The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), which comprises 180 member organizations and represents millions of professional accountants globally, congratulates the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) on its new standalone standard for audits of less complex entities. The International Standard on Auditing for Audits of Financial Statements of Less Complex Entities, known as the ISA for LCE, is proportionate and tailored to the nature and circumstances of audits of smaller and less complex entities. Built on the foundation of the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs), it contains all the requirements necessary to obtain reasonable assurance.

IFAC CEO Kevin Dancey said: “IFAC has closely engaged with the IAASB throughout development of the ISA for LCE and provided extensive feedback on behalf of practitioners around the world. Our support is driven by the importance of less complex entities to all economies and our consistent understanding of the urgent need for action at the global level to address the significant risk of fragmentation to the international standard-setting ecosystem due to national and regional initiatives.”

Now that the ISA for LCE has been issued, IFAC encourages its member organizations to adopt or advocate for adoption of the ISA for LCE in their jurisdictions or promote voluntary use of the standard. IFAC’s member organizations—professional accountancy organizations (PAOs) around the world—are essential to how international standards are adopted and implemented given their relationships with the regulators and oversight bodies that often have ultimate or shared adoption authority.

In 2024, IFAC will begin gathering data about potential adoption plans and evaluations at the jurisdiction level, with the intention of reporting examples and other relevant data in the future as it does with other international standards and best practices that IFAC member organizations are required to adopt, implement, and report on. IFAC will also continue to closely coordinate with the IAASB on its adoption and implementation activities, including collaborating on global webinars and consideration of any future materials.

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 more than 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

In their new joint report, Understanding Whistleblower Protection: Laws, Practices, Trends and Key Implementation Considerations, the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada) offer evidence-based research and practical perspectives on whistleblower protection legislation.

The report, developed with contributions from the Whistleblowing International Network, provides professional accountancy organizations (PAOs), professional accountants, relevant authorities, and policymakers globally with insights on current issues in adopting and implementing whistleblower protection legislation, and key policy considerations to help ensure that local frameworks are fit for purpose. The report builds off the International Bar Association and Government Accountability Project report published in 2021, Are Whistleblowing Laws Working? A Global Study of Whistleblower Protection Litigation, which highlights challenges to developing and implementing effective whistleblower protection frameworks.

Kevin Dancey, IFAC CEO, said: “Whistleblowers are widely recognized for the pivotal role they play in exposing financial wrongdoing, economic crimes, fraud, and corruption. Robust protection laws are needed to safeguard and support their contributions and promote trust and integrity in the public and private sector. The accountancy profession, with its strong public interest commitment, must champion means of protecting whistleblowers from retaliation and help ensure accountability for wrongdoers to foster ethical and responsible business.”

Pamela Steer, CPA Canada President and CEO, said: “While the significant expansion of legislative activity in this space is encouraging, it’s also evident that whistleblowing laws have generally fallen short in terms of their effectiveness. For whistleblower protection laws to positively contribute to the prevention and detection of corruption worldwide, people need reassurance that laws and practices exist and are working effectively—and this requires continuous transparency, action and education.”

IFAC and CPA Canada are hosting an online launch event on December 12, 2023, from 9:00 -10:30 am EDT to connect with experts about the ever-evolving realm of whistleblower protection legislation. The webinar will provide a platform for experts, policymakers and accountancy and legal professionals to discuss the role of whistleblowers and how they can help address some of the most serious issues facing society. Register today to stay current on this changing landscape.

