As the drive toward a global system for sustainability-related reporting continues, investors, regulators and policymakers are turning their attention to the important role of assurance in ensuring high-quality reporting. With the growing importance of—and reliance on—sustainability information, low-quality assurance is an emerging investor protection and financial stability risk.

IFAC’s Professional Accountants in Business (PAIB) Advisory Group has compiled insights on key global trends impacting the future readiness of the accountancy profession in a new report Enabling Purpose Driven Organizations: PAIBs Leading Sustainability and Digital Transformation.

This report includes highlights from the PAIB March 2021 meeting, focusing on:

• Enabling value creation and sustainability 
• Delivering on climate change 
• How procurement and supply chain operating models are changing the role of finance functions 
• The changing nature of work and remote finance Gen Z and the future of accountancy 
• Public sector priorities to support COVID-19 recovery

IFAC PAIB Advisory Group Chair Sanjay Rughani says: “It is important we continue to drive forward the key areas of the PAIB agenda and share our learnings across the global accountancy profession. Together, we can enable a PAIB-relevant profession that is attractive to the new generation entering the workforce.”

Access the report and additional insights.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 180 members and associates in 135 countries and jurisdictions, representing more than 3 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

For more information about CPA Canada, visit www.cpacanada.ca. 

Amid a rapidly changing world, the first digital native generation is entering the workforce. This joint report from ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) and IFAC (the International Federation of Accountants) draws upon the responses of 9,000+ 18-25 year olds to gain insights into how Generation Z’s top concerns may influence what they want from their careers, what attracts them to organizations, and their views on accountancy, business, and the impact of COVID-19.

A strong and well-governed professional accountancy organization (PAO) produces and sustains a strong accountancy profession that is able to serve the public interest and contribute to economic stability and growth. A successful PAO gains much of its strength from the sense of identity, benefits, and rights that members derive from membership; and from the contributions that individual members and firms make to the PAO in recognition of its public interest perspective.

• The IESBA Ethics & Independence Conference 2025 will bring together international leaders in Lisbon to discuss global trends and explore how ethics and independence can anchor trust, resilience, and competitiveness amid uncertainty.
• Sessions will explore how the accounting profession, business leaders, and regulators are responding to global challenges, navigating regulatory shifts, embedding ethical culture, adapting to tech and AI, and reinforcing integrity in the fight against financial crime.
• The conference will feature influential voices from across business, accounting, finance, regulation, and standard setting, leading figures shaping the future of ethics, governance, and audit independence on the global stage.

The IESBA Ethics & Independence Conference 2025 will bring together global leaders this September in Lisbon to address some of the most urgent ethical and public interest questions facing business, the accounting profession, and financial markets. Under the theme “Ethics and Audit Independence: Pillars of Resilience and Competitiveness in Turbulent Times,” the conference will feature senior leaders from across business, regulation, and professional services exploring how ethics can anchor the accounting profession in an era of disruption and major business transformations.

Across the globe, businesses, firms, regulators, and investors, are navigating growing public demands for transparency and integrity and accelerating advances in technology, amidst shifting regulatory environments. In some jurisdictions, new pressures around competitiveness have led to delayed or scaled-back regulation and oversight, particularly in areas like sustainability reporting. Meanwhile, technology and AI are rapidly evolving beyond existing paradigms, and recent financial failures have exposed gaps in ethics and accountability. In this context, ethics and audit independence emerge not only as foundational safeguards, but as strategic tools to guide innovation, reduce risk, and reinforce public confidence.

IESBA Chair Gabriela Figueiredo Dias said:

“This conference comes at a time when ethical leadership has never been more critical. As regulatory frameworks shift, uncertainty grows and public scrutiny intensifies, we must reaffirm our leaders’ commitment to ethical values. Upholding ethics and the public interest is not optional; it is a strategic imperative. Ethics is not a barrier to innovation or competitiveness; it is the foundation for growth, sustainability, and trust. For the accounting profession operating in today’s volatile environment, it’s also the most powerful key to earning or keeping the license to operate.”

Registration for the conference is open. Participants will join global leaders in business, accounting, finance, regulation and standard setting for a high-impact, one-day event exploring how ethical leadership and independent judgment can drive progress and safeguard public trust.

Participants can expect insightful keynotes and panel discussions covering the evolving regulatory landscape, ethical culture, sustainability, artificial intelligence, and financial crime. The program will feature a spirited debate on the dynamics between ethics and innovation, as well as global perspectives from business and accounting firm leaders, regulators, standard setters, and subject-matter experts. The conference also offers valuable networking opportunities with peers and thought leaders shaping the future of the profession.

