Highlights from the CAG's June 17, 2019 meeting in Toronto, Canada:

• 00:11     Welcome and introduction
• 00:36     Chair’s summary of the IPSASB CAG meeting
• 09:32     Closing remarks

Highlights from the IPSASB June 2019 meeting in Toronto, Canada:

• 00:10     Welcome and introduction: John Stanford, Technical Director
• 01:06     Chair’s meeting overview: Ian Carruthers, Chair
• 02:52     Public Sector Specific Financial Instruments: Dave Warren, Principal
• 03:58     Revenue with Performance Obligations: Amon Dhliwayo, Manager
• 05:30     Revenue without Performance Obligations: Joanna Spencer, Manager
• 06:36     Expenses: Paul Mason, Consultant
• 08:15     Leases: Ian Carruthers, Chair
• 11:38     Chair’s concluding comments: Ian Carruthers, Chair
• 13:23     Closing remarks: John Stanford, Technical Director

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) today launched the eCode – a web-based tool that delivers the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards) (the Code) on a digital platform. In addition to “app-like” features and functionalities, this new platform better demonstrates the Code’s “building blocks” architecture and scalability.

The eCode represents the outcome of a strategic initiative to leverage modern technologies, including mobile access, to make the content of the Code as widely accessible and visible and as user-friendly as possible. In addition to enhanced search and navigation, the eCode includes links to non-authoritative resources that provide contextual information or explain the rationale for particular provisions in the Code.

“The eCode is an innovative response to stakeholder calls for more support for implementation,” said Dr. Stavros Thomadakis, IESBA Chairman. “Technology opens many opportunities for enhancement to the user experience, and with the eCode we have sought creative and appealing ways to do so. We firmly believe the eCode will greatly facilitate adoption, consistent application and enforcement of the Code in the public interest.”

“The launch of the eCode is timely as the Restructured and Revised Code came into effect earlier this month,” said Ken Siong, IESBA Senior Technical Director. “Technology is rapidly transforming the ways of work and how information is accessed and used. It is therefore apt to see the Code now accessible on a digital platform which users will find familiar and intuitive.”

The development of the eCode has benefited from the operational support of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) as well as staff support from the New Zealand External Reporting Board. The IESBA will continue its collaboration with these partners as it embarks on a second phase of this initiative to explore additional features as well as avenues to transfer the platform to adopters of the Code.

The eCode is available free-of-charge at www.IESBAeCode.org. The IESBA welcomes feedback from all stakeholders. In particular, views are sought about usability features, national adoption of the eCode platform, and areas for further improvement from firms, national standard setters, regulators and audit oversight bodies, professional accountancy organizations, investors and academia. Please email suggestions to IESBAeCode@ethicsboard.org.

Learn more about the Code, including the five fundamental principles of integrity; objectivity; professional competence and due care; confidentiality; and professional behavior on the IESBA’s website.

Click here to access tutorial-styled video on the features of the eCode.

About the IESBA
The IESBA is an independent standard-setting board that develops and issues, in the public interest, high-quality ethical standards and other pronouncements for professional accountants worldwide. Through its activities, the IESBA develops the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, which establishes ethical requirements for professional accountants. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IESBA are facilitated by IFAC. Please visit www.ethicsboard.org for more information, and follow us on Twitter @Ethics_Board.

00:10 - Introduction: Diane Jules, IESBA Deputy Technical Director
00:59 - Highlights & Key Developments: Stavros Thomadakis, IESBA Chairman
04:03 - Role & Mindset: Richard Fleck, IESBA Deputy Chair
04:42 - Non-Assurance Services: Richard Fleck, IESBA Deputy Chair
06:25 - Fees: Ian McPhee, IESBA Member
07:57 - eCode: Brian Friedrich, eCode Working Group Chair
10:39 - Final thoughts: Stavros Thomadakis, IESBA Chairman
12:06 - Closing Remarks: Diane Jules, IESBA Deputy Technical Director

