ESMA issues comment letter on the 2015 IASB Agenda Consultation

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03 Dec, 2015

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has issued a comment letter on the IASB’s Request for Views, “2015 Agenda Consultation.”

On 11 August 2015, the IASB launched its second public consultation to seek broad public input on the strategic direction and overall balance of its future work programme.

In its comment letter, the ESMA believes that the main priorities for the IASB in the early period covered by the Agenda Consultation should be (1) completing the insurance contract standard and (2) revising its conceptual framework.

While ESMA “agrees with the factors identified for prioritisation” in the IASB’s work programme it recommends that the IASB identifies “an underlying theme for the Agenda Consultation that would be linked to the IASB’s Strategy Overview”.  ESMA suggests that the IASB directs its focus on “strengthening the fundamental pillars of the financial reporting”.    

ESMA also highlights the importance of the maintenance and implementation projects “in order to facilitate consistent application of IFRS and ensure sufficient level of investor protection” and suggests that the IASB should “strike the right balance between the need to provide timely guidance to application issues identified in practice”.  It also comments on the importance of post implementation reviews (PIRs), suggests that “the overall standard setting process does not properly consider” the role of these and indicates that the IASB should, where relevant “act on the findings of a PIR on a timely basis when developing its standard-setting agenda without the need of delaying the process by waiting for the results of subsequent Agenda Consultation(s)”.

The full comment letter is available on the ESMA website.

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