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 more than 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

About CPA Canada
Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada) is one of the largest national accounting organizations in the world, representing the Canadian accounting profession at the national and international levels. With over 220,000 members, CPA Canada supports the profession and acts in the public interest by promoting transparency in financial markets, preparing members for a rapidly evolving business environment and contributing to standard setting and public policy. Domestically, CPA Canada works with the provincial and territorial CPA accounting bodies who have the statutory authority to regulate the profession. Globally, it works together with international bodies to build a stronger accounting profession worldwide. cpacanada.ca

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) today published the International Standard on Auditing for Audits of Financial Statements of Less Complex Entities, known as the ISA for LCE. The ISA for LCE is a standalone global auditing standard designed specifically for smaller and less complex businesses and organizations. Built on the foundation of the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs), audits performed using this standard provide the same level of assurance for eligible audits: reasonable assurance. The standard is effective for audits beginning on or after December 15, 2025 for jurisdictions that adopt or permit its use.

“The ISA for LCE underscores the IAASB’s commitment to ensuring the credibility and reliability of financial reporting for entities of all sizes. By leveraging the International Standards on Auditing as our starting point, we are cultivating an environment where audits are performed in a globally consistent and high-quality way for the smallest entities. The IAASB’s actions seek to inspire greater confidence and contribute to the overall stability and trustworthiness of information in the external reporting ecosystem. We have also heard that this standard should provide an impetus for the evolution of auditing in developing economies,” said IAASB Chair Tom Seidenstein. “We now turn to each jurisdiction and their oversight authorities and regulators to decide whether to adopt the standard. We encourage practitioners and others to reach out to the authorities in their jurisdictions to advocate for the ISA for LCE’s adoption.”

Released alongside the ISA for LCE are a Basis for Conclusions, which details feedback from the public consultation period, a high-level fact sheet, and a frequently asked questions document. Additional materials to help jurisdictions navigate adoption will be issued in 2024, including supplementary guidance, a fact sheet on adoption, and a first-time implementation guide. All materials can be accessed on the IAASB website: iaasb.org/ISAforLCE

About the IAASB
The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board develops auditing, assurance, related services, and quality management standards and guidance in the public interest that support consistent performance of quality engagements. Along with the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants, the IAASB is part of the International Foundation for Ethics and Audit. The Public Interest Oversight Board oversees IAASB and IESBA activities and the public interest responsiveness of the standards. For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please visit Permissions

As the global voice of the accountancy profession, IFAC has long supported the establishment of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) to develop a comprehensive global baseline of sustainability disclosures—now endorsed by IOSCO and ready to be adopted and implemented around the world.  To demonstrate our commitment to seeing this initiative succeed, IFAC signed on as an inaugural member of The ISSB Partnership Framework for Capacity Building, launched one year ago at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, to support preparers, investors and other capital market stakeholders to use IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards.

One year later, the IFRS Foundation’s new Knowledge Hub is being launched to help fill the “knowledge gaps” which must be addressed in the short-, medium- and long-term to achieve the goal of a harmonized system for high-quality sustainability-related financial information, a global baseline established via the ISSB Standards.

Education materials, like the forthcoming IFRS Foundation e-learning curriculum and the content IFAC and others contribute to the IFRS Foundations new Knowledge Hub, will assist professional accountants, and others, in applying IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 and can provide a starting point for IFAC Member Bodies who plan to promote sustainability competency and learning amongst their professional membership.

IFAC’s policy, advocacy, and thought leadership work—including benchmarking of sustainability-related financial disclosures and assurance practice, advocacy for adoption of IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 using a Building Blocks approach, and guidance for professional accountants working inside of companies—all contribute towards building capacity within the accountancy profession and we urge our Member Bodies around the world to join in this effort. 

IFAC CEO Kevin Dancey said, “Professional accounting organizations (PAOs) and the largest global accountancy networks (i.e., the Forum of Firms) must be leaders in capacity building and education.  Professional accountants—who are subject to the IESBA Code of Ethics—have a critical role to play in transforming high-quality standards into high-quality information, and then providing assurance on that information in accordance with standards developed by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board.”

The role of the accountancy profession will come into sharper focus as sustainability-related reporting and its assurance transitions from voluntary practice to mandatory requirements around the world.  IFAC’s new publication on integrated internal control, Building Trust in Sustainability Reporting: The Urgent Need for Integrated Internal Control, demonstrates the critical role and expertise of professional accountants related to data, systems, processes, and internal controls—all necessary for companies to deliver high-quality, decision-useful information for investors, capital markets, and all stakeholders.