• 00:00 to 02:18 Introduction – Willie Botha, Technical Director
• 02:19 to 06:48 ISA 315 (Revised) – Fiona Campbell, Deputy Director and Task Force Chair
• 07:01 to 11:49 ISA 600 – Len Jui, Board Member and Task Force Chair
• 12:03 to 15:15 Agreed-upon Procedures – Eric Turner, Board Member and Task Force Chair
• 15:31 to 21:09 Audit Evidence, Extended External Reporting, Professional Skepticism, IASB Update, IESBA Coordination, Auditor Reporting – Willie Botha, Technical Director
• 21:26 to 22:29 Outgoing Chairman’s Overview – Arnold Schilder, Outgoing Chair
• 22:30 to 23:30 Incoming Chairman’s Overview – Tom Seidenstein, Incoming Chair
• 23:32 to 26:19 Closing remarks and next meeting – Willie Botha, Technical Director

IFAC (the International Federation of Accountants) today urged G20 countries to pursue smart regulation, heightened transparency, and inclusive growth to embrace Japan’s vision for an innovative and intelligent “Society 5.0”.

At a time of economic and political uncertainty, IFAC’s recommendations focus on actions that will strengthen the economy, ensure progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals, and create a fair and empowered digital economy

“While growth has returned to most economies, substantial uncertainty and downside risk remain, along with the temptation for unilateral policy actions,” said IFAC CEO Kevin Dancey. “We urge leaders to collaborate on solutions to evolving global challenges, and to ensure more citizens are able to enjoy the benefits of the digital age.”

Collaborating for a coherent international tax system is a core recommendation. IFAC stands with G20 leaders to call for global tax policies that address the complexity of the digital economy.

Ongoing tax and trade tensions demonstrate the desire for nations to act unilaterally on impactful issues. IFAC urges G20 countries to ensure a coherent, transparent global regulatory environment that limits fragmented regulatory regimes. The immense cost to the global economy—more than $780 billion USD annually in the financial sector—is unsustainable. 

Another G20 concern is addressing the needs of an aging society, which requires robust and resilient public sector practices. Accrual-based public sector accounting helps governments to develop a more accurate picture of national income, costs, assets and obligations. The result is increased transparency and accountability, and more informed decision-making to plan for the long-term.

G20 countries play a crucial role in fostering institutions and governance models that can anticipate, respond to, and optimize rapid technological change. IFAC issues these recommendations in advance of the 2019 G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan on June 28-29.

Dear Stakeholder,

We write to share a brief update on our latest initiative to support global standard setting and to better leverage the coordination opportunities between our two boards.

With global regulatory fragmentation risk on the rise, and greater international collaboration on the forthcoming G20 agenda, it is a pleasure to advise that last month we convened a meeting in Paris with national audit and ethics standard-setting organizations representing 17 jurisdictions.

We spontaneously dubbed this four-way dialogue (IAASB + IESBA + national audit & assurance + ethics standards setters) a “quadrilogue”. The name has stuck—along with the goodwill the event created!

The discussions marked the beginning of an exploratory and evolutionary process for the IAASB and IESBA to work with national standard setters, and for national standard setters to work with each other, to consider new ideas in pursuit of mutually shared objectives.

The meeting advanced already-significant IAASB and IESBA coordination efforts, which acknowledge the importance of audit and ethics standards to audit quality. The meeting facilitated further collaboration between a number of national audit & assurance standard setters and the IAASB, as well as identifying ways national standard setters can work more effectively together in the interests of international standard setting.

Some important themes emerged from the “quadrilogue”:

• The value of continued IAASB and IESBA coordination, the significant advances made to-date, and how it serves as a catalyst for national coordination;
• The importance of early coordination between our two boards, and increased stakeholder communications about it;
• Recognition that it is important to identify the areas where four-way engagement makes most sense; and
• Quality management within accountancy firms, implications of technology developments, stakeholder engagement, and enhanced implementations activities are possible topics for further exploration.

Yours sincerely,

Arnold Schilder and Stavros Thomadakis
IAASB and IESBA Chairs