IFAC's Contribution to IOSCO World Investor Week 2025

Each year, the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) hosts World Investor Week, a global campaign that promotes the importance of investor education and protection. As a proud partner of IOSCO, IFAC is committed to raising awareness about investor education—especially as it relates to the global professional accountancy profession.

At IFAC, we are honored to contribute to this initiative, which speaks directly to our mission: serving the public interest by strengthening financial literacy, not just for professional accountants, but for everyone. One of the ways we contribute is through our ongoing World Investor Week video series. These videos are designed to make accounting more accessible, helping investors better understand the fundamentals of our profession and how those fundamentals connect to smart, informed investment decisions.

This year, for the  launch of World Investor Week (October 6–10), we are putting a special spotlight on technology and the opportunities it brings. We’ve invited three outstanding members of IFAC’s Young Leaders Collective to share how emerging technologies are shaping the investor experience and complementing the vital role professional accountants play in safeguarding trust and delivering insight. IFAC CEO Lee White introduces the topics they discuss and highlights their relevance to investors around the globe.

  • Mariyam Azka Ismail explores how artificial intelligence is enhancing the value investors receive from auditing and assurance.
  • Cleber Fernandes highlights emerging trends in accountancy and the opportunities—and risks—they bring for investors.
  • Harry Ho shares how technological innovation in accountancy is strengthening investor protection.

Their voices bring fresh perspectives to the global conversation, and we're excited to introduce their insights to investors everywhere. At IFAC, we know that investor education and protection are not just about today—they are about preparing for the future. And through collaboration, innovation, and strong professional standards, we are making sure that future is one built on trust.

For those interested in learning more accounting fundamentals, we invite you to explore our World Investor Week content from 2021-2024. These short, informative videos explain why the work of professional accountants is critical to investors. "Why is Sustainability Assurance Important?", “What is an Audit?”, “What is Professional Accountancy?” and "What is Assurance?" are also among IFAC’s top-performing YouTube content, with over 35,000 views since their release.

2025 World Investor Week Video: Emerging Technology, Staying Informed and Protected

2024 World Investor Week Video: "Why is Sustainability Assurance Important?"

2023 World Investor Week Videos

What is Assurance?

In this explainer video, IFAC Board Member Ayşe Arıak discusses how professional accountants evaluate the reliability of information, and how assurance enhances trust and confidence.

What is Sustainability Assurance?

IFAC Board Member Margrét Pétursdóttir discusses the important role professional accountants play in understanding the accuracy of non-financial information, with a particular focus on sustainability matters.

2022 and 2021 World Investor Week Videos

What is a Financial Statement?

IFAC Board member Taryn Rulton provides an overview of the documents accountants prepare to disclose how much a company makes, how much it spends, how it manages its money and how well it does those things.

What is An Audit?

IFAC Board member Lisa Padmore explains what an audit is, what an auditor does (and doesn’t do) and why audits can enhance the degree of confidence for users of financial statements, like investors.

What is Professional Accountancy?

IFAC CEO Kevin Dancey describes what professional accountants do, how they are governed by professional codes, and the professional accountancy organizations that oversee the enforcement of those codes to create a strong and sustainable accountancy profession as well as strong and sustainable private and public sector organizations, financial markets, and global economies.

Understanding ESG Reporting

David Madon, IFAC Director of Sustainability, Policy & Regulatory Affairs and Scott Hanson, IFAC Director of Policy & Global Engagement explain what ESG reporting is, how to integrate it into investing decisions, and current developments in the ESG reporting space.

Maryam Azka Ismail
Mariyam Azka Ismail

Mariyam Azka Ismail is pursuing ACCA qualification and is currently interning at Nexia Maldives through Excelerate Programme. Azka is acquiring practical experience in various aspects of accountancy with a particular focus on audit. Her enthusiasm for the profession and dedication to continuous learning drive her career aspirations.

Mariyam Azka Ismail joined the IFAC Young Leaders Collective as a founding member in August 2024.

Cleber Santos
Cleber Fernandes
Cleber Fernandes has worked as an Audit Manager at Deloitte since 2020. Additionally, he has represented Deloitte at IBRACON.

Cleber joined the IFAC Young Leaders Collective as a founding member in August 2024.

Harry Ho
Harry Ho

Harry Ho is an entrepreneur, a corporate advisor, an angel investor. He has worked for two of the Big Four accounting firms and was the youngest and first person of Chinese descent appointed to board of the Italian Chamber of Commerce of Hong Kong and Macau.

Harry is a certified public accountant (“CPA”), a Certified Internal Auditor (“CIA”), a charter holder of Chartered Financial Analyst (“CFA”), Chartered Global Management Accountant (“CGMA”), and Chartered Management Accountant (“ACMA”). 

Harry joined the IFAC Young Leaders Collective as a founding member in August 2024.

Man smiling and wearing a suit
Lee White

Chief Executive Officer, IFAC

Lee White, FCA became IFAC's Chief Executive Officer in March 2024. IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession, comprising 180 member and associate organizations in 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants.

Lee is a professional accountant and a member of ACCA and Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ). During his career, he has worked as an assurance practitioner in both the private (PWC) and public sectors (Auditor-General of NSW), a securities and audit inspector regulator, leader of a professional accounting body, and as a leader of an international public interest organization supporting both global financial reporting and sustainability standards.  He has predominately been dedicated in his career to serving the public interest.

He served the IFRS Foundation from 2018 to 2024, as the Managing Director and during his tenure there was the transformational creation of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) within the IFRS Foundation, and the launch of the ISSB’s first two sustainability standards in June 2023.

Before joining the IFRS Foundation, Lee spent nine years leading Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand or its predecessor body, including six years as its inaugural Chief Executive Officer  (2012-2017). CAANZ was created from the unique combination of chartered accounting institutes in Australia and New Zealand which Lee fulfilled a pivotal role in securing successful member votes (super majorities) in both countries. He also worked as the Chief Accountant at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission for six years, during which time he represented Australia at the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and was directly involved in the creation and initial years of operation of the International Forum of Independent Audit Regulators (IFIAR).

Lee is a proud graduate of Executive Leadership from INSEAD.

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