What's New (Dec, 2014)

December 26,2014

On December 12, 2014, the Financial Services Agency (FSA) of Japan published the exposure draft of “Corporate Governance Code” for the sustainable growth of companies and the increase of medium-to-long- term corporate value. 

For more information, please visit the following site:

http://www.fsa.go.jp/en/refer/councils/corporategovernance/20141217-1.html

December 25,2014

Mr. Kimitaka Mori, Chairman and President of JICPA, talks to A Plus, the Hong Kong Institute of CPAs’ (HKICPA) magazine, about JICPA’s recent activities and roles that CPAs play in Japan in the article “Accounting in the age of Abenomics.”

The full-length article can be obtained from HKICPA website, click December 2014 edition:

http://app1.hkicpa.org.hk/APLUS/past-issues.php

December 16,2014

On December 11, 2014, Mr. Kimitaka Mori, Chairman and President of JICPA, attended the commemorative ceremony of the 60^th anniversary of Korean Institute of CPAs (KICPA) held in Seoul.

Mr. Mori delivered a speech to extend his sincere congratulations and the best wishes for the KICPA’s continuous success.

December 16,2014

On December 10, 2014, Mr. U wan Tin, Vice Chairman of Myanmar Institute of CPAs (MICPA), and three other CPAs from MICPA   visited JICPA as a part of the training program run by MICPA-DAIWA Myanmar Japan Foundation.  This program has been established for Myanmar CPAs to understand and learn about the stock market and related topics. JICPA has taken part in the training by providing a seminar on the roles and responsibilities of the CPA profession for the healthy functioning of the capital markets.

JICPA hopes to strengthen ties with MICPA and continue to play a role in the development of the CPA profession and capital markets in Myanmar.

December 9,2014

From December 4 to 5, 2014, Mr. Robert H. Herz, a former Chairman of Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and also a former Board Member of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) visited JICPA.

Series of interviews were conducted with Mr. Herz, including the ones with Mr. Kimitaka Mori, Chairman and President of JICPA and other JICPA representatives, in regards to the future of corporate reporting such as disclosure of non-financial information and integrated reporting, overall international activities, and the recent movements of IFRS in US. 

Mr. Herz also delivered a seminar to JICPA members, entitled “International Convergence and IFRS in the US,” which was followed by a discussion with Mr. Tatsumi Yamada, a former Board Member of IASB and Head of IFRS in KPMG’s Asia Pacific region.

On the evening of December 5, meeting with JICPA associate members was also arranged to communicate with Japanese young accounting professionals about the importance of having international experiences and the values of advancing a career as CPAs.

December 5,2014

On December 1, 2014, JICPA co-sponsored a symposium to discuss the future of corporate reporting, entitled “IFRS Application: Challenges and Opportunities”. 

The purposes of the symposium were to encourage more Japanese companies to apply IFRS by advocating its advantages and sharing the knowledge and expertise on new IFRSs that may influence Japanese companies in future.

Mr. Kimitaka Mori, Chairman and President of JICPA, opened the symposium with his opening remarks, followed by the keynote speech by Mr. Takafumi Sato, President of Japan Exchange Regulation and a member of the Trustee of the IFRS Foundation. Mr. Joji Okada, CFO Senior Executive Managing Officer, Representative Director of Mitsui & Company Limited and a member of the Trustee of the IFRS Foundation, Mr. Takatsugu Ochi, a member of IASB, and seven other experts and professionals also contributed to interesting and informative panel discussions at the symposium.

December 1,2014

On November 27, 2014, the 22nd Annual Exchange Meeting with the Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountants (KICPA) was held at the JICPA in Tokyo. This meeting is held annually to discuss matters related to accounting and auditing in both countries, and facilitate mutual understanding and cooperation between the two institutions.

December 1,2014

From November 10 to 13, 2014, World Congress of Accountants (WCOA) was held in Rome.  WCOA is held once every four years, and represents professional accountants from more than 100 countries around the world.

This year’s WCOA was attended by more than 100 delegates from Japan.

Speakers for its concurrent sessions included Mr. Tadashi Sekikawa (Senior Technical Director of JICPA),　Mr. Atsushi Kato　(Board member of IESBA and the former Vice Chairman of Accounting Standards Board of Japan (ASBJ)),　and Mr. Tsuyoshi Oyama (Head,Center for Risk Management Strategy, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu LLC) of Japan.

December 1,2014

Mr. Kimitaka Mori, Chairman and President of JICPA, and representatives from JICPA attended, on November 7, 2014, IFAC Council meeting held in Rome.  Together with the report on the implementation of the Strategy Implementation Plan for 2014, IFAC’s 2015 plan, as well as its new board members and member bodies were also approved and decided. 

Mr. Shinji Someha, Executive Board Member-International of JICPA, was elected to the IFAC Board.

IFAC also elected Ms. Olivia Kirtley, a former Chair of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), to be the first female President of IFAC.