IFAC Contributions to ISSB Knowledge Hub:

• Building Trust in Sustainability Reporting – The Urgent Need for Integrated Internal Control
• Greenhouse Gas Reporting Building Blocks for Accountants
• A Building Blocks Approach for Reporting Sustainability-Related Information
• How Global Standards Become Local: Using the Sustainability Building Blocks
• The State of Play:  2019 – 2021 Trends & Analysis
• The State of Play, Beyond the G20
• Getting to Net Zero: A Global Review of Corporate Disclosures
• The Role of the CFO and Finance Function in the Climate Transition

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 more than 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) is pleased to announce Mr. Charles Tilley OBE, FCMA, CGMA of the UK, as the esteemed recipient of the 2023 IFAC Global Leadership Award, celebrating his influence and dedication to the global accountancy profession.

Charles Tilley, a renowned advocate for integrated reporting and integrated thinking, played a pivotal role in the development of the Integrated Reporting Framework, the conception of the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), and later became CEO of the IIRC. He oversaw the merger of the IIRC and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) into the Value Reporting Foundation, which was subsequently integrated into the IFRS Foundation. His ongoing contributions to integrated reporting and thinking continued while chairing the IFRS Foundation’s Integrated Reporting and Connectivity Council, providing advice to the Foundation’s trustees and to its two standard-setting boards.

For 15 remarkable years, as the Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), Mr. Tilley brought about transformation in the positioning of management accounting and professional accountants in business and the public sector within the profession and in society. His relentless efforts have elevated the relevance of the profession in the context of the needs of organizations and capital markets. His post-2008 global financial crisis endeavors focused keenly on fortifying trust in the capital markets, emphasizing ethics and good governance and the critical role of professional accountants in long-term value creation.

Mr. Tilley’s visionary leadership was further evident when he orchestrated a landmark partnership culminating in the formation of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants and the inception of the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) designation. 

Throughout his career, Mr. Tilley has steered the direction of management accounting thought leadership. This encompasses developments in both external and internal reporting, performance management, and the progressive evolution of the CFO and finance function roles. Under his visionary leadership from 2014 to 2019, the Professional Accountants in Business (PAIB) Advisory Group underwent transformative changes, fostering enhanced collaboration and thought leadership on behalf of the global profession. His tenure witnessed the inception of significant initiatives such as the future-ready CFO series and the exploration of the CFO's role in value creation.

This designation now stands as a global hallmark of excellence in management accounting and finance leadership.

"Charles is not only a trailblazer in the accountancy realm but also an inspirational figure who has tirelessly championed change, innovation, and ethical practices," remarked IFAC President Asmaa Resmouki. "His commitment to the profession and his transformative initiatives, including the creation of the CGMA designation and his work in integrated reporting and advancing management accounting, underline his deservingness of this recognition."

On receiving this award, Mr. Tilley remarked “I am delighted and honoured to receive this prestigious award. Over a fifty-year accountancy career including partnership at KPMG and investment banking CFO roles, the profession has looked after me well and I am pleased to have contributed to its development. It has a critical role and needs to remain dynamic and responsive to the ever-changing needs of business and society.”

Instituted in 2017 by the IFAC Board, the IFAC Global Leadership Award in Honor of Robert Sempier celebrates individuals for their unparalleled contributions to the worldwide accountancy profession. The tribute salutes the legacy of Robert Sempier, IFAC’s inaugural executive director, who significantly shaped the profession's global landscape.

The honor was conferred during IFAC’s Council meeting held on November 15, 2023.

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 more than 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) announced its newest Board member and several reappointments to the Board this week. With these changes, IFAC will maintain a female-majority Board for the fifth consecutive year.