The conference features a distinguished group of already confirmed speakers, listed below in alphabetical order: Neil Acres (MSCI), Maria Luís Albuquerque (European Commission), Gabriela Figueiredo Dias (IESBA), João Duque (ISEG – Lisbon School of Economics and Management), Paula Franco ( OCC), Alan Johnson (IESBA and IAASB Stakeholder Advisory Council), Gilly Lord (PwC), Virgílio Macedo (OROC), Maggie McGhee (ACCA), Joaquim Miranda Sarmento (Government of Portugal), Jens Poll (Accountancy Europe), Panos Prodromides (CEAOB), José Ranito (European Public Prosecutor’s Office), Pascal Saint-Amans (University of Lausanne, formerly OECD), Tom Seidenstein (IAASB), Jean-Paul Servais (IOSCO), Nandini Sukumar (World Federation of Exchanges), Lee White (IFAC), and Megan Zietsman (Deloitte). Information on additional speakers will be available on the IESBA’s website.

The IESBA Ethics and Independence 2025 Conference is part of the IESBA September Board Meeting, which will take place in Lisbon at the ISEG – Lisbon School of Economics and Management Campus.

The conference benefits from the generous support of ISEG – Lisbon School of Economics and Management, as well as the two Portuguese Professional Accountancy Organizations: OCC – Ordem dos Contabilistas Certificados and OROC – Ordem dos Revisores Oficiais de Contas.

For the full program, updates, and registration, please visit: https://www.ethicsboard.org/iesba-conference-2025

About IESBA

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) is an independent global standard-setting board. The IESBA’s mission is to serve the public interest by setting high-quality, international ethics (including independence) standards as a cornerstone to ethical behavior in business and organizations, and to public trust in financial and non-financial information that is fundamental to the proper functioning and sustainability of organizations, financial markets and economies worldwide.

Along with the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), the IESBA is part of the International Foundation for Ethics and Audit (IFEA). The Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB) oversees IESBA and IAASB activities and the public interest responsiveness of the standards.

The accountancy profession stands at a turning point with equally exciting opportunities and challenges. As Accountancy Europe and IFAC CEOs, we believe it is necessary to enhance cooperation for our members’ benefit. This partnership reflects our shared commitment to support our members and strengthen our profession.

As a culmination of previous engagement, we spent time together at Accountancy Europe’s office in Brussels and explored how to align our respective member value and identified four potential workstreams around:

• Trust in sustainability disclosures: high-quality sustainability reporting is essential, especially in an ever-evolving landscape. Our profession will continue to guide companies towards reliable and comparable sustainability information for global investors and stakeholders, to serve as a catalyst for more sustainable business models, ensuring that ethics, independence as well as quality are not compromised.
• Ethical technological transformation: technology and AI are transforming the way accountants work, offering new efficiencies and capabilities. Our profession must continue to embrace these advancements and leverage them to enhance services and deliver greater value.
• The profession’s future: rapidly evolving markets bring unprecedented opportunities and challenges to our profession’s growth. Funding of professional practices, incorporation and networking cooperation are part of evolving organisational models.
• Pathways to the profession: new pathways to attract diverse talent to the profession must be created to ensure future generations of accountants are well-equipped to meet evolving demands.

Through coordinated efforts on these key matters, we will provide stronger representation, better resources, and a clearer voice for our members.

Eelco van der Enden said: “In a time of global challenges and isolationism temptations, it is crucial to demonstrate that the accountancy profession is united. Regional and global efforts are not only complementary but essential. Global issues do not recognise regional borders, and neither should our response”.

“I am excited to work again with Eelco in his new role, and to innovate how we deliver greater cooperation and value for our members. There are multiple opportunities. I am also committed to strengthening our partnerships with regional network partners in Africa, Asia, and the Americas, ensuring that our members and the global accountancy profession is united and well-supported in every region of the world”, said Lee White.

Notes to Editors

Contacts:

For Accountancy Europe

Nha Vy Nguyen, Head of Communications

Email: nhavy@accountancyeurope.eu

For IFAC

Jennifer DiClerico, Head of Communications

Tel: +1-212-286-9344
Email: jenniferdiclerico@ifac.org

About Accountancy Europe

Accountancy Europe unites 49 professional organizations from 35 countries that represent 1 million qualified accountants, auditors and advisors. As Accountancy Europe, we translate professional accountants’ daily experience from across Europe to inform the European policy debate. Accountancy Europe is in the EU Transparency Register (No 4713568401-18). 

About IFAC  

IFAC, by connecting and uniting its members, makes the accountancy profession truly global.  

IFAC member organizations are champions of integrity and professional quality, and proudly carry their membership as a badge of international recognition.  

IFAC and its members work together to shape the future of the profession through learning, innovation, a collective voice, and commitment to the public interest.