March

IFRS conference in Frankfurt

12 Mar 2018

The IFRS Foundation has announced that its next IFRS conference in Europe will be held in Frankfurt, Germany on 28–29 June 2018.

The main conference programme includes:

Day 1

  • Chairman’s keynote
  • Keynote address by the CFO of SAP SE
  • IASB update
    • Major IFRS Standards (including insurance and rate-regulated activities)
    • Research projects
    • The importance of disclosures
  • Break-out sessions:
    • Implementation and Application of the Standards
    • IFRS Taxonomy
    • Implementing IFRS 16 Leases — Disclosures
    • Primary Financial Statements
    • Wider Corporate Reporting

Day 2

  • Panel discussion — Judgments and estimates
  • Conceptual Framework at a glance
  • Panel discussion — Technology and its impact on accounting
  • Break-out sessions:
    • Implementation and Application of the Standards (repeated from day 1)
    • Financial Instruments with Characteristics of Equity
    • IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts — Implementation: Hot Topics
    • Conceptual Framework in action
  • Q&A session with IASB Members and staff

There are also four pre-conference special interest workshops:

  • Investor-focused IFRS workshop and update
  • Guide to new IFRS Standards 
  • Effects of IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts   
  • Making Disclosure More Meaningful

More details, including registration information, are available on the conference website

Agenda and pre-meeting summaries for the March IASB meeting

12 Mar 2018

The IASB has posted the agenda for its next meeting, which will be held at its offices in London on 21 and 22 March 2018. We have posted our pre-meeting summaries for the meeting that allow you to follow the IASB’s decision making more closely. For each topic to be discussed we summarise the agenda papers made available by the IASB staff and point out the main issues to be discussed by the IASB and the staff recommendations.

The Board will discuss seven projects.      

Wednesday

Disclosure Initiative

The Board continues its discussion of the feedback on the Principles of Disclosure Discussion Paper. The objective of this meeting is for the Board to make decisions about the next steps in the project. The staff have identified topics that they think are directly related to improving disclosures in financial statements, topics that they think are more relevant to the Primary Financial Statements project, topics that are unlikely to be contributing to the disclosure problems, those that can be dealt with separately from the main disclosure problem and topics that the DP did not address, but for which the Board received significant feedback.

Thursday

Dynamic Risk Management [Macro-hedging]

The staff will discuss the role of the target profile within the Dynamic Risk Management accounting model.

Rate-regulated Activities

The Board is being asked to decide on the definition of defined rate regulation (which sets the scope for the eventual new Standard), and the criteria for recognising regulatory assets and regulatory liabilities.

IFRS 8 Operating Segments

The staff have considered whether the Board should bring the project to conclusion without moving forward on any of the proposed amendments, proceed with all of the proposals or, as they recommend, proceed with a (modified) sub-set of the proposals.

Post-implementation review of IFRS 13 'Fair Value Measurement'

The Board discussed a summary of feedback on its Request for Information and an academic review in January 2018. At this meeting the staff are recommending that the Board consider disclosure issues as part of the Principles of Disclosure project. In general, however, the feedback indicates that IFRS 13 is working as intended and the staff recommend that no changes to IFRS 13 be considered at this time.

Management Commentary

In November 2017 the IASB decided to update its Management Commentary Practice Statement. Last week the Board announced the creation of a consultative group to support the project. At this meeting the staff will give a presentation that sets out the approach they propose taking in updating the Practice Statement.

Accounting Policies and Accounting Estimates

The Board will discuss a summary of the comments received on the exposure draft to clarify the definitions of an accounting policy and an accounting estimate.

More information

Our pre-meeting summaries are available on our March meeting note page and will be supplemented with our popular meeting notes after the meeting.

Use of financial accounting standards to meet TCFD recommendations

12 Mar 2018

The Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB) has published 'Uncharted waters: How can companies use financial accounting standards to deliver on the TCFD’s recommendations?'. The publication explores how companies can use existing international accounting standards when implementing the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations and comes out as the European Commission calls for the review of current IFRS to assess their potential impact on sustainable investment.

The paper summarises the Task Force’s final recommendations on future-oriented climate-related financial disclosures, identifies financial accounting standards and other mainstream reporting materials that could aid companies in responding to various aspects of the TCFD recommendations, and considers what more needs to be done and how to align the TCFD core elements and recommended disclosures with existing financial accounting standards and materials. The paper focuses on IFRS 7, IFRS 9, IFRS 15, IFRS 17 and IAS 36 and IAS 37, exploring some of the main points applied to traditional financial instruments and how they could potentially help organisations disclose climate-related risks and opportunities within their mainstream reports.

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

IASB to set up consultative group for updating the Management Commentary Practice Statement

10 Mar 2018

In November 2017, the IASB formally added a project to revise its Management Commentary Practice Statement to its agenda. The IASB is now seeking participants for a consultative group that will advise the Board on this project.

The Board is seeking candidates who have:

  1. a deep understanding of the information that existing and potential investors, lenders and other creditors need from management commentary and of areas of current practice where those needs are, or are not, being met; or
  2. expertise in developing or implementing management commentary regimes designed to meet those needs.

The Board expects to hold at least four consultative group meetings during the course of the project.

Please see the press release on the IASB website for more information. The deadline for applications is 20 April 2018.

