Héctor Lehuedé, is an independent consultant and a lawyer based in Santiago, Chile, with extensive experience in ethics, compliance, and corporate governance, and related areas, including sustainability, regulation of auditors, and tax matters. Previously, Mr. Lehuedé served eight years at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD's) Corporate Affairs and Corporate Finance Division in Paris. He also holds positions as an independent non-executive director and affiliate professor at Pontificia Universidad Católica's Corporate Governance Center.
Mr. Lehuedé was appointed to the Board by the PIOB for a three-year term.
“On behalf of the IESBA, it is my great pleasure to welcome Héctor to the Board,” said IESBA Chair Gabriela Figueiredo Dias. “Héctor comes to the IESBA at a critical time in our strategic work on sustainability, tax planning, and several other key projects. I’m confident his background, expertise and experience will further broaden our perspectives and enrich our deliberations as we work towards developing high-quality international ethics standards in the public interest.”
Mr. Lehuedé will join the IESBA’s 17 other members next week in New York for its week-long Board meeting.*
Héctor J. Lehuedé became a member of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) effective June 2023.
Héctor is the CEO of Razor Consulting, a boutique advisory firm based in Santiago, Chile, that since 2019 serves organizations all over Latin America on corporate governance, ethics & compliance, and sustainability. Prior to starting his firm, Héctor was for eight years a senior manager at the Corporate Affairs and Corporate Finance Division of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris, France. There, he was in charge of organizing the work of the OECD Corporate Governance Committee, which brings together experts from all member/partner countries, and for conducting policy dialogue, research, and assessments of the implementation of OECD standards across jurisdictions.
Before joining the OECD, Héctor was a senior advisor to the Minister of Finance in Chile for four years and practiced corporate and tax law for over a decade in leading legal and audit firms in Chile. He serves as independent nonexecutive director in listed and private entities and is an affiliate professor at the Corporate Governance Center of Pontificia Universidad Católica.
Héctor has a J.D. degree from Universidad de Chile Law School and holds a master's degree (JSM) from Stanford University Law School. He is also a certified company director by the UK’s Institute of Directors.
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) and the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) applaud the Public Interest Oversight Board’s (PIOB’s) recent appointment of Alan Johnson to be the inaugural chair of the new Stakeholder Advisory Council (SAC). Mr. Johnson brings a wealth of international experience to this new role, including as a former Trustee of the International Foundation for Ethics and Audit; as a chief executive, non-executive director, and audit and risk assurance committee chair; and as past president of the International Federation of Accountants.
In commenting on Mr. Johnson’s appointment and the creation of the SAC, Gabriela Figueiredo Dias and Tom Seidenstein, IESBA and IAASB Chairs respectively, stated, “The IESBA and IAASB will benefit greatly from this newly created, diverse forum that will advise us on our strategies and projects. We very much look forward to working with Alan and benefiting from his unique experience and perspectives and from his insights which will ensure our Boards remain responsive to the public interest.”
The IESBA Staff has developed this database of Public Interest Entity (PIE) definitions by jurisdictions as a resource to assist regulators, national standard setters, and other relevant bodies in developing or revising their definitions of PIE at the local level based on the IESBA’s PIE definition. This database covers 78 jurisdictions in the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Oceania.
On April 18, 2023, the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) held a global webinar to review recent revisions to the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International Independence Standards) (the Code) to address holistically the various independence considerations in an audit of group financial statements.
The hour-long Engagement Team – Group Audits (ET-GA) Independence webinar was led by Caroline Lee, former IESBA Member and ET-GA Task Force Chair, and Saadiya Adam CA (SA), IESBA Member and ET-GA Member, and was attended by 252 live participants worldwide.
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) held a series of four global roundtables to obtain stakeholder input to help shape the development of new ethics and independence standards for sustainability reporting and assurance.
The all-day roundtables, held in person in Paris, France (March 24), Sydney, Australia (March 30), Singapore (April 3), and New York (April 6), allowed stakeholders to convey relevant information to be addressed in developing the new standards. They were attended by members of the investor and corporate governance communities, C-suite executives, data aggregators, rating agencies, regulators and oversight bodies; international policy-making organizations; national standard setters; preparers; professional accountancy organizations; and sustainability assurance providers, including accountancy firms and independent providers outside the accountancy profession.
The IESBA announced in June 2022 its commitment to take timely action to develop fit-for-purpose, globally applicable ethics and independence standards as a critical part of the infrastructure needed to support transparent, relevant, and trustworthy sustainability reporting and assurance. Importantly, this strategic commitment sets up the IESBA’s ethics and independence standards as the third pillar to trustworthy sustainability reporting and assurance, alongside the standards being developed by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) and the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB).
In December 2022, the IESBA approved two new standard-setting projects that will develop profession-agnostic ethics and independence standards for sustainability reporting and assurance and on the related topic of “use of experts.”
The revisions will guide the ethical mindset and behavior of professional accountants in both business and public practice as they take advantage of the opportunities created by technology and adapt to new technology. Developed to remain relevant and applicable in the ever-evolving landscape of technology transformation, the revisions apply to the use of any technology, including to the extent possible, future technologies.
“Technological innovation is transforming how work is performed and how professional services are delivered as well as enabling new services in ways never before imagined,” said Ms. Gabriela Figueiredo Dias, IESBA Chair. “It is crucial and in the public interest that we provide strong, clear and principles-based standards to equip professional accountants around the world in navigating the ethical risks and challenges brought on by technology.”
The revisions, which were informed by extensive fact-finding and stakeholder outreach:
Strengthen the Code in guiding the mindset and behavior of professional accountants when they use technology.
Provide enhanced guidance fit for the digital age in relation to the fundamental principles of confidentiality, and professional competence and due care, as well as in dealing with circumstances of complexity.
Strengthen and clarify the International Independence Standards (IIS) by addressing the circumstances in which firms and network firms may or may not provide a technology-related non-assurance service to an audit or assurance client.
The revisions to the IIS will be effective for audits and reviews of financial statements for periods beginning on or after December 15, 2024. The other revisions to the ethics provisions of the Code will be effective as of December 15, 2024. Early adoption is permitted.
