October

ISAR 39

13 Oct 2022

The thirty-ninth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Intergovernmental Working Group of Experts on International Standards of Accounting and Reporting (ISAR) will be held in Geneva on 1 - 3 November 2022.

The two main topics for the meeting will be:

  • Review of practical implementation of international standards of accounting and reporting in the private and public sectors; and
  • Good practices in and approaches to the practical implementation of sustainability reporting requirements.

The background papers for these two topics are available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Spanish, and Russian and can be accessed here.

The list of speakers includes Jingdong Hua, Vice-Chair of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).

The workshop before the ISAR meeting this year (31 October 2022) will focus on "Regional Partnerships for the promotion of sustainability and SDG reporting".

September 2022 IASB-FASB joint meeting notes posted

12 Oct 2022

The IASB and FASB met virtually and in its offices in London on 30 September 2022. We have posted our comprehensive Deloitte observer notes for all the discussion held during the meeting.

The following topics were discussed:

Goodwill and Impairment (IASB) and Identifiable Intangible Assets and Subsequent Accounting for Goodwill (FASB)

The IASB has, and the FASB had, on their respective agendas projects covering the accounting for goodwill and intangible assets acquired in a business combination. The purpose of this meeting was to provide an opportunity for FASB and IASB members to discuss the status of the respective projects; the subsequent accounting for goodwill—including the FASB’s progress with developing an amortisation-with-impairment model and recent decision to deprioritise and remove the project from its technical agenda, and the IASB’s research on this topic; and the redeliberations of the IASB in relation to disclosures about business combinations. FASB members updated the IASB as to why they had removed the project from the agenda. One of the main reasons why the FASB could not agree on a way forward was that they did not have a clear objective as to whether the project was to reduce cost or to increase benefits. The IASB Chair highlighted that the IASB would have to consider the objective of their project before making a decision on amortisation in November. The boards discussed whether the impairment model could be improved and whether some intangibles could not be separated from goodwill. A FASB member asked whether the IASB would be prepared to split the amortisation part of the project from the disclosure part of the project if they ran into similar difficulties as the FASB. The IASB Chair confirmed that they are prepared to do so if necessary. The other main discussion point was the exemption the IASB tentatively decided to provide with regard to disclosures that are commercially sensitive.

Disaggregation-related projects

Both the IASB and the FASB are currently undertaking, or will undertake, projects whose objectives include providing users of financial statements with more disaggregated information. The purpose of this meeting was to provide both boards with an opportunity to share comments and ask questions about these projects. The boards discussed their projects on the statement of cash flows; the FASB has already started whereas the IASB has only just added a research project. They discussed investor calls for more disaggregation and more information about direct cash flows. They also discussed income statement disaggregation, including the difficulty of defining unusual items. A suggestion was made by a FASB member that this was better left for management commentary.

Digital Assets

The boards discussed the results of the FASB’s research and outreach related to digital assets, which led the FASB to add a project to its technical agenda—Accounting for and Disclosure of Crypto Assets. The IASB outlined its work and its decision not to add a project on cryptocurrencies and related transactions to its workplan. The discussion mainly focused on when to start addressing the crypto asset issue, particularly whether the boards should act now while the issue is not pervasive (i.e. leading the market) or wait until it becomes pervasive (i.e. following the market). There were strongly held, but opposite, views within the IASB about whether the IASB should start a project.

2021 Agenda Consultation (FASB) and Third Agenda Consultation (IASB)

Both the IASB and the FASB have recently finalised their agenda consultations. The purpose of this meeting was to provide both boards with an opportunity to share comments and ask questions about these consultations. The FASB’s new project on software costs sparked some interest among IASB members. The IASB Chair noted that both boards will look into issues around intangibles and cash flow statements and that US GAAP and IFRS are not converged for those areas. He said it would be good to exchange information between the boards on these projects, keeping the broader constituency of both boards in mind.

Please click to access the detailed notes taken by Deloitte observers for the entire meeting.

FASB and ASBJ hold biannual meeting

12 Oct 2022

On 10-11 October 2022, the FASB and the Accounting Standards Board of Japan (ASBJ) held a joint meeting in Norwalk. The meeting was the 31st in a series of biannual meetings between the two standard setters.

The two boards informed each other about their respective activities and exchanged views on technical topics in which they both have an interest, including accounting for goodwill, accounting for crypto-assets, and the boundary of financial reporting.

The next meeting between the FASB and ASBJ is expected to be held in the first half of 2023. For more information about the latest meeting, see the press release on the ASBJ website.