Hyperinflationary economies - updated IPTF watch list available

09 Mar 2018

IAS 29 'Financial Reporting in Hyperinflationary Economies' defines and provides general guidance for assessing whether a particular jurisdiction's economy is hyperinflationary. But the IASB does not identify specific jurisdictions. The International Practices Task Force (IPTF) of the Centre for Audit Quality (CAQ) monitors the status of 'highly inflationary' countries. The Task Force's criteria for identifying such countries are similar to those for identifying 'hyperinflationary economies' under IAS 29.

The IPTF's discussion document for the 21 November 2017 meeting is now available and states the following view of the Task Force:

Countries with three-year cumulative inflation rates exceeding 100%:

  • South Sudan
  • Suriname
  • Venezuela

Countries with projected three-year cumulative inflation rates exceeding 100%:

  • Angola
  • Libya
  • Argentina

Countries where the three-year cumulative inflation rates had exceeded 100% in recent years:

  • Sudan

Countries with recent three-year cumulative inflation rates exceeding 100% after a spike in inflation in a discrete period:

  • Ukraine

Countries with projected three-year cumulative inflation rates between 70% and 100% or with a significant (25% or more) increase in inflation during the current period

  • Democratic Republic of Kongo
  • Egypt
  • Yemen

The full list, including exact numbers, detailed explanations of the calculation of the numbers, and observations of the Task Force are available on the CAQ website. We also offer an overview of the IPTF's assessment of hyperinflationary jurisdictions at the end of our summary of IAS 29.

European Commission publishes action plan on sustainable finance

08 Mar 2018

In January 2018, the High-Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Sustainable Finance, established by the European Commission (EC), published its final report setting out strategic recommendations for a financial system that supports sustainable investments. The European Commission has now reacted to the recommendations by proposing an EU strategy on sustainable finance setting out a roadmap for further work and upcoming actions covering all relevant actors in the financial system.

As regards accounting, the action plan includes the following points:

  • Fitness check of EU legislation on public corporate reporting, including theNon-Financial Reporting Directive, to assess whether public reporting requirements for listed and non-listed companies are fit for purpose;
  • by Q2 2019, revision of the guidelines on non-financial information to provide further guidance to companies on how to disclose climate-related information, in line with the recommendations of the Financial Stability Board's Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD);
  • by Q3 2018, creation of a European Corporate Reporting Lab as part of the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG);
  • request EFRAG, where appropriate, to assess the impact of new or revised IFRSs on sustainable investments; and
  • as part of the fitness check, evaluation of relevant aspects of the International Accounting Standards Regulation focusing in particular on how the adoption process of IFRSs can allow for specific adjustments to standards where they are not conducive to the European public good.

Please click for the full text of the action plan on the EC website. Additional documents such as FAQs and a factsheet are available here.

IASB posts webcast on IFRS 17

07 Mar 2018

The IASB has posted a webcast on recognising the contractual service margin in profit or loss in IFRS 17 'Insurance Contracts'.

This webcast is part of a series to support the implementation of IFRS 17.

For more information, see the press release on the IASB’s website. In addition, earlier webcasts and webinars on IFRS 17 are available through an archive.

Standard-setters from Hong Kong and Japan take up bilateral meetings

07 Mar 2018

Representatives of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA) and of the Accounting Standards Board of Japan (ASBJ) met on 5 and 6 March 2018 in Hong Kong to discuss higher quality accounting standards by collaboration.

Main topics of discussion during this first bilateral meeting were the standard-setters' projects on developing the accounting for group reorganisations (or intra-group mergers and acquisitions) and the accounting for virtual currencies, for which there are no global accounting standards as yet. They also exchanged views on opportunities to cooperate and share insights on accounting challenges today and the way newly effective standards are applied.

HKICPA and ASBJ plan to continue these meetings.

Please click for the press release on the ASBJ website.

EFRAG publishes report on the perception of its work in the financial reporting community

07 Mar 2018

In the fourth quarter of 2017, the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) commissioned an independent perception survey to gauge awareness of its work in the financial reporting community and provide a snapshot of the organisation's progress in delivering on its European public interest mission. ​​​

The survey was addressed to and received responses from:

  • National (EU and non-EU) financial reporting standard-setters,
  • Private sector accountancy firms and associations,
  • Users of financial reporting standards, and
  • Think-tanks, NGOs, and international organisations.

Findings are structured around seven key areas:

  1. EFRAG’s visibility,
  2. Inclusiveness and transparency of EFRAG’s work,
  3. Quality of EFRAG’s research work,
  4. EFRAG’s perceived influence on financial reporting standards,
  5. EFRAG’s endorsement work,
  6. Serving the European public interest, and
  7. Future areas of EFRAG focus.

The report finds that the European financial reporting community see EFRAG as being effective in its three core activities of upstream influence, improving IFRS and providing endorsement advice. Stakeholders also confirm the high quality of EFRAG's work while they are suggesting that EFRAG should seek to boost its visibility and join the wider debate on corporate reporting.

Please click to access the press release and the final report on the EFRAG website.

IASB issues podcast on latest Board developments

06 Mar 2018

The IASB has released a podcast featuring Chair Hans Hoogervorst, Board member Darrel Scott, and education director Matt Tilling to discuss the deliberations at the February 2018 IASB meeting.

The 19-minute podcast features discussions of the following topics:

  • Disclosures
  • Rate-regulation
  • IFRS 17 implementation
  • Cash flows
  • Management performance measures
  • Business combinations under common control

The podcast can be accessed through the press release on the IASB website. More information on the topics discussed is available through our comprehensive notes taken by Deloitte observers of the February 2018 meeting.

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