This non-authoritative publication is intended to assist in the adoption and implementation of the recently issued ISA 570 (Revised 2024) on going concern and ISA 240 (Revised) on fraud by highlighting the IAASB’s efforts to reinforce professional skepticism within the revisions of both standards.
In IESBA's first "Message from the Chair", IESBA Chair Gabriela Figueiredo Dias discusses the key points of the March 2025 IESBA Meeting in New York City.
IESBA Chair Gabriela Figueiredo Dias provides highlights of the 2025 IESBA's March Meetings
IESBA Director Linda Biek discusses whether revisions to the International Code of Ethics for Professional AccountantsTM (including International Independence StandardsTM) (the “Code”) are necessary to address the independence of auditors when they carry out audits of Collective Investment Vehicles (CIVs) and Pension Funds (collectively referred to as “Investment Schemes” or “Schemes”).
IESBA Program and Senior Director Ken Siong discusses a recent shift in how the IESBA develops its international ethics and independence standards: the Staff Driven Model. Learn how the IESBA is moving from board-led task forces to empowered staff-led project teams, why this change aligns with global regulatory reforms, and how the model is already being piloted with promising results.
Featuring IESBA Program and Senior Director Ken Siong
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) has released Firm Culture and Governance: Summary of Feedback from Global Roundtables, a publication that captures stakeholder perspectives from six global roundtables held earlier this year as part of the Board’s Firm Culture and Governance (FCG) project.
Held in New York, Melbourne, Brussels, and Kuala Lumpur, with virtual sessions for Africa and Latin America, the roundtables brought together 168 participants from across the global regulatory, investor, standard setting, accounting firm, professional accountancy and academic communities. Discussions centered on eight core elements of an ethical firm culture: ethical leadership, oversight and governance, provision of independent input, accountability, incentives and rewards, open discussion and challenge, continuous education and training, and transparency about ethical performance.
These roundtables formed part of the IESBA’s ongoing efforts to ensure its decision-making is informed by a balanced and broad-based representation of all relevant stakeholders, in line with its mandate to serve the public interest by setting global ethics, including independence, standards for the accounting profession. The publication of this report reflects the IESBA’s strong commitment to transparency and responsiveness to stakeholder feedback – both of which are essential to fostering trust among all parties involved in the development of the highest ethics standards for the profession.
The insights gathered through these discussions have directly contributed to the IESBA’s recent decision to remain firmly committed to taking decisive steps to address the cultural and governance dimensions within accounting firms, recognizing their critical impact on ethical behavior. These insights will also shape the IESBA’s future work, referenced in a recent IESBA communication on the topic, including:
the development of a series of IESBA Viewpoints addressing eight key elements to a Firm Culture and Governance Framework, such as ethical leadership, accountability, and incentives and rewards;
the preparation of a comprehensive plan, to be launched in 2026, for practical guidance and other initiatives to help firms foster an ethical culture and embed values that sustain long-term public trust in them; and
the decision to consider, by mid-2026, the appropriate approach to developing a Firm Culture and Governance Framework, aimed at guiding firms in strengthening their ethical culture and related governance practices.
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.
The Firm Culture and Governance: Summary of Feedback from Global Roundtables publication captures stakeholder perspectives from six global roundtables held in 2025 as part of the Board’s Firm Culture and Governance (FCG) project.
