2021

New and revised pronouncements as at 31 December 2021

16 Dec, 2021

Our popular summary of new and revised financial reporting requirements, updated for financial reporting periods ending on 31 December 2021. This listing can be used to perform a quick check that new financial reporting requirements such as new and revised accounting standards and interpretations, and amendments to standards and interpretations, have been fully considered in the reporting close process.

The information below reflects developments to 4 March 2022 and will be updated through to 31 March 2022 to reflect new and revised financial reporting requirements that need to be considered for financial reporting periods ending on 31 December 2021. For accounts approved after March 2022, please also refer to subsequent versions of this document for any new and revised IFRS Accounting Standards that have additionally been issued that might require disclosure in the accounts under IAS 8:30.

The information below is organised as follows:

Summary

COVID-19 accounting considerations
Below is our usual analysis of new and amended standards, however, we are also aware that most, if not all, entities will have been impacted by the COVID-19 events. Please see our Need to know — Accounting considerations related to the Coronavirus 2019 Disease highlighting some of the key issues to be considered by the entities in preparing their financial statements and our UK Accounting Plus resource page on accounting considerations related to COVID-19. We additionally have a UK Accounting Plus collections page which includes all of our news and publications related to COVID-19.

The table below provides a summary of the pronouncements which will be mandatorily applied by UK entities for the first time at 31 December 2021, for various quarterly reporting periods. Where a UK entity chooses to prepare financial statements in accordance with IFRS Accounting Standards as issued by the IASB, as well as in compliance with IFRS Accounting Standards as adopted in conformity with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006, that entity should comply with the earlier IASB effective date for those items.

  • For accounting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2021, UK companies required or choosing to apply IFRS Accounting Standards will need to comply with UK-adopted IFRS Accounting Standards rather than EU-adopted IFRS Accounting Standards.
  • For accounting periods beginning prior to 1 January 2021, UK companies required or choosing to apply IFRS Accounting Standards must still prepare their financial statements in accordance with EU-adopted IFRS Accounting Standards. However, companies whose financial year spans 31 December 2020, and those whose filing deadline falls after 31 December 2020 but whose accounts have not been filed before 31 December 2020, may opt to apply any new IFRS Accounting Standards adopted by the UK in addition to EU-adopted IFRS Accounting Standards as at 31 December 2020.
  • For accounting periods beginning prior to 1 January 2021, if the entity has transferable securities admitted to trading on a UK regulated market, is required to produce consolidated accounts and is preparing accounts to satisfy DTR requirements, those accounts must additionally be prepared in accordance with IFRS Accounting Standards adopted pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 1606/2002 as it applies in the European Union. This means that EU adoption of IFRS Accounting Standards subsequent to 31 December 2020 remains relevant for such entities.

Further information on IFRS Standards in the UK is available here.

The table below provides a summary of these pronouncements, and which reporting periods they apply to:

Pronouncement IASB Effective date* EU/UK effective date* UK Mandatory at 31 December 2021?
1st qtrs.** 2nd qtrs.*** 3rd qtrs.**** Full yrs*****
Applying IFRS 9 'Financial Instruments' with IFRS 4 'Insurance Contracts' (Amendments to IFRS 4)
1 January 2018 1 January 2018 Optional ~ Optional ~ Optional ~ Optional ~
Covid-19-Related Rent Concessions (Amendment to IFRS 16) 1 June 2020 1 June 2020 Already applied in prior year (October 2020) Already applied in prior year (July 2020) Yes Yes
Interest Rate Benchmark Reform — Phase 2 (Amendments to IFRS 9, IAS 39, IFRS 7, IFRS 4 and IFRS 16) 1 January 2021 1 January 2021 Yes Yes Yes Yes
Covid-19-Related Rent Concessions beyond 30 June 2021 (Amendment to IFRS 16) 1 April 2021 1 April 2021 Yes Yes Yes No

* Generally annual reporting periods beginning on or after the date indicated, may only apply to first-time adopters in some limited cases (see below for full details).

