The TRG was formed in June 2014 and is responsible for soliciting, analysing, and discussing stakeholder issues arising from implementation of the new standards in order to assist the IASB and the FASB to determine what, if any, action will be needed to address those issues.

The agenda for the meeting is as follows:

Agenda papers from this meeting are available on the IASB's website.

The publications are:

• 2014 Handbook of International Quality Control, Auditing, Review, Other Assurance, and Related Services Pronouncements.
• 2014 Handbook of International Education Pronouncements.
• 2014 Handbook of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants.
• 2014 Handbook of International Public Sector Accounting Pronouncements.

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

The IFRS compliance, presentation and disclosure checklist 2014 summarises the recognition, measurement, presentation, and disclosure requirements set out in IFRSs in issue as of 30 April 2014. IFRSs include Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the former International Accounting Standards Committee and Interpretations as issued by the IFRS Interpretations Committee and the former Standing Interpretations Committee. It may be used as a guide to assist in considering compliance with the requirements of the IFRSs. It is not a substitute for understanding such pronouncements.

The IAS 34 compliance checklist 2014 summarises the requirements of IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting, formatted to allow the recording of a review of interim financial statements, with a place to indicate yes/no/not-applicable for each item. The checklist addresses the requirements of IAS 34 as of 30 April 2014.

Click for:

• IFRS Compliance, Presentation and Disclosure Checklist 2014 (Excel file, 3.5 MB)
• IAS 34 compliance checklist 2014 (Excel file, 81 KB)

In our response to the IVSC's consultation, we support the Board's efforts to bring together national bodies of valuation professionals into a global representative organisation. However, we believe the role of the IVSC should be as an educational and coordinating body, rather than as an international 'standard setter', which suggests a significant degree of regulatory rigor and compliance. We do support the IVSC developing valuation guidance based on clear principles that can be applied across asset (and liability) types in order to facilitate a variety of valuation objectives, but do not support developing more asset-specific or sector-specific guidance.

Download the full comment letter.

We are supportive of the IASB in the development of an approach to account for dynamic risk management activities; however, we do not support the Portfolio Revaluation Approach as stated in the discussion paper because it will (1) conflicts with the accounting principles in the conceptual framework, (2) require risk management activities to be defined in order to determine what is in or out of the revaluation model, and (3) not build on the classification, measurement and general hedge accounting concepts already established in IFRS 9. In addition, we believe that a portfolio hedging solution should be examined for insurers and other non-financial entities.

We also believe that an approach that combines existing thinking in IFRS 9 with the ability to behaviouralise cash flows on a portfolio basis (including core deposits) and allowing bottom layers to be designated has the potential to be more relevant than the existing portfolio fair value hedge accounting model in IAS 39.

Click for the full comment letter.

The paper is structured into five sections:

• Why does the European Commission deal with EU Member States’ public sector accounting?
• Why does the European Commission suggest developing European Public Sector Accounting Standards (EPSAS)?
• How did the EPSAS project proceed?
• The FEE position on EPSAS
• What are the next steps in the EPSAS project?

In the briefing paper, FEE continues to stress that a global solution (which alsready exists in International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS)) is the preferred solution. In an issues paper published in March 2014 FEE had already outlined a number of significant concerns in connection with EPSAS. Given, however, the urgent need for a reform of public sector accounting with the objective of greater transparency and accountability, FEE states that "EPSAS could be acceptable to encourage EU Member States to move towards accrualsbased accounting and increase the quality of their reporting" if a number of conditions are met.

After recently releasing a study analysing the potential costs and benefits of implementing EPSAS in the Member States and the suitability of IPSAS for developing EPSAS, next steps in the project are a European Commission 'Communication regarding EPSAS' and an 'Impact Assessment regarding an EPSAS Framework Regulation'. Both are expected in October 2014.

Please click for access to the briefing paper on the FEE website.

The website EPSAS.eu - an online project initiated by the University of Hamburg (Germany) and the University of Linz (Austria) - offers comprehensive information about the idea of implementing EPSAS. Please access the site's news section for access to all documents published so far.

The Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative (SSEI) was founded in 2009 by the United Nations to exchange experience in the development and promotion of corporate social responsibility and responsible investment among investors, listed companies, regulators and capital market infrastructure institutions. The SSEI prepares biennial reports providing a periodic picture of sustainability initiatives implemented by stock exchanges and regulatory bodies around the world. The reports also highlight current best practices, trends, opportunities and challenges. Some key findings of the 2014 report are:

• Over forty per cent of the 55 exchanges reviewed offer at least one index integrating social and/or environmental issues;
• Over one-third of the exchanges provide either sustainability reporting guidance or training to the listed companies on their exchange;
• Twelve of the 55 exchanges require aspects of environmental and social reporting for at least some of their companies, with 7 of those exchanges requiring such reporting for all listed companies;
• 19 members of the G20 have at least one regulation in place requiring disclosure of some social and/or environmental metrics by companies;
• Of the 32 Securities regulators represented on the board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), more than one-third have introduced a sustainability reporting initiative.

However, the report also notes:

While a 'new mainstream' is emerging among policymakers, regulators and exchanges, the sustainability challenges the world faces remain enormous. Further progress by exchanges and their regulators is particularly important given the wider sustainable development context, and the expected introduction of the UN Sustainable Development Goals in 2015. At present, financial markets are not set up to channel sufficient funds towards sustainable development objectives.

Please click for access to the report and a press release on the SSEI's 2014 Global Dialogue (links to SSEI website). The SSEI currently counts 16 partner exchanges from every continent; most recently, Deutsche Börse joined the initiative (link to Deutsche Börse website).

The objective of the two consultations (one focused on preparers and one focused on users) was to obtain constituents' views on examples of transactions that would qualify as leases under the proposals, but that in the constituents view are in substance services, and the two alternative approaches proposed by the IASB and the FASB (particularly which is more appropriate and/or less costly to apply). The preliminary results of the consultations were discussed at the outreach event.

The main findings of the survey were:

• Respondents provided several examples of transactions that would qualify as leases under the 2013 ED proposals, but in the constituents' view should not be recognised on a lessee's balance sheet.
• Constituents noted that more work had to be done on the scope of application and/or on the definition of a lease.
• Of the two approaches that surfaced during the March 2014 joint meeting where the IASB and FASB did not reach a consensus regarding lessee accounting, users preferred the IASB approach while preparers' views were mixed and only a slight majority preferred the IASB model.

Please click for access to the reports on the EFRAG website:

• Feedback report from the public consultations
• Summary report on the outreach event

The new website was developed as a result of user feedback. The three-tiered subscription levels include:

• eIFRS Professional — Provides access to authoritative, annotated versions of IFRS and supporting materials. A new "standards comparison tool" allows users to view changes to a Standard between current, prior and subsequent years. Existing subscribers to eIFRS will automatically be upgraded to eIFRS Professional.
• eIFRS Comprehensive — Includes a subscription to eIFRS Professional as well as offline, print editions of the Standards and other materials.
• eIFRS Basic — Provides users with limited access to the basic IFRS Standards.

More information is available in the IASB's press release and on the eIFRS website.