Key Considerations for Professional Accountants on the Voluntary Carbon Credit Markets Published by IFAC, CPA Canada and ISF Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCMs) were created to mobilise private capital at scale towards nature-based climate solutions and innovative low-carbon technologies. The use of carbon credits within VCMs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions has been hotly debated and is increasingly being scrutinised. The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada) and the Institute for Sustainable Finance (ISF) published a resource for professional accountants, and existing and potential market participants, including businesses, capital providers and the broader public, [...]

Treasury Imposes New Hefty Maximum Fines for Rogue Auditors Rogue independent auditors and auditing firms in South Africa will be facing hefty penalties of up to R25 million, if they are found guilty of improper conduct as the National Treasury tightens controls. Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana gazetted the latest notice of maximum fines for registered auditors found guilty of improper conduct, after the notice of maximum fines previously gazetted in June 2023 was withdrawn in January 2024. These maximum fines will be applicable to improper conduct committed from 6 June 2024, the date of publication of gazette notice [...]

IASB Issues Narrow-scope Amendments to Classification and Measurement Requirements for Financial Instruments The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has issued amendments to the classification and measurement requirements in IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, which will address diversity in accounting practice. Read Amendments to the Classification and Measurement of Financial Instruments ‒ Amendments to IFRS 9 and IFRS 7, available on: https://www.ifrs.org/premium/ These amendments respond to feedback from the 2022 Post-implementation Review of the Accounting Standard, available on: https://www.ifrs.org/news-and-events/news/2022/12/iasb-publishes-its-review-of-classification-and-measurement-requirements-related-to-financial-instruments/ They also clarify the requirements in areas where stakeholders have raised concerns, or where new issues have emerged since IFRS 9 was [...]

The IFRS Foundation Releases Jurisdictional Guide at IOSCO Annual Meeting The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation has released a guide to help jurisdictions design and plan their adoption or other use of International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) Standards. The Inaugural Jurisdictional Guide for the adoption or other use of ISSB Standards (Guide) was published at the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) Annual Meeting in Athens. The Guide aims to show market participants how jurisdictions are progressing towards delivering globally consistent and comparable sustainability-related information. It acknowledges various ways in which jurisdictions may use the ISSB Standards, as [...]