** 1st quarter ending on 31 December 2021 (accounting period began on 1 October 2021).

*** 2nd quarter ending 31 December 2021 (accounting period began 1 July 2021).

**** 3rd quarter ending 31 December 2021 (accounting period began 1 April 2021).

***** 4th quarter ending 31 December 2021 (accounting period began 1 January 2021).

~ The application of both approaches (overlay approach/ deferral approach) is optional and an entity is permitted to stop applying them before the new insurance contracts standard is applied.

More information about these pronouncements, and all new and revised pronouncements, is set out below.

Financial statement considerations in adopting new and revised pronouncements

Where new and revised pronouncements are applied for the first time, there can be consequential impacts on annual financial statements, including:

  • Updates to accounting policies. The terminology and substance of disclosed accounting policies may need to be updated to reflect new recognition, measurement and other requirements, e.g IAS 19 Employee Benefits may impact the measurement of certain employee benefits.
  • Impact of transitional provisions. IAS 8 Accounting Policies, Changes in Estimates and Errors contains a general requirement that changes in accounting policies are retrospectively applied, but this does not apply to the extent an individual pronouncement has specific transitional provisions.
  • Disclosures about changes in accounting policies. Where an entity changes its accounting policy as a result of the initial application of an IFRS and it has an effect on the current period or any prior period, IAS 8 requires the disclosure of a number of matters, e.g. the title of the IFRS, the nature of the change in accounting policy, a description of the transitional provisions, and the amount of the adjustment for each financial statement line item affected
  • Third statement of financial position. IAS 1 Presentation of Financial Statements requires the presentation of a third statement of financial position as at the beginning of the preceding period in addition to the minimum comparative financial statements in a number of situations, including if an entity applies an accounting policy retrospectively and the retrospective application has a material effect on the information in the statement of financial position at the beginning of the preceding period
  • Earnings per share (EPS). Where applicable to the entity, IAS 33 Earnings Per Share requires basic and diluted EPS to be adjusted for the impacts of adjustments result from changes in accounting policies accounted for retrospectively and IAS 8 requires the disclosure of the amount of any such adjustments.

Whilst disclosures associated with changes in accounting policies resulting from the initial application of new and revised pronouncements are less in interim financial reports under IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting, some disclosures are required, e.g. description of the nature and effect of any change in accounting policies and methods of computation.

 

New or revised standards

The information below can be used to assist with the disclosure requirements under paragraph 30 of IAS 8 Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors, which requires entities to disclose any new IFRS Standards that are in issue but not yet effective and which are likely to impact the entity

New or revised pronouncement Effective date

UK Application at 31 December 2021 to:

1st qtrs 2nd qtrs 3rd qtrs Full yrs

IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts

IFRS 17 requires insurance liabilities to be measured at a current fulfillment value and provides a more uniform measurement and presentation approach for all insurance contracts. These requirements are designed to achieve the goal of a consistent, principle-based accounting for insurance contracts. IFRS 17 supersedes IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts as of 1 January 2021.

Issued: 18 May 2017 (Summary of IFRS 17, Article, Newsletter).

Applicable to annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023. The original effective date of IFRS 17 of 1 January 2021 was amended by Amendments to IFRS 17 issued by the IASB in June 2020.

Endorsed for use in the EU, albeit with an optional exemption from applying the annual cohort requirement.  Not yet endorsed for use in the UK.

Amendments

New or revised pronouncement When effective UK Application at 31 December 2021 to:
1st qtrs 2nd qtrs 3rd qtrs Full yrs

Editorial Corrections (various)

The IASB periodically issues Editorial Corrections and changes to IFRSs and other pronouncements. Since the beginning of calendar 2012, such corrections have been made in February 2012, July 2012, March 2013, September 2013, November 2013 and March 2014, September 2014, December 2014, March 2015, April 2015, September 2015, December 2015, March 2016, May 2016, September 2016, December 2016, September 2017, November 2017, December 2018, March 2019, May 2019, December 2019, July 2020, September 2020, October 2020, November 2020, June 2021, October 2021, December 2021 and February 2022.

Note: For details of these editorial corrections, see our IASB editorial corrections page.

