Improving climate-related disclosures – worth a try!

The IASB recently announced that it has “decided to explore targeted actions to improve the reporting of climate-related and other uncertainties in the financial statements.” It summarized: The possible actions include development of educational materials, illustrative examples and targeted amendments to IFRS Accounting Standards to improve application of existing requirements. Given the pace of change…

ChatGPT wrote this blog post!

The last post covered the recent exposure draft of “Annual Improvements to IFRS Accounting Standards – Volume 11” Shortly after drafting that, it occurred to me that I hadn’t directly experienced the ChatGPT that everyone’s talking about, although I’d heard a few things about its ability to knock out a usable first draft on virtually…

Annual Improvements to IFRS, or: no more leaks!

The IASB recently issued its exposure draft of “Annual Improvements to IFRS Accounting Standards – Volume 11”, with comments requested by December 11, 2023. So look, suppose someone says to you, I just improved my home; and you say, sounds great, what did you do; and he says, I fixed a leaky faucet….well, you might…

Inside standard setting, or: slow down. you’re paddling too fast!

Continuing on our recent theme of happy takes on accounting… …this time from a perhaps unexpected source, the Chair of Canada’s Accounting Standards Board, Armand Capisciolto. He’s instigated a series of “Inside Standard Setting” articles, comprising “A little “inside baseball” on accounting standard setting” – a serious purpose, executed with a light touch. The first…

Financial statements as narratives, or: no more stories!

Well, it’s been a few years since the last installment, so let’s continue the periodic series I call “Great Cliches of IFRS.” Today’s example – well, you’ll see: Over the course of my career, one of the most valuable lessons I have learned is the value of storytelling and how to use stories to convey…

Some share-based payment issues, or: accelerated confusion!

Here’s the background to an issue recently considered by Canada’s IFRS Discussion Group: On January 1, 20X5, an employee receives a share-based payment award that vests if Entity A’s share price hits a market performance condition (“target”) either by December 31, 20X5 (“Date 1”), or by December 31, 20X6 (“Date 2”). the award has the…

ESG due diligence, or: cancel culture!

Over Half of M&A Dealmakers have Canceled Deals on ESG Due Diligence Findings, states an ESG Today report on a recent KPMG survey. Here’s some of what it had to say: The survey found that three quarters (74%) of professionals are already integrating ESG considerations as part of their M&A agenda, with the identification of…

Talking to investors, whoever they are…

Is there a term that’s applied more unproductively in the world of standard-setting and regulation than “investors”? It’s easy (and perhaps inevitable) for example to cite “investor protection” as a justification for almost anything a regulator might be inclined to do. But of course, “investors” is an extremely broad category, incorporating a wide range of…