The staff are recommending that the amendments include an exception to the requirement in IAS 39 for retrospective assessment when a hedge is temporarily outside the 80–125% range solely due to uncertainties arising from the reform;  provide relief from the separately identifiable requirement for ‘macro hedges’; clarify when the relief ceases to apply to a group of items designated as the hedged item; clarify that the amendments would apply to hedges of both interest rate and foreign currency risks; and simplify the disclosure requirements.

Our detailed pre-meeting summary is available on our August meeting notes page and will be supplemented with our popular meeting notes after the Meeting.

More information about the issues is set out below:

Click to access all our comment letters to the IASB, IFRS Foundation, and IFRS Interpretations Committee. 

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.

As regards the proposed annual improvements, we agree with the proposed amendments to IFRS 9, IFRS 16, and IAS 41, however, we do not believe that the proposed amendment to IFRS 1 should be a requirement - we believe it should be an option. Our full comment letter is available here.

As regards the proposed amendments to IFRS 3, we agree with the proposed amendments to IFRS 3 to replace a reference to an old version of the Conceptual Framework. We also agree with the proposed addition of an exception for the recognition principles in IFRS 3 with respect to liabilities and contingent liabilities in the scope of IAS 37 and of IFRIC 21 and of the clarification of the IFRS 3 requirements for contingent assets. However, we believe that an exception to the recognition principles in IFRS 3 is also required with respect to uncertain current tax positions within the scope of IFRIC 23. Our full comment letter is available here.

The first phase of the project deals with pre-replacement issues (issues affecting financial reporting in the period before the replacement of an existing interest rate benchmark). It was added to the standard-setting agenda of the IASB in December 2018 and saw the publication of an exposure draft of propoed amendments in May 2019. The IASB is currently working towards the finalisation of the amenments with an additional Board meeting scheduled for 28 August 2019.

The second phase of the project now added to the work plan deals with replacement issues (issues that might affect financial reporting when an existing interest rate benchmark is replaced). Deliberations have not begun yet and are currently expected to be taken up in Q3 2019.

The topics covered during the meeting were the following (numbers in brackets are ref­er­ences to the cor­re­spond­ing para­graphs of the summary):

• Business combination under common control (1–12): The ASAF provided views related to the application of alternative approaches as well as how to apply a current value approach and predecessor approach.
• Man­age­ment com­men­tary (13–26): The ASAF provided views on the staff’s proposals related to the notion of narrative coherence and identifying and reporting matters that could affect the entity’s long-term success.
• IBOR reform (27–43): The ASAF provided information on the current state of interest rate benchmark reform in their jurisdictions and discussed their views on financial reporting issues discovered. The members also discussed how they should address the issues in phase II of the project.
• Better communication — Primary financial statements (44–59):  The ASAF commented on possible approaches to structuring the new requirements. In addition, the members planned outreach events during the comment period.
• Variable and contingent consideration (60–65) — The ASAF discussed the FRC’s project on the conceptual basis for transactions involving variable and contingent consideration.
• Business reporting of intangibles: realistic proposals (66–70): The ASAF provided views on the FRC’s discussion paper and gave suggestions for developing FRC’s analysis on intangible assets.
• Discussion Paper Accounting for Pensions Plans with an Asset-return Promise (71–73): The ASAF commented on the EFRAG’s discussion paper where they had mix views on the three accounting alternatives.
• Updated and agenda plan (74–76): The ASAF discussed items to be added to the proposed agenda for the October 2019 ASAF meeting.

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

For more information, see the interviews with Mr Cendon and Ms Suzuki on the IASB website.

The Board is keen to appoint members with professional experience as preparers or users of electronic financial reports prepared using the IFRS Taxonomy. Technical knowledge of XBRL is desirable, but not required. Applications are requested by 7 October 2019. For more information, see the press release on the IASB website.

The Standards Review Board of the IVSC recognised the need to develop guidance for the valuation of financial instruments and created IVS 500 as a holding chapter on financial instruments, which was initially released as part of IVS 2017.

In December 2018, the IVSC Financial Instruments Board was formed and met for the first time in April 2019. At that meeting, the Board agreed to significantly modify and enhance the existing financial instrument standard IVS 500 and, as a first step, to publish a consultation document to obtain feedback from stakeholders on how to modify and enhance the existing standard.

The consultation document now released solicits feedback about the valuation topics the IVSC and its newly established Board for financial instruments should address as part of its current agenda and additional financial instruments valuation topics that stakeholders feel should be prioritised or added to IVSC’s agenda.

Please click to access the consultation document through the press release on the IVSC website. Comments are requested by 19 September 2019.

The Q&A addresses the application of the undue cost or effort exemption for investment property on the date of transition to the IFRS for SMEs. The draft Q&A concludes that additional cost or effort due to the elapse of time between the date of transition and the date of preparing the first IFRS for SMEs financial statements is not considered.

Comments are requested by 7 October 2019. The draft is available on the IASB website.