As minor editorial corrections, these changes are effectively immediately applicable under IFRS See comment in previous column
Applying IFRS 9 'Financial Instruments' with IFRS 4 'Insurance Contracts' (Amendments to IFRS 4)
Amends IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts provide two options for entities that issue insurance contracts within the scope of IFRS 4:
  • an option that permits entities to reclassify, from profit or loss to other comprehensive income, some of the income or expenses arising from designated financial assets; this is the so-called overlay approach;
  • an optional temporary exemption from applying IFRS 9 for entities whose predominant activity is issuing contracts within the scope of IFRS 4; this is the so-called deferral approach.
The application of both approaches is optional and an entity is permitted to stop applying them before the new insurance contracts standard is applied.
Issued: 12 September 2016 (article, newsletter)

Overlay approach to be applied when IFRS 9 is first applied. Deferral approach effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2018 and only available for five years after that.

In June 2020 the IASB issued Extension of the Temporary Exemption from Applying IFRS 9 (Amendments to IFRS 4) which changes the fixed expiry date for the temporary exemption (the deferral approach) in IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts from applying IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, so that entities would be required to apply IFRS 9 for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023.

 

Optional

Optional

Optional

Optional

Covid-19-Related Rent Concessions beyond 30 June 2021 (Amendment to IFRS 16)

Extends, by one year, the May 2020 amendment that provides lessees with an exemption from assessing whether a COVID-19-related rent concession is a lease modification

The Changes in Covid-19-Related Rent Concessions beyond 30 June 2021 (Amendment to IFRS 16) amend IFRS 16 to

  • permit a lessee to apply the practical expedient regarding COVID-19-related rent concessions to rent concessions for which any reduction in lease payments affects only payments originally due on or before 30 June 2022 (rather than only payments originally due on or before 30 June 2021);
  • require a lessee applying the amendment to do so for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2021;
  • require a lessee applying the amendment to do so retrospectively, recognising the cumulative effect of initially applying the amendment as an adjustment to the opening balance of retained earnings (or other component of equity, as appropriate) at the beginning of the annual reporting period in which the lessee first applies the amendment; and
  • specify that, in the reporting period in which a lessee first applies the amendment, a lessee is not required to disclose the information required by paragraph 28(f) of IAS 8.

Issued: 31 March 2021 (article)

The amendment is effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2021 (earlier application permitted, including in financial statements not yet authorised for issue at the date the amendment is issued).

 

Mandatory - endorsed by both the EU and UK.

Mandatory - Endorsed by both the UK and EU.

Mandatory - Endorsed by both the UK and EU.

Optional - Endorsed by both the UK and EU.

Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-Current (Amendments to IAS 1)

The amendments aim to promote consistency in applying the requirements by helping companies determine whether, in the statement of financial position, debt and other liabilities with an uncertain settlement date should be classified as current (due or potentially due to be settled within one year) or non-current

Issued: 23 January 2020 (article)

Annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023 (see 'Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current — Deferral of Effective Date (Amendment to IAS 1)' below). Original effective date 1 January 2022.

Not yet endorsed for use in the EU or the UK.

 

 

 

 

Property, Plant and Equipment — Proceeds before Intended Use (Amendments to IAS 16)

The amendments amend IAS 16 to prohibit deducting from the cost of an item of property, plant and equipment any proceeds from selling items produced while bringing that asset to the location and condition necessary for it to be capable of operating in the manner intended by management. Instead, an entity recognises the proceeds from selling such items, and the cost of producing those items, in profit or loss.

Issued: 14 May 2020 (article, newsletter)

Annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2022
Endorsed for use in the EU but not in the UK.

Annual Improvements 2018-2020 Cycle

Makes amendments to the following standards:

  • IFRS 1 First-time Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards - Subsidiary as a first-time adopter. The amendment permits a subsidiary that applies paragraph D16(a) of IFRS 1 to measure cumulative translation differences using the amounts reported by its parent, based on the parent’s date of transition to IFRSs.
  • IFRS 9 Financial Instruments - Fees in the ‘10 per cent’ test for derecognition of financial liabilities. The amendment clarifies which fees an entity includes when it applies the ‘10 per cent’ test in paragraph B3.3.6 of IFRS 9 in assessing whether to derecognise a financial liability. An entity includes only fees paid or received between the entity (the borrower) and the lender, including fees paid or received by either the entity or the lender on the other’s behalf.
  • IFRS 16 Leases - Lease incentives. The amendment to Illustrative Example 13 accompanying IFRS 16 removes from the example the illustration of the reimbursement of leasehold improvements by the lessor in order to resolve any potential confusion regarding the treatment of lease incentives that might arise because of how lease incentives are illustrated in that example.
  • IAS 41 Agriculture - Taxation in fair value measurements. The amendment removes the requirement in paragraph 22 of IAS 41 for entities to exclude taxation cash flows when measuring the fair value of a biological asset using a present value technique. This will ensure consistency with the requirements in IFRS 13.

