As the global accountancy profession began adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences, IFAC (the International Federation of Accountants) convened a series of roundtable discussions to understand the implications of the pandemic for professional accountants and leaders, and how their experiences will affect the future of accountancy and accountancy skills.
Today, IFAC published a summary of these findings, Accountancy Skills Evolution: Impact of COVID-19 & the Path Forward. This whitepaper outlines the key themes our stakeholders shared, including accelerated ways of working, impact of technology, practices that align to new societal demands, and the right balance of skills, which collectively illustrate a roadmap for the professional accountant.
The roundtable discussions and emerging themes also influenced the structure and content of the upcoming virtual global summit, The Anticipatory Accountant: Global Trends Transforming Learning & Development. The summit, which features world-renowned futurist Daniel Burrus and special guest Tom Hood, continues these conversations and focuses on three broad themes: technology, the environment, and society.
This is the eleventh installment of a 12-month publication series titled Exploring the IESBA Code. This installment addresses bias and the role and mindset of the professional accountant.
Together with ICAEW, The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) today released the second installment in its Anti-Money Laundering: The Basics educational series: Installment 2: A Risk-Based Approach.
The publication is part of a 6-month short series helping professional accountants enhance their understanding of how money laundering works, the risks they face, and what they can do to mitigate these risks and make a positive contribution to the public interest.
The first installment in the series provided a general overview of AML, including a definition of money laundering and an analysis of key concepts professional accountants must understand.
The installment series, with its focus on accessibility and ease of use, will be a resource for Small and Medium Practices (SMPs,) and accountants less familiar with AML, while also providing guidance for those looking for a quick refresher or reference.
Anti-Money Laundering: The Basics will be featured on both the IFAC and ICAEW websites and available for download for free. To be globally relevant, the series uses the risk-based approach of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) – the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog -- as a starting point.
For more information about IFAC, visit www.ifac.org.
IFAC believes that the demand is urgent and real—from investors, policymakers and other stakeholders—for a sustainability reporting system that delivers consistent, comparable, reliable, and assurable information. The IFRS Foundation is optimally positioned to establish a new sustainability standards board that leverages the expertise and disclosure requirements of existing leading initiatives. Under the IFRS umbrella, the work of this new board can connect with the investor focus of the IASB, while also collaborating with respect to reporting requirements designed to address broader stakeholder interests.
IFAC CEO, Kevin Dancey, said, “The IFRS Foundation—with its backing by public authorities, independence, and globally-respected governance and due process—is the appropriate home for a new sustainability standards board. Today’s open letter to IOSCO from the five leading global ESG reporting organizations lends further support to the legitimacy of a new sustainability board and I strongly encourage their continued collaborative effort. Now is the time for Professional Accounting Organizations around the world to lend their expertise and support as the IFRS Foundation Trustees consider this important challenge. IFAC looks forward to engaging with our members and other key stakeholders in formulating a full supportive response to the Consultation.”
