Each month, the newsletter Beyond the GAAP aims at keeping readers informed of financial and sustainability reporting developments.
Beyond the GAAP no.156 - June 2021
At the end of June, Hans Hoogervorst, Chair of the International Accounting Standards Board, has stepped down after a 10-year tenure. Andreas Barckow, who has previously served on several IFRS Foundation advisory bodies, has taken over for a first mandate as head of the IASB as of 1 July. As the IASB changes its chairman and several Board members are replaced, the IASB's work plan is still ambitious, with major projects to be completed.
As is now traditional at this time of year, this issue of Beyond the GAAP presents a rundown of the new standards that are mandatory or permitted at the 30 June 2021 half-yearly closing.
In its final report on the “fitness check” on the EU framework for public reporting by companies, which began in 2018, the European Commission has concluded that IFRSs ensure high-quality financial information and comparability of financial statements. However, the findings on non-financial reporting were less encouraging, despite some progress thanks to the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD).
Here we are in March again with something of a feeling of déjà vu, and it is unfortunately still difficult to estimate the full extent of the pandemic’s impact on companies’ financial performance.
A major development this month is the publication of a proposed amendment to IFRS 16 in the light of the ongoing public health crisis: the practical expedient that was rushed through by the IASB last spring may now be applied to rent concessions granted up to 30 June 2022, rather than 30 June 2021.
2021 opens with a relatively stable IFRS framework in which to prepare the consolidated financial statements for this financial year, given the limited number and scope of the standards coming into force on 1 January.
As we move into the new year, the Beyond the GAAP editorial team would like to wish you all the best for 2021: here’s hoping that the health crisis will soon be over...
While 2020 has required a lot of work on the accounting impacts of the public health crisis, it should also be noted that most companies are now done with the upheaval resulting from the implementation of new standards (although IFRS 16 remains an enforcement priority at 31 December).
Since the beginning, our mission for Beyond the GAAP has been to keep you informed of accounting developments and to provide clarification and insight, in an environment where changes to accounting frameworks and regulators’ activities require constant vigilance from businesses and their auditors.
The launch of our new brand provides an opportunity for us to renew our commitment to this mission, as we present the new visual identity for Mazars and Beyond the GAAP. We are proud of our wide readership and will continue to apply our expertise and analysis to shed light on accounting news.
The underlying trend observed for several months (indeed, years) towards a growing overlap between financial and non-financial reporting seems even more pressing at a time when the European Union has shifted up a gear in its approach to the standardisation of non-financial reporting by involving EFRAG, the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group.