This edition of our Spotlight on IFRS covers current developments in the quarter ended on March 31, 2024.
The financial reporting landscape continues to evolve. Largely being driven by macroeconomic factors as well as continuing demand from stakeholders and regulators for better, and more connected reporting by companies on sustainability matters, including climate change.
On March 6, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued its final Climate Disclosure rule – The Enhnacement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors. The final rule will generally apply to all US SEC registrants, including Foreign Private Issuers but will not apply to Canadian issuers that use the Multijurisdictional Disclosure system (MJDS).
A week later on March 13, 2024, the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board (CSSB) released exposure drafts of its first two proposed Canadian Sustainability Disclosure Standards (CSDS). The proposed standards are aligned with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) IFRS® Sustainability Disclosure Standards with the exception of a Canadian specific effective date and incremental transition relief. The proposed voluntary effective date is for annual reporting periods beginning on or after January 1, 2025.
The Sustainability Disclosure Standards will have a significant impact on companies across all sectors and mark the next step towards equal prominence for sustainability and financial reporting. We recommend leveraging our dedicated Sustainability reporting resource centre, which features a range of high-level visual overviews, video blogs, articles and analysis to help companies get ready for the new standards.