Issued: 14 May 2020 (article, newsletter)

The amendments to IFRS 1, IFRS 9, and IAS 41 are all effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2022. Early application is permitted. The amendment to IFRS 16 only regards an illustrative example, so no effective date is stated.

Endorsed for use in the EU but not in the UK.

Reference to the Conceptual Framework (Amendments to IFRS 3)

The changes:

  • update IFRS 3 so that it refers to the 2018 Conceptual Framework instead of the 1989 Framework;
  • add to IFRS 3 a requirement that, for transactions and other events within the scope of IAS 37 or IFRIC 21, an acquirer applies IAS 37 or IFRIC 21 (instead of the Conceptual Framework) to identify the liabilities it has assumed in a business combination; and
  • add to IFRS 3 an explicit statement that an acquirer does not recognise contingent assets acquired in a business combination.

Issued: 14 May 2020 (article, newsletter)

The amendments are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2022. Early application is permitted if an entity also applies all other updated references (published together with the updated Conceptual Framework) at the same time or earlier

Endorsed for use in the EU but not in the UK.

Onerous Contracts — Cost of Fulfilling a Contract (Amendments to IAS 37)

The changes specify that the ‘cost of fulfilling’ a contract comprises the ‘costs that relate directly to the contract’. Costs that relate directly to a contract can either be incremental costs of fulfilling that contract (examples would be direct labour, materials) or an allocation of other costs that relate directly to fulfilling contracts (an example would be the allocation of the depreciation charge for an item of property, plant and equipment used in fulfilling the contract).

Issued: 14 MAy 2020 (article, newsletter)

Annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2022. Endorsed for use in the EU but not in the UK.

Covid-19-Related Rent Concessions (Amendment to IFRS 16)

Amends IFRS 16 to provide lessees with an exemption from assessing whether a COVID-19-related rent concession is a lease modification.

The changes:

  • provide lessees with an exemption from assessing whether a COVID-19-related rent concession is a lease modification;
  • require lessees that apply the exemption to account for COVID-19-related rent concessions as if they were not lease modifications;
  • require lessees that apply the exemption to disclose that fact; and
  • require lessees to apply the exemption retrospectively in accordance with IAS 8, but not require them to restate prior period figures.

The practical expedient applies to COVID-19-related rent concessions that result in reduction in lease payments due on or before 30 June 2021.

Issued: 28 MAy 2020 (article,newsletter)

 

The amendment is effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 June 2020.

 

Already applied in prior year (October 2020)

Already applied in prior year (July 2020)

Mandatory

Mandatory

Amendments to IFRS 17

Amends IFRS 17 to address concerns and implementation challenges that were identified after IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts was published in 2017.

The main changes are:

  • Deferral of the date of initial application of IFRS 17 by two years to annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023
  • Additional scope exclusion for credit card contracts and similar contracts that provide insurance coverage as well as optional scope exclusion for loan contracts that transfer significant insurance risk.
  • Recognition of insurance acquisition cash flows relating to expected contract renewals, including transition provisions and guidance for insurance acquisition cash flows recognised in a business acquired in a business combination.
  • Clarification of the application of IFRS 17 in interim financial statements allowing an accounting policy choice at a reporting entity level.
  • Clarification of the application of contractual service margin (CSM) attributable to investment-return service and investment-related service and changes to the corresponding disclosure requirements.
  • Extension of the risk mitigation option to include reinsurance contracts held and non-financial derivatives.
  • Amendments to require an entity that at initial recognition recognises losses on onerous insurance contracts issued to also recognise a gain on reinsurance contracts held.
  • Simplified presentation of insurance contracts in the statement of financial position so that entities would present insurance contract assets and liabilities in the statement of financial position determined using portfolios of insurance contracts rather than groups of insurance contracts.
  • Additional transition relief for business combinations and additional transition relief for the date of application of the risk mitigation option and the use of the fair value transition approach.
  • Several small amendments regarding minor application issues.

