IFRS Sustainability Symposium convenes in New York City as market participants get ready to use the ISSB Standards

Around 1,000 companies, investors, regulators and other key stakeholders from over 50 jurisdictions are meeting at the IFRS Sustainability Symposium taking place in New York City to exchange insights on the introduