IFAC has issued the revised results of the Third Annual Global Leadership Survey. Key findings cover a wide-range of topics, including the need to support small and midsize businesses in the current environment, the increasing importance of adoption and implementation of international standards, and the improvements made in the area of corporate governance.

In this follow-up report, which is part of IFAC’s Business Reporting Project, IFAC member bodies and associates studied the progress that their respective countries or jurisdictions have made in the areas of governance, financial reporting, and auditing, compared to the issues that were identified and the recommendations that were made in the original Financial Reporting Supply Chain report.

This independent report, commissioned by IFAC, highlights improvements that have been made to the financial reporting supply chain in recent years and identifies areas for further improving the usefulness of financial reports.

A new international study, commissioned by the Board of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), identifies the challenges to adopting and implementing International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) and International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) and recommends actions to be taken by all those in the financial reporting supply chain to achieve convergence to international standards. Entitled Challenges and Successes in Implementing International Standards: Achieving Convergence to IFRSs and ISAs, the study also provides examples of successful adoption and implementation to serve as models for other countries.

This paper explores the role of all accountants -- whether they act as independent auditors, accountants in management positions or in any other professional capacity -- in ongoing public- and private-sector efforts to safeguard against money laundering. The paper draws attention to numerous risks that could lead to or reveal money laundering situations and provides best practices to help accountants address those risks.

This report, which was produced by the independent IFAC-commissioned Task Force on Rebuilding Public Confidence in Financial Reporting, provides recommendations for strengthening corporate governance, improving audit effectiveness, and raising the standard of regulation of issuers. It also presents an international perspective on the challenges facing not only the accountancy profession, but also those involved in regulating a profession that has such a significant involvement in capital markets worldwide.