Issued: 25 June 2020 (article)

 

The amendment is effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023. Earlier application is permitted.

Endorsed for use in the EU but not in the UK.

Extension of the Temporary Exemption from Applying IFRS 9 (Amendments to IFRS 4)

The amendment changes the fixed expiry date for the temporary exemption in IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts from applying IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, so that entities would be required to apply IFRS 9 for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023.

Issued: 25 June 2020 (article)

In June 2020 the IASB issued Extension of the Temporary Exemption from Applying IFRS 9 (Amendments to IFRS 4) which changes the fixed expiry date for the temporary exemption (the deferral approach) in IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts from applying IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, so that entities would be required to apply IFRS 9 for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023.

Optional

Optional

Optional

Optional

'Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current — Deferral of Effective Date (Amendment to IAS 1)'

The amendment defers the effective date of the January 2020 amendments (see above) by one year.

Issued: 15 July 2020 (article)

 

The changes in Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current — Deferral of Effective Date defer the effective date of Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current (Amendments to IAS 1) to annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023. Earlier application of the January 2020 amendments continue to be permitted.

Not yet endorsed for use in the EU or the UK.

Interest Rate Benchmark Reform — Phase 2 (Amendments to IFRS 9, IAS 39, IFRS 7, IFRS 4 and IFRS 16)

The amendments in Interest Rate Benchmark Reform — Phase 2 (Amendments to IFRS 9, IAS 39, IFRS 7, IFRS 4 and IFRS 16) introduce a practical expedient for modifications required by the reform, clarify that hedge accounting is not discontinued solely because of the IBOR reform, and introduce disclosures that allow users to understand the nature and extent of risks arising from the IBOR reform to which the entity is exposed to and how the entity manages those risks as well as the entity’s progress in transitioning from IBORs to alternative benchmark rates, and how the entity is managing this transition.

Issued: 27 August 2020 (article)

 

Annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2021.

Mandatory - endorsed by both the EU and UK.

Mandatory - Endorsed by both the UK and EU.

Mandatory - Endorsed by both the UK and EU.

Mandatory - endorsed by both the EU and UK.

Disclosure of Accounting Policies (Amendments to IAS 1 and IFRS Practice Statement 2)

The amendments require that an entity discloses its material accounting policies, instead of its significant accounting policies. Further amendments explain how an entity can identify a material accounting policy. Examples of when an accounting policy is likely to be material are added. To support the amendment, the Board has also developed guidance and examples to explain and demonstrate the application of the ‘four-step materiality process’ described in IFRS Practice Statement 2.

Issued: 12 February 2021 (article)

Annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023.  Endorsed for use in the EU but not in the UK.

 

 

 

 

Deferred Tax related to Assets and Liabilities arising from a Single Transaction (Amendments to IAS 12)

The amendments clarify how companies account for deferred tax on transactions such as leases and decommissioning obligations.

The amendments provide an exemption from the initial recognition exemption provided in IAS 12.15(b) and IAS 12.24. Accordingly, the initial recognition exemption does not apply to transactions in which both deductible and taxable temporary differences arise on initial recognition that result in the recognition of equal deferred tax assets and liabilities.

Issued: 7 May 2021 (article)

Annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023. Not yet endorsed for use in the EU or the UK.

Initial Application of IFRS 17 and IFRS 9 — Comparative Information (Amendment to IFRS 17)


The amendment permits entities that first apply IFRS 17 and IFRS 9 at the same time to present comparative information about a financial asset as if the classification and measurement requirements of IFRS 9 had been applied to that financial asset before.

Issued: 9 December 2021 (article)

An entity that elects to apply the amendment applies it when it first applies IFRS 17
Not yet endorsed for use in the UK or EU.