The new and reappointed IFAC Board members and their nominating member organizations are:

New IFAC Board appointments:

• Khalilullah Shaikh (The Institute of Chartered Accountant of Pakistan, Pakistan)

IFAC Board Reappointments:

• Atul Gupta (The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, India)
• Kohei Kan (The Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Japan)
• Chiara Mio (The Consiglio Nazionale dei Dottori Commercialisti e degli Esperti Contabili, Italy)
• Taryn Rulton (Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand, Australia)

New IFAC Member Organizations Admitted

In addition to the election of new Board members, the IFAC Council also approved new member and associate member organizations.

New IFAC Members:

• Ordem dos Contabilistas e Auditores de Moçambique (OCAM) – Mozambique
• Palestinian Association of Certified Public Accountants (PACPA) – Palestine

New Associates:

• Namibia Institute for Professional Accountants (NIPA) – Namibia

The new appointments, reappointments, and membership decisions were approved at IFAC’s 2023 Council meeting, held in Vienna on November 15-16.

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 more than 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) released a Small Business Sustainability Checklist (the Checklist) today to help small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) maximize the benefits of incorporating sustainability into their strategy and business operations.

The Checklist is a diagnostic tool designed to be tailored by each business according to its own unique circumstances, including its industry sector, lifecycle, and products and services provided. It lists a comprehensive range of initiatives and actions to be considered in terms of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors. Not all actions in the Checklist will be relevant to every SME, but the Checklist aims to help all organizations to take small steps on what could be a long but highly fulfilling journey.

As outlined in previous IFAC thought leadership, including Sustainability Information for Small Businesses: The Opportunity for Practitioners, small and medium-sized practices (SMPs) are ideally placed to help SMEs on this journey because of their deep business knowledge and expertise. As trusted advisers, they can recognize the risks and opportunities and advise SMEs on how best to act on them.

Monica Foerster, IFAC SMP Advisory Group Chair, said: “SMEs are critical to the global economy through their vital contributions to GDP and employment levels. Thus, they need to be an active part of the conversation on sustainability issues. Moreover, the expectations for SMEs to report on sustainability information, often due to requests from supply chain partners or finance providers, are likely to grow, resulting in new challenges to these businesses. SMPs are ideally placed to help SMEs tackle sustainability-related risks and to help unlock opportunities, enhance resilience, and illuminate the path to becoming future fit.”

The Checklist was developed under the umbrella of IFAC’s work on Practice Transformation, which highlights the need for SMPs to adapt to remain relevant and serve a rapidly changing world. SMPs are also strongly encouraged to use the Checklist to begin their own journey and consider their strategy, policies, and procedures on sustainability. This is also critical to both attracting and retaining the next generation of talent.

The Small Business Sustainability Checklist has been launched together with an expanded range of external resources to help practitioners upskill and build knowledge in this emerging area. IFAC has prepared a dedicated web page that provides material on sustainability reporting, advisory, assurance, and education and training. Professional Accountancy Organizations are encouraged to share the Checklist with their members and highlight the range of additional resources available.

IFAC acknowledges and appreciates feedback from IFAC’s Small and Medium Practices Advisory Group and the Forum of Firms representatives in the development of the Checklist.

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 more than 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) today announced that Lee White has been named to succeed Kevin Dancey as CEO. Mr. White will assume his new post in March 2024 and will be based in London.

Mr. White, who has been with the IFRS Foundation since 2018, has more than 30 years of global executive, regulatory and leadership experience. A chartered accountant, Mr. White has most recently led the creation of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) within the IFRS Foundation and the launch of the ISSB’s first two standards in June. Mr. White is an avid champion of the role of professional accountants in driving and delivering high-quality sustainability-related disclosure and assurance.

Before joining the IFRS Foundation, Mr. White spent nine years at Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ), including six years as its CEO, having been instrumental in the successful merger of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia (ICAA) with CAANZ. Earlier in his career, Mr. White was Chief Accountant of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) during which time he was directly involved in the creation of the International Forum of Independent Audit Regulators (IFIAR).

