At its meeting on December 15, 2015, the AcSB continued its discussion of the financial reporting framework applicable to private enterprises raising capital in non-traditional markets such as crowdfunding platforms (see the AcSB’s July 2015 Decision Summary).  The AcSB discussed the results of the staff research in this area that included:

• a scan of Canadian securities regulators’ proposals and requirements;
• the experience of accounting standard setters in other jurisdictions; and
• relevant stakeholder feedback from its 2016-2021 Draft Strategic Plan on the needs of users of private enterprise financial statements.

The AcSB decided it now has the information needed to respond to a written request from the Canadian Securities Administrators for clarification on how the definition of publicly accountable enterprises in the Preface to the Handbook relates to issuers that prepare financial statements in conjunction with a securities offering under a prospectus exemption.  The AcSB agreed that this response would outline what it has learned to date and indicate that it does not plan any action at this time in respect of the definition of publicly accountable enterprises.  The response will also note that the AcSB will continue to monitor developments and set a date to revisit this issue.  The AcSB directed the staff to draft a response for its consideration shortly.

Review the executive summary on the AcSB's Web site.