Chairman Michel Prada explains that only full use of IFRSs will bring needed familiarity

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11 Nov 2014

The Chairman of the IFRS Foundation Trustees, Michel Prada, delivered a speech entitled 'Japan and global standards' at a meeting of the Financial Accounting Standards Foundation's (FASF) stakeholders in Tokyo, Japan. In his speech, he took stock of the adoption of IFRS around the world and commented on the situation in Japan.

Mr Prada commented on the ever growing number of jurisdictions adopting IFRS and explained that for most industry sectors in the world, IFRS is now the predominant basis on which companies' financial statements are prepared. As part of the reason for this success he made out that "investors have a clear bias for the familiar" and that IFRS have by now become the means to provide that familiarity to international investors. Jurisdictions or companies that decide not to apply IFRSs would need to be aware of becoming increasingly isolated and that the "costs of being outside the familiarity of the IFRS system" would rise.

Mr Prada then looked at the large economies that still have not adopted IFRS (China, India, the US, and Japan) and made out encouraging developments in all of them although he admitted that in the case of the US "progress has been slower than anticipated". Among these jurisdictions, he especially noted Japan and the careful and considered approach to the use of IFRS in Japan that has been chosen. He claimed that the option of voluntary adoption of IFRS was being watched carefully by other jurisdictions as it would allow larger, multinational companies to benefit from IFRS without immediately forcing smaller, more domestically focused companies to adopt a new system.

Among the Japanese encouraging developments, Mr Prada also looked at the introduction of Japanese Modified International Standards (JMIS) where an exposure draft has been published in July 2014. He commented:

I have no strong views on JMIS, and it is up to the Japanese authorities to determine what transitional steps to IFRS are required. However, if investor familiarity is the goal then this can only come from the full use of IFRS.

Mr Prada concluded his speech by underlining that the IFRS Foundation and the IASB have evolved into a global accounting standard-setter, willing and able to take on the resulting responsibilities but also willing to always keep and open mind and listen to and learn from the stakeholders.

The full text of Mr Prada's speech is available on the IASB's website.

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