On the occasion of his appointment, Mr. White said, “I am delighted with and humbled by the opportunity ahead. Engagement of the global accounting profession has never been more critical if society is to address many of the world’s most pressing economic and environmental issues. I look forward to leading our profession in a way that will continue to serve a vital public interest role, and also to raising awareness about the extraordinary opportunities available to accountants today.”

Asmâa Resmouki, President of IFAC, said, “We are very fortunate to have secured a leader of Lee’s caliber to take IFAC on the next chapter of its journey, and I would like to thank IFAC’s CEO Search Committee for their efforts in identifying the best candidate for the role. Lee’s deep knowledge of IFAC, his global business acumen and his commitment to the public interest promise to serve the profession, and indeed all of IFAC’s stakeholders, very well.”

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 more than 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

On August 2, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) launched a public consultation on its landmark proposed global sustainability assurance standard, International Standard on Sustainability Assurance (ISSA) 5000, General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements. It also committed to an extensive, high-level outreach plan to ensure broad stakeholder input to improve both the quality of and trust in the final standard. This plan included in-person roundtables around the world, virtual webinars for global audiences, and regional and national meetings with regulators and oversight bodies.

These are the results of this unprecedented outreach campaign:

The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ) released a quality management toolkit today to help small- and medium-sized practices (SMPs) implement the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board’s (IAASB) suite of quality management standards.

The Quality Management Toolkit for Small- and Medium-Sized Firms and its companion Illustrative Risk Matrix include a suite of illustrative documents, policies, checklists, sample letters and forms to help SMPs establish their quality objectives, identify and assess quality risks, and design and implement responses to address their identified quality risks. The toolkit is designed to require each SMP to adapt the content to its nature, circumstances, and engagements, a crucial element given each firm goes through its own unique process developing its quality management system.

Kevin Dancey, IFAC CEO, said: “Many SMPs face resource constraints that affect implementing the IAASB’s quality management standards, given the new standards require a more proactive and tailored approach to managing quality across firms of all sizes. By partnering with CA ANZ to adapt its excellent original materials for an international audience, we are providing SMPs, and the professional accountancy organizations that support them, with a clear roadmap to understanding and applying the standards to drive overall quality.”

Ainslie van Onselen, CA ANZ CEO and Chair-Elect of Chartered Accountants Worldwide, said: “High-quality audits are crucially important for enterprises of all sizes in markets around the world. Based on our experience using a similar approach in Australia and New Zealand, this toolkit will help SMPs implement the quality management standards and ensure that a commitment to quality is at the center of a firm’s strategy, operation, and service delivery for audits and other engagements. We are pleased to partner with IFAC to deliver these materials to the global accountancy profession. Our Australian and New Zealand version was well received and we hope this global version will be valuable to SMPs around the world.”

Individual practitioners can tailor and reproduce the quality management toolkit for non-commercial use without permission from IFAC. Otherwise, permission is required to reproduce, store, or transmit, or to make similar uses of the toolkit. Contact permissions@ifac.org. IFAC member organizations are invited to submit a permission request to provide their members with the toolkit, including adding their logo, as long as appropriate acknowledgement of IFAC and CA ANZ is included with the copyright notice.

This quality management toolkit joins IFAC’s collection quality management resources, including webinars, articles and videos, as well as the IAASB first-time implementation guides, all of which are available at ifac.org/qualitymanagement.

IFAC acknowledges and appreciates feedback from IFAC’s Small and Medium Practices Advisory Group and the Forum of Firms representatives in the development of the toolkit.

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 more than 135 jurisdictions, representing millions of professional accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

About CA ANZ
CA ANZ represents more than 136,000 Members around the world, offering its flagship CA Program, promoting the CA designation and high ethical standards and delivering world class services and lifelong education to its Members and advocates for the public good.