IASB continues webcast series on dynamic risk management

12 Oct 2022

The IASB technical staff has produced a series of eight webcasts on its dynamic risk management (DRM) project, which are being released in batches.

The first webcast provided an overview of the project. Now another six webcasts have been released that focus on elements of DRM. They explain:

  • Risk management strategy and target profile (webcast 2)
  • Current net open risk position (webcast 3)
  • Risk mitigation intention and benchmark derivatives (webcast 4)
  • Designated derivatives (webcast 5)
  • Retrospective assessment and unexpected changes (webcast 6)
  • Measurement of the DRM adjustment (webcast 7)

Please click to access all webcasts released so far on the IFRS Foundation website.

Agenda for the upcoming meeting of the SCC

11 Oct 2022

The IFRS Foundation has released an agenda for the second meeting of the newly formed Sustainability Consultative Committee (SCC). The SCC’s remit is to identify, inform and advise the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) on priority sustainability matters and related technical protocols, as well as significant interdependencies between sustainability matters.

During its meeting on 13 October 2022, the main discussions will focus on the feedback on the ISSB exposure drafts, the ISSB agenda consultation, and capacity building in developing and emerging economies. There are no papers for the meeting. The full agenda is available here and registration as an observer is possible here (both links to the IFRS Foundation website).

FSB Chair notes the importance of interoperability

11 Oct 2022

Ahead of their meeting on 13-14 October 2022, a letter of the Chair of the Financial Stability Board (FSB) was submitted to G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors outlining the work the FSB is undertaking to tackle current financial stability issues.

The letter notes the July 2022 FSB progress report on addressing climate-related financial risks and comments on the need for interoperability:

The development of climate-related corporate disclosures provides a unique opportunity to avoid harmful fragmentation and create a global baseline standard that enables users to compare and aggregate exposures across jurisdictions. Interoperability between the common global baseline and national and regional jurisdiction-specific requirements will be essential. This needs to be built in early on, and certainly before frameworks are finalised and become hard to adjust.

Please click to access the full letter on the FSB website.

IASB webcasts on the dynamic risk management

10 Oct 2022

The IASB technical staff has issued the first in a series of eight webcasts on its dynamic risk management (DRM) project. The first webcast provides an overview of the project. The other webcasts being issued will be staggered to allow users time to view the content.

An upcoming batch of six webcasts will discuss each element of the DRM model and a final webcast will focus on a walkthrough of illustrative examples of how the DRM model could apply in practice.

For more information, see the press release and webcast on the IFRS Foundation's website.

October 2022 ISSB meeting agenda posted

10 Oct 2022

The ISSB has posted the agenda for its meeting, which will be held in Montreal on 18–21 October 2022. There are five topics on the agenda.

The Board will discuss the following:

  • ISSB consultation on agenda priorities
  • General sustainability-related disclosures
  • Climate-related disclosures
  • General sustainability-related disclosures and Climate-related disclosures — Interoperability
  • Industry-based materials

The full agenda for the meeting can be found here. We will post any updates to the agenda, our comprehensive pre-meeting summaries, as well as observer notes from the meeting on this page as they become available.

October 2022 IASB meeting agenda posted

10 Oct 2022

The IASB has posted the agenda for its next meeting, which will be held in its office in London on 18–20 October 2022. There are ten topics on the agenda.

The Board will discuss the following:

  • Rate-regulated activitie
  • Contractual cash flow characteristics
  • Equity method
  • Taxonomy
  • Disclosure initiative — Targeted standards-level review of disclosures
  • Maintenance and consistent application
  • PIR of IFRS 9 — Classification and measurement
  • Disclosure initiative — Subsidiaries without public accountability: Disclosures
  • Goodwill and impairment
  • ISSB Update

The full agenda for the meeting can be found here. We will post any updates to the agenda, our comprehensive pre-meeting summaries, as well as observer notes from the meeting on this page as they become available.

IFRS Foundation seeks Trustee applications

07 Oct 2022

The IFRS Foundation is seeking Trustees from Asia-Oceania, the Americas and Europe for terms beginning on 1 January 2024.

Trustees’ responsibilities include oversight of the organisation in the public interest, its strategic direction, appointments to the IASB, the ISSB, the IFRS Interpretations Committee and the IFRS Advisory Council, and ensuring the financing of the organisation and approving its budget. Trustees are expected to engage with the markets in their regional jurisdiction. Given the recent creation of the ISSB, the Trustees would particularly welcome applications from candidates with a knowledge and interest in sustainability-disclosure reporting and wider corporate reporting.

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

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