FRC inks deals to adopt more standards
Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has recently signed contracts with three global accounting and auditing standard developing and setting organisations to adopt and issue audit and accounting related standards, practice notes and interpretations.
The organisations are IFRS Foundation, International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), and International Valuation Standards Council (IVSC), said the government regulatory body for professional accountants and accountancy profession in a press release yesterday.
These standard setting bodies follow a thorough, transparent and participatory process when issuing any standard, practice note or an interpretation that helps companies better implement standards.
At present 166 countries are involved in the process of adoption of the IFRS standards; 170 members from 130 countries are using the IFAC published auditing standards and the IVSC consists of more than 130 member organisations from around the world.
The IFRS develops and sets standards, interpretations for accounting and financial reporting, known as the IFRS, IASs and IFRIC interpretations.
The IFAC develops and sets standards, code of ethics, practice notes for auditing, assurance, review and other related services, most widely used and known as the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs), for professional accountants working in profession and in businesses.
The IVSC develops and sets International Valuation Standards (IVS) for business and assets valuation services.
The IFRS, ISAs and Code of Ethics have been in practice in Bangladesh accounting and auditing profession through the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh (ICAB) for more than a decade.
With the enactment of Financial Reporting Act (FRA) 2015 and signing of contracts with the global standard setting organisations, these standards are now being included into the national law, the statement added.
In addition to the standard compliance clauses in the FRA 2015, Companies Act 1994, Banking Companies Act 1991, MRA Act 2006, and Insurance Act 2010 have been amended through the FRA, requiring the relevant companies to comply with the standards adopted and issued by the FRC.
Requirements, monitoring and reviewing of the compliances of high quality standards by legislative law and setting up a regulatory agency to effectively carry out the functions would definitely strengthen the accounting and auditing profession of Bangladesh, said the FRC.
The IVS for valuation of businesses and assets will be a new set of standards for valuation practices in Bangladesh, it added.