Definition of Accounting Estimates (Amendments to IAS 8)

The amendments replace the definition of a change in accounting estimates with a definition of accounting estimates. Under the new definition, accounting estimates are “monetary amounts in financial statements that are subject to measurement uncertainty”. Entities develop accounting estimates if accounting policies require items in financial statements to be measured in a way that involves measurement uncertainty. The amendments clarify that a change in accounting estimate that results from new information or new developments is not the correction of an error.

Issued: 12 February 2021 (article)

 

 

Annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023.  Endorsed for use in the EU but not in the UK.

 

 

 

IASB issues 'Investor Update' newsletter

16 Dec, 2021

The IASB has issued the latest edition of its newsletter 'Investor Update', which profiles recently introduced IFRS Standards and other changes that are in the pipeline as well as how those changes may affect companies and performance.

This issue features:

  • In profile — Anthony Scilipoti, President & CEO, Veritas Investment Research Corporation and member of the Capital Markets Advisory Committee
  • Spotlight — 2021 Greatest Hits: An update on IASB consultations
  • We need your views
  • Stay up to date
  • Resources for investors

The Investor Update newslet­ter is available on the IASB’s website.

IFRS Foundation proposes update to IFRS Taxonomy 2021

16 Dec, 2021

The IFRS Foundation has issued a proposed IFRS Taxonomy Update, 'IFRS Taxonomy 2021 Proposed Update 3 — Initial Application of IFRS 17 and IFRS 9 — Comparative Information (Amendment to IFRS 17).

The proposed changes reflect those made by Initial Application of IFRS 17 and IFRS 9—Comparative Information, issued on 9 December.

Details on the proposed changes are available in the press release on the IASB website and in proposed update itself. Comments are requested by 17 January 2022.

IFRS Foundation announces ISSB Chair

16 Dec, 2021

The Trustees of the IFRS Foundation have appointed Emmanuel Faber to lead the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).

Mr Faber, who is the former Chair of the Board and CEO of Danone, will assume his role on 1 January 2022. He has been appointed for a three-year term. Mr Faber has significant global leadership experience and has long advocated the importance of sustainability information to the global capital markets and its relevance to the investment decision-making process.

The ISSB will develop the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards that provide a global baseline of disclosure requirements designed to give investors high quality, globally comparable sustainability information. The ISSB will work in close cooperation with the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) to ensure connectivity and compatibility between IFRS Accounting Standards and IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards.

Please click for more information in the press release on the IFRS Foundation website.

The Monitoring Board of the IFRS Foundation has issued a statement welcoming the appointment.

ESMA report on application of IFRS 7 and IFRS 9 requirements for banks’ expected credit losses

15 Dec, 2021

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a report that provides (1) an overview of the principles and requirements in IFRS 7 and IFRS 9 related to the measurement and disclosure of expected credit losses (ECL) by European banks and (2) recommendations on how to improve the level of compliance, comparability and transparency of those requirements.

The report focuses on the following areas:

  • General aspects of the ECL-disclosures
  • Assessment of significant increase in credit risk
  • Forward-looking information
  • Explanation of changes in loss allowances
  • Transparency of disclosures on credit risk exposures
  • ECL sensitivity disclosures

For more information, see the press release on the ESMA website.

Call for applications: Chairs of EFRAG FRB and EFRAG SRB

15 Dec, 2021

The envisioned new structure of the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) would see the establishment of two Boards side-by-side: the Financial Reporting Board (FRB) and the Sustainability Reporting Board (SRB). For both Boards, a call for applications for the role of Chair has now been published.

The calls for application are available on the website of the European Commission:

Applications are invited by 1 February 2022.

Report on the November 2021 IFRS Advisory Council meeting

14 Dec, 2021

A summary report has been released of the meeting of the IFRS Advisory Council held by remote participation on 10 November 2021.

The par­tic­i­pants discussed:

  • Update on Trustees Ac­tiv­i­ties — Received an update on four key announcements from the 3 November United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), which included the decision to establish the International Sustainability Standard Board, commitment to consolidate two investor-focused international sustainability standard-setters into the ISSB, publication of the climate-related disclosures prototype and general sustainability disclosure requirements prototype, and locations of the ISSB offices.
  • Update on Board Ac­tiv­i­ties — Received an update on recent Board ac­tiv­i­ties which include connectivity between the IASB and ISSB, resources to support the IASB, cryptocurrencies, intangible assets, goodwill and impairment, management commentary, pension accounting, endorsement, and further updates that would be beneficial to the Advisory Council.
  • Feedback from previous Advisory Council meetings — Updated on how previous discussions by members have been applied to the work of the IASB and IFRS Foundation.
  • Update on sustainability-related reporting — Updated on the latest developments related to the ISSB’s establishment.

