The International Education Standards (IESs), issued by IFAC, set forth the principles that professional accountancy organizations should follow to build a national accountancy profession that is fully capable of fulfilling the complex demands economies and societies place on it.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) sets high-quality international standards for auditing, assurance, and quality management that strengthen public confidence in the global audit and assurance profession.

This updated Questions and Answers publication has been issued by IPSASB staff to highlight how IPSAS reflect the accounting consequences of sovereign debt restructuring transactions.

The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board^® (IPSASB^®) has released IPSAS 41, Financial Instruments.

IPSAS 41 substantially improves the relevance of information for financial assets and financial liabilities. It will replace IPSAS 29, Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement, and improves that Standard’s requirements by introducing:

• Simplified classification and measurement requirements for financial assets;
• A forward looking impairment model; and
• A flexible hedge accounting model.

“The significance of government debt to global capital markets can often be ignored,” said IPSASB Chair Ian Carruthers. “IPSAS 41 is a major step forward in accounting for financial instruments, and responds to the problems with IPSAS 29 that were exposed by the global financial crisis. It provides principles that appropriately reflect the economics of transactions involving financial instruments, replacing the more rules-based approach of its predecessor.”

IPSAS 41 is based on International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 9, Financial Instruments, developed by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB®), but it also includes public sector-specific guidance and illustrative examples on:

• Financial guarantees issued through non-exchange transactions;
• Concessionary loans;
• Equity instruments arising from non-exchange transactions; and
• Fair value measurement.

About the IPSASB
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) works to strengthen public financial management globally through the development of accrual-based International Public Sector Accounting Standards® (IPSAS®) and other guidance for use by governments and other public sector entities. It receives support from the Asian Development Bank, the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada, the New Zealand External Reporting Board, and the governments of Canada and New Zealand. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IPSASB are facilitated by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please go to permissions or contact permissions@ifac.org. 

About the Public Interest Committee
The governance and standard-setting activities of the IPSASB are overseen by the Public Interest Committee (PIC), to ensure that they follow due process and reflect the public interest. The PIC is comprised of individuals with expertise in public sector or financial reporting, and professional engagement in organizations that have an interest in promoting high-quality and internationally comparable financial information.

IPSAS 41, Financial Instruments, establishes new requirements for classifying, recognizing and measuring financial instruments to replace those in IPSAS 29, Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement. 

IPSAS 41 provides users of financial statements with more useful information than IPSAS 29, by: