The implementation of MI 45-108 follows the recent adoption of ASC Rule 45-517 Prospectus Exemption for Start-up Businesses (ASC Rule 45-517), which was introduced to help facilitate Alberta-based small or start-up issuers seeking to raise modest amounts of capital from Alberta investors. MI 45-108 is viewed to be complementary with ASC Rule 45-517 and is designed to accommodate moderate financings being raised strictly through an online funding portal across multiple jurisdictions in Canada.

Review the press release on the ASC's website.

In his speech, he discusses some of the current priorities of the PCAOB, a number of which are outlined in the Board's five year strategic plan.

The topics discussed are as follows:

Role of the Independent Auditor

• Investors are the Auditor's True Client
• Re-emergence of Concerns about Auditor Independence
• State of Audit Quality
• Improper Alteration of Audit Documentation
• PCAOB's Standard-Setting Activities
• Auditor's Reporting Model
• Technological Innovation in the Audit

In his conclusion, he encourages auditors to strive to improve audit quality, be vigilant in protecting independence from management, and not lose sight that the client is the investing public.

Review the speech on the PCAOB's website.

Changes to the work plan include:

Major projects

• No significant changes

Implementation projects

• A new project Property, Plant and Equipment: Proceeds before Intended Use has been added to the work plan as a consequence of the discussion of IFRS implementation issues this week. An exposure draft is expected after 6 months.
• Annual Improvements (2015-2017): An exposure draft is now expected in January 2017

Research projects

• Disclosure initiative — Principles of disclosure: A discussion paper is now expected in February 2017. During this week's meeting, the Staff revised the expected publication date of the discussion paper from mid-December 2016 to February 2017 in order to provide the Board with more time to focus on matters relating to the draft insurance standard.

Post-implementation reviews

• A decision on the project direction in the post-implementation review of IFRS 13 Fair Value Measurement is now expected within 3 months.

The revised IASB work plan is available on the IASB's website.

In announcing the G7‘s fundamental principles, the European Commission recognised the work of the G7 Cyber Expert Group in responding to the increasingly sophisticated cyber threats being faced by the financial sector.

The G7's fundamental principles are designed to assist both private and public sector financial entities in addressing the risks of cyber-attacks against such financial organisations. It is also expected that these fundamental principles will assist public authorities in steering any public policy, regulatory or supervisory obligations.

The report consists of eight non-binding elements that are intended to provide high-level guidance to support financial entities in creating cyber security strategy and policies.

Review a summary and the report on the European Commission's website.

In his speech, Mr. Bauguess explains that just because we have a lot of data, that doesn't ensure that there will be an application for it all. And big data can’t fix bad empirical methods, and bad data can’t be analyzed no matter how big it is. Data quality remains important no matter its size. So, we continue to need to think carefully about how we collect data. And just as we did in assembling small data samples in a prior era, we need to do the same when generating large samples today.

Review the speech on the SEC's website.

Noting that IAS 7 is more than twenty years old and that it would be "surprising if improvements cannot be identified from the perspective of 2016", the paper presents some ideas to improve the usefulness of the statement of cash flows. The paper is divided into five sections:

• The usefulness of information about cash flows
• The classification of cash flows
• Cash equivalents and the management of liquid resources
• Reconciliation of operating activities
• Direct or indirect method?

The discussion paper includes 11 specific questions relating to these sections but also invites any other comments on issues relating to possible improvements to the statement of cash flows.

The discussion paper and associated press release are available from the FRC website.

The GRI Standards are a set of 36 modular standards that facilitate corporate reporting on topics such as greenhouse gas emissions, energy and water use, and labor practices. The GRI Standards are centered on materiality – focusing on the topics that represent the most significant impacts of the organization and are most important to organizations’ stakeholders – which supports sustainability reporting that is tailored to each individual company. A company can prepare a sustainability report in accordance with the GRI Standards at Core or Comprehensive level, or disclose individual topics to meet specific reporting needs.

The GRI Sustainability Reporting Standards will enable companies around the world to be more transparent about their impacts on the economy, the environment and society.

Please click for the press release on the GRI's Web site. The GRI Standards are available for free download through the GRI Standards hub, along with extensive additional resources.

Ms. Lloyd has been an IASB Board member since 2014. Previously, she served as the Director of Capital Markets and Senior Director of Technical Activities at the IASB. In addition, Ms. Lloyd is a former member of the Australian Accounting Standards Board.

For more information, see the press release on the IASB’s website.

The panel was chaired by IASB member Gary Kabureck. Panelists included Karen Higgins (Vice-Chair of the AcSB and Partner at Deloitte), Karyn Brooks (Retired Senior Vice President and Controller at Bell Canada and member of the Transition Resource Group for Revenue Recognition), Cameron McInnis (Chief Accountant at the Ontario Securities Commission), and Allison McManus (Partner at KPMG and former IASB staff). After a short overview of the situation in Canada, panelists discussed in depth the IFRS 15 implementation issues and project management, including external communications.

Review the video recording and the slides from the AcSB's website.