Technical update

Sustainability

The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) has released guidance on disclosing current and anticipated financial effects of sustainability‑related risks and opportunities, following ISSB reporting standards.

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is developing additional pollution reporting standards to include requirements on declaring air and soil emissions, noise, light and odours, plus critical incidents such as oil spills. These changes will augment GRI disclosures 305-6 on ozone-depleting substances; 305-7 on nitrogen oxides and sulphur oxides and other significant air emissions; and 306-3 on significant spills.

European Central Bank (ECB) president Christine Lagarde has written to the European Parliament expressing concerns over the European Union’s (EU) plans to narrow the scope of the corporate sustainability reporting directive. She said it ‘would limit the availability of firm-level data’, weakening the ECB and national EU central banks’ ‘ability to perform a granular assessment of climate-related financial risks’.

The International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank Group, has published guidance for companies on improving their human capital data disclosures when undertaking environmental, social and corporate governance reporting.

The International Foundation for Valuing Impacts (IFVI) is merging with the Capitals Coalition, to promote standardisation and integration in impact accounting standards, promoting value creation. The goal is uniting IFVI’s development of an impact accounting framework and the Capitals Coalition’s harmonisation of best practices assessments of natural, social, human and produced capital within decision-making. The bodies aim to complete the merger this year.

Ethics

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) has unveiled a package of amendments to its standards to better align its guidance with the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants’ (IESBA) Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants. These will, notably, revise IAASB’s definition of listed entities to integrate with IESBA’s model. This means changes to IAASB’s International Standards on Quality Management and International Standards on Auditing; and to the International Standard on Review Engagement 2400 (Revised), Engagements to Review Historical Financial Statements over independence declarations. For instance, IAASB is introducing a new requirement in ISRE 2400 (Revised) for public disclosure in review reports of independence requirements regarding public interest entities, and more.

These reforms have been supported and certified by the Public Interest Oversight Board, which makes recommendations to IAASB. The board argued that ‘further alignment towards a single public interest entity definition is necessary in the public interest’.

Meanwhile, IESBA has also released two publications boosting understanding and adoption of its ethics standards on using external experts and on sustainability assurance, both effective from December 2026. The former provides answers to common questions on assessing whether to use and identify an external expert; threats from using these specialists; and more. The latter highlights key aspects of IESBA’s sustainability code, especially helping SMPs.

Assurance

IAASB has also released guidance on utilising the International Standard on Sustainability Assurance 5000, General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements. It includes reference extracts on limited assurance engagements and reasonable assurance engagements; and frequently asked questions on predecessors ISAE 3000 (Revised) and ISAE 3410, which expire for sustainability assurance engagements from December 2026.

Public sector

The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board has released its latest Biennial Review, summarising its 2023-24 activities, including finalising its 2024-28 strategy and work programme, which is detailed in the publication.