
- Marking the 50-year history of international accounting standard-setting, senior figures offer their perspectives on past accomplishments and future aspirations.
Accounting updates
- Investors need information about both cash flows and non-cash changes in debt to compare and evaluate companies. In a new article, IASB Member and former investor Nick Anderson discusses the increasing prevalence of transactions that are not reflected in cash flow statements—and shows where investors can find information about non-cash debt changes to aid their analysis. Read 'Investor Perspectives: ‘Providing insights into cash flow economics'.
- An FASB–IASB Education meeting took place on 29 September 2023 in London. If you would like to watch the discussion, the recording is now available.
- The IASB has issued amendments to the IFRS for SMEs Accounting Standard—the Standard for companies that do not have public accountability. The amendments are based on the amendments to IAS 12 Income Taxes issued in May 2023. They have resulted from the introduction of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Pillar Two model rules. This out-of-cycle amendment follows urgent calls from affected stakeholders.
- Accounting Standards Advisory Forum (ASAF) took place on 28 September 2023 in London. ASAF members discussed several standard-setting issues, primarily on the IASB's work plan. If you would like to watch the discussion, the recording is now available.
- The IASB decided to explore targeted actions to improve reporting in company financial statements on climate-related and other uncertainties. The possible actions include developing educational materials, illustrative examples and targeted amendments to IFRS Accounting Standards to improve application of existing requirements.
- IASB Member Patrina Buchanan explained the Request for Information currently out for comment on the Post-implementation Review of IFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers.
Sustainability updates
- ISSB Vice-Chair Sue Lloyd explained the current agenda of the ISSB and its cooperation with EU institutions, following the ISSB’s issue of two IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards on 26 June 2023 and the European Commission’s adoption of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) on 31 July 2023.
- The ISSB announced the members of its Transition Implementation Group on IFRS S1 and IFRS S2, as part of the ISSB’s activities to support implementation of IFRS S1 and IFRS S2. The Group provides a public forum for any stakeholder to share implementation questions with the ISSB and to follow the discussion of those questions.
- Information about all the ISSB’s activities and educational material to support application of IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 is available on a dedicated page on the IFRS Foundation website.
Open for comments
Accounting consultations
- The IASB has published proposed narrow-scope amendments to IFRS Accounting Standards and accompanying guidance as part of its periodic maintenance of the Accounting Standards. The proposed amendments included in the Exposure Draft Annual Improvements to IFRS Accounting Standards—Volume 11 relate to IAS 7, IFRS 1, IFRS 7, IFRS 9 and IFRS 10. Comments will be accepted until 11 December 2023. You can find more information here;
- The IASB published for public comment IFRS Accounting Taxonomy 2023—Proposed Update 1 International Tax Reform—Pillar Two Model Rules, Supplier Finance Arrangements and Lack of Exchangeability. Comments will be accepted until 4 December 2023. You can find more information here;
- The IFRS Interpretations Committee published tentative agenda decision Payments Contingent on Continued Employment during Handover Periods (IFRS 3). Comments will be accepted until 20 November 2023. You can find more information here;
- The IASB has also published a Request for Information as part of the post-implementation review of IFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers. Comments will be accepted until 27 October 2023. Further information is available here.
If you have any questions regarding cooperation of the IFRS Foundation with national standards-setters, please reach out to Elena Kostina, IASB Technical Staff (elena.kostina@ifrs.org).