The full meeting summary is available on the IASB's website.

TRWG provides recommendations to the ISSB

14 Dec, 2021

The IFRS Foundation has made available a webcast that provides the Technical Readiness Working Group’s (TRWG) recommendations to the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).

The webcast provides background information on the TRWG as well as the preparatory work and recommendations by the TRWG related to:

  • Architecture of standards
  • General requirements prototype sustainability matters that affect investors’ assessment of enterprise value.
  • Climate prototype
  • Overview of five other deliverables
  • Other immediate priorities.

The webcast features IFRS Foundation Trustee Lucrezia Reichlin, along with TRWG members Ravi Abeywardana (Technical Director at the Climate Disclosure Standards Board); Veronica Poole (Global IFRS and corporate reporting leader at Deloitte and who represented the World Economic Forum on the TRWG); Spencer Powell (Performance Lead at the Impact Management Project); and Bryan Esterly (Chief Technical Officer for the SASB Standards at the Value Reporting Foundation).

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

New CMAC members

14 Dec, 2021

The IASB's Capital Markets Advisory Committee (CMAC) announces that four new members have been appointed.

Enitan Adebonojo, Jacques de Greling, Kenneth Lee and Ge Xiabo will join the CMAC for a three-year term beginning 1 January 2022, renewable once for an additional three-year term.

Additional information, including information on the backgrounds of the new members, is available on the IASB website.

ITF calls for support for the ISSB

13 Dec, 2021

The industry-led Impact Taskforce (ITF) invited by the G7 Presidency to help answer the question of how the volume and effectiveness of private capital seeking to have a positive social and environmental impact can be accelerated has published its final report.

The report notes that the opportunity to mobilise private capital for public good at an unprecedented scale is real. While a fragmented approach undermines momentum and disclosure of non-financial information remains unfit for purpose at the moment, formation of the IFRS Foundation's International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) is hailed as good news. The ITF calls on governments to support and participate in upcoming consultations, ensuring that the ISSB: has an inclusive governance model; balances social and environmental issues; acknowledges and reflects realities of both emerging and developed economies; actively engages small and medium enterprises (SMEs) along the value chain; and is swiftly followed by an assurance regime for all data relevant to enterprise value for public companies.

The ITF also urgently calls for mandatory accounting for impact as a destination and notes that the journey to this goal will require: greater transparency, building on harmonised standards, strong mechanisms to ensure integrity of data, analysis and governance. The report analyses theses aspects as follows:

Transparency

  • Mandatory impact disclosure is necessary to achieve the SDGs and accelerate behavioural change in capital markets.
  • While mandatory reporting rules are being rolled out, voluntary disclosure practices must improve to meet today’s urgent social and environmental challenges.
  • Investors should be transparent too.

Harmonisation

  • A global reporting “baseline” should cover, as a minimum, social and environmental impacts that affect enterprise value.
  • Endorsing a baseline is not enough; governments should urgently “build” on the global baseline and push for standards that explicitly recognise and incorporate the impact on all stakeholders.

Integrity

  • Putting in place secure, interoperable data infrastructure is essential for telling the full story.
  • Decision-making processes must include those most affected; to ensure impact integrity, a wide range of stakeholders should inform and participate in decision-making.

Small and medium enterprises

  • Successful impact transparency, harmonisation, and integrity will rely on the inclusion and engagement of SMEs.

Emerging markets

  • Capital markets want better information on impact for all stakeholders – and in an increasingly interconnected world, this must include truly global voices.

The report sums up the key messages as follows. There is an urgent need to narrow the gap between rhetoric and delivery. Private capital and enterprise are playing a critical role. The challenges should not be underestimated, but there is a window of opportunity.

Please click to access the full report on the ITF website.

Correction list for hyphenation

These words serve as exceptions. Once entered, they are only hyphenated at the specified hyphenation points. Each word should be on a separate line.