The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) released a podcast that provides highlights of its most recent board meeting in NYC December 3 - 5. Topics covered during the podcast included:
- Nonassurance services project - The task force made initial proposals, indicating it would evaluate: possibly prohibiting certain services to public interest entities (PIEs) where a self-review threat existed; retaining different rule sets for PIE vs non-PIE engagements; existing qualifiers in the rules such as material and significant; and communications between the auditor and those charged with governance. Revised proposals will be provided to the IESBA at its March 2019 meeting.
- Role and mindset of professional accountants project - The task force presented an initial draft of an introduction to the Code and will provide an update at the Board's March 2019 meeting, including proposed guidance that would be incorporated into the fundamental principles and the conceptual framework.
- Technology project - The Board approved the task force's proposed terms of reference which will help guide the group's work: identify potential ethics implications of technological developments (challenges to compliance, robustness and relevance of the Code and ways technology could potentially enhance compliance with ethical requirements); develop proposed responses to address ethical implications; and seek out opportunities to partner with other organizations in deliberating issues, sharing knowledge and promoting the Code. The task force will focus on two areas in the first phase, data analytics and artificial intelligence (including robotic process automation), as these are viewed to be the most pervasive technologies to professional accountants.
The podcast also addressed the Board's development of an "e-code" (expected launch: Q2 2019) and another project to align part 4B of the Code to ISAE 3000 revised.
