The Accounting and Financial Reporting milestones in the quarter ended on December 31, 2024.
There continues to be demand from investors for transparent and comprehensive sustainability reporting and standard setters are actively working on finalizing standards and creating educational materials to assist companies in preparing their disclosures.
In November 2024, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) released educational materials to help companies identify and disclose material information on sustainability-related risks and opportunities. The ISSB also launched a dedicated webpage on connectivity, providing educational materials on how to apply the IFRS® Accounting Standards and IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards together to report complementary, connected information.
The Canadian Sustainability Standards Board (CSSB) released its first two Canadian Sustainability Disclosure Standards (CSDS) in December 2024. These standards remain aligned with the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards, with the exception of a Canadian-specific effective date and incremental transition reliefs. The Canadian Sustainability Disclosure Standards are applied on a voluntary basis only, as any mandatory application is at the discretion of Canada’s provincial and territorial regulators and legislators.
It is important for companies to monitor the issuance of various laws and reporting requirements, including those in California and the European Union (EU) that may apply to them, along with related implementation guidance as adoption nears.
In terms of Accounting Standards, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) is continuing to move forward on several projects, amendments and IFRS Interpretation Committee agenda decisions. In addition, although not effective in 2024 or 2025, companies should be aware that the IASB published new Accounting Standards IFRS 18 General Presentation and Disclosure and IFRS 19 Subsidiaries without Public Accountability: Disclosures, and also issued new amendments to IFRS 9 and IFRS 7 – Classification and Measurement of Financial Instruments and IFRS 9 – Power purchase agreements.
In addition, refer to our Guides to financial statements – which includes an update to annual financial statements for disclosure requirements effective in 2024. Also refer to our Areas of focus for 2024 year ends podcast for points for companies to consider in preparing their year-end financial statements, including climate-related matters, valuations and impairments, changes to presentation and new disclosures, and the growing importance of connectivity between a company’s financial statements and all other publicly available information.
