What's New (Nov, 2012)

November 30,2012

On November 19, 2012, the third meeting of India-Japan IFRS Dialogue was held at the newly opened Asia-Oceania office of the IFRS Foundation.

 

This joint dialogue was established in 2010 to share knowledge, experience and challenges in implementing IFRSs in India and Japan, and strengthen mutual cooperation between both countries.

 

For this year's meeting, representatives from the JICPA, the Financial Services Agency (FSA), the Financial Accounting Standards Foundation (FASF), the Accounting Standards Board of Japan (ASBJ), the Japan Business Federation (KEIDANREN), and the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), as well as representatives from the Ministry of the Corporate Affairs of India and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) delivered engaging presentations from each side, and participated in heated discussions over issues including recommendations for IASB's agenda consultation, how best to utilize the Asia-Oceania office of the IFRS Foundation, and other specific accounting issues such as recognition and accounting for goodwill and R&D costs.

 

November 26,2012

Since July 2012, a new committee on professional accountants in business (“PAIB”) has been established at JICPA to help increase the areas of service for members working as PAIBs and to enhance mobility of accounting professionals.

 

On November 19, 2012, JICPA launched a new network, PAIB Network, which provides information on seminars, meetings, and other useful information through mailing service to PAIBs and other interested members and associates who are registered as members or supporting members of the Network. Also, JICPA plans to create special contents for PAIBs on JICPA website, and support activities of its regional chapters proactively.

 

November 26,2012

The Certified Public Accountants and Auditing Oversight Board (CPAAOB) released, on November 12, 2012, the list of applicants who passed the CPA examination in 2012. Out of 17,894 applicants, 1,347 candidates passed all subjects, with the examination pass rate of 7.5%.

November 26,2012

On November 6, 2012, JICPA published a revised version of "Interpretive Guidance for Professional Ethics."

 

Due to the increased number of inquiries from members, the guideline has been revised to provide clarification on the limitation of continuous engagement of auditors and partners of audit firms in audit of public interest entities (PIEs), etc. (“rotation”), particularly with respect to how the requirement on rotation relates to audit of an amendment report, as specified in Article 24-2 of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act. 

November 20,2012

On November 15, 2012, the IFRS Foundation, the parent body of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), has opened its first international office (Asia-Oceania office) outside of London headquarters. The office, based in Tokyo, will provide support to the entire Asia-Oceania region with matters related to the development, adoption and consistent application of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs).

 

The press release and the leaflet introducing the office can be obtained at:

http://www.ifrs.org/Alerts/PressRelease/Pages/IFRS-Foundation-opens-regional-office-in-Asia-Oceania.aspx

 

November 20,2012

On November 1, 2012, the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), the JICPA and the Tokyo Stock Exchange jointly held the Integrated Reporting Roundtable, chaired by Prof. Kunio Ito, Hitotsubashi University, followed by the Integrated Reporting Tokyo Forum. These events were officially supported by the Financial Service Agency (FSA), the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the Ministry of Environment (MOE) of Japan.

 

Key issues related to capital market and corporate reporting were discussed by the IIRC members, including Prof. Mervyn King, chairman of IIRC, Mr. Paul Druckman, CEO of IIRC, Ms. Jane Diplock, former chair of IOSCO executive committee; and various Japanese stakeholders, including preparers, investors and government. The panelists outlined their views about the journey toward a value creating economy.

 

 【Integrated Reporting Roundtable】

 （Prof. Kunio Ito on the left、Mr. Paul Druckman IIRC CEO on the right）

  

（Mr. Atsushi Saito, President and CEO of Tokyo Stock Exchange）

            

 

 

【Integrated Reporting Tokyo Forum】

More than 350 audiences attended the forum

（Mr. Shozo Yamazaki, Chairman and President of JICPA）

              

 

（Prof. Mervyn King, Chairman of IIRC）

  

 

                   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 9,2012

On October 18, 2012, JICPA submitted a letter to the Business Accounting Council of Japan (BAC) in regards to the draft report on the Auditing Standard on Fraud published on September 25, 2012.

 

Responding to a series of recent corporate scandals, BAC has been in discussion for the possibility of a new audit standard on fraud since this spring, and as a result, published the draft report on the auditor’s responsibilities relating to fraud in audit of financial statements.

 

In the letter to BAC, JICPA stated that, as an overall assessment of the draft, while it was disappointing to note that the recent corporate financial scandals had raised concerns about the effectiveness of external audit, imposing an excessive burden on companies or auditors that are conducting their work faithfully and appropriately without committing any fraud should be avoided. Nevertheless, when management attempts to commit company-wide fraud, it would be very challenging for auditors to become aware of fraud in their audit engagements, and therefore, JICPA noted that, the reforms of the securities market as a whole and the corporate governance mechanisms, including coordination between auditors and audit & supervisory board members of companies, should need to be taken into account as well, when considering the auditor’s responsibilities relating to fraud in audit of financial statements.

In addition, JICPA also commented on other specific issues that need further deliberation by BAC.

 

The draft report and the letter are available only in Japanese.