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Business News Wales
30-04-2025
- Business
- Business News Wales
ACCA Presses Audit Regulator to Drive Proportionate SME Audit Requirements
ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) is calling on the UK regulator to ensure that audit requirements for SMEs are proportionate, aligning with prevailing international standards. Responding to a consultation from the UK corporate governance regulator the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) Small and medium-sized enterprises market study , ACCA said the focus of the rules should be on the complexity of an entity rather than on size. While commending the FRC for addressing the challenges faced by SME auditors, Mike Suffield, director of policy and insights, ACCA, and formerly head of FRC's Audit Quality Review team, said: 'ACCA is a strong proponent of globally consistent standards with regard to both corporate reporting and audit and assurance. We believe that it would be valuable and in the public interest for the FRC, as part of its focus on SMEs and audit, to set out clearly the basis for its decision not to adopt the IAASB's International Standard on Auditing for Audits of Financial Statements of Less Complex Entities (ISA for LCE). 'The FRC should set out its proposed alternative arrangements and allow stakeholders to provide their feedback once it has developed firm proposals.' ACCA's response was informed by a roundtable with members and the FRC where auditors and users of audited accounts were able to express their views and discuss the challenges of SME audits. Lloyd Powell, head of ACCA Cymru/Wales, said: 'The focus of standards should be on complexity rather than size given that an entity may be large in size but still be less complex. By focusing on complexity rather than just size, any initiatives by the FRC to address the scalability issues with the UK ISAs will be likely to help a much larger number of firms and practitioners.' ACCA called on the FRC to take multiple actions to improve SME audits including: Ensuring stakeholders understand the purpose of SME audits in a bid to reduce the expectation gap; Working with others, including ACCA, to communicate the benefits of SME audits; Ensuring standards are scalable and fit for purpose Undertaking further work to see how SMEs can be clear that the benefit of an audit outweighs its cost. Read the ACCA submission here . More Stories from Food & Drink Wales:
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
ACCA urges FRC to ensure audit standards for UK SMEs
The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has called on the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) to ensure that audit requirements for SMEs in the UK remain proportionate and aligned with international standards. The call comes as a response to the FRC's consultation on the SME market study, with ACCA emphasising the need for complexity-based regulations rather than size-based ones. During a roundtable discussion with FRC members, auditors, and users of audited accounts, participants shared their insights and addressed the challenges of auditing SMEs. ACCA Policy and Insights director and FRC's Audit Quality Review team former head Mike Suffield said: 'ACCA is strong proponent of globally consistent standards with regard to both corporate reporting and audit and assurance. We believe that it would be valuable and in the public interest for the FRC, as part of its focus on SMEs and audit, to set out clearly the basis for its decision not to adopt the IAASB's International Standard on Auditing for Audits of Financial Statements of Less Complex Entities (ISA for LCE). 'The FRC should set out its proposed alternative arrangements and allow stakeholders to provide their feedback once it has developed firm proposals.' ACCA also outlined several recommendations for the FRC to enhance SME audits. It suggested exploring ways to bridge the expectation gap in the UK audit market, so that the public, investors, and SMEs have a clearer understanding of the auditor's role. Additionally, ACCA recommends that the FRC and professional bodies should better communicate the advantages of audits, highlighting the importance of investing time and resources in them. The ACCA believes that the FRC should reassess the proportionality of the UK International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) and consider the scalability of these standards for SME audits. In addition, they propose that the FRC should conduct focused research on the application of the ethical standard to SME activities and their audit and assurance arrangements, which could lead to the development of additional guidance for the SME sector. Earlier in April 2025, ACCA partnered with the Astana International Financial Centre Green Finance Centre to host a seminar in Astana, Kazakhstan. The event aimed to enhance understanding of sustainability disclosures among regulators and business leaders in Central Asia. "ACCA urges FRC to ensure audit standards for UK SMEs " was originally created and published by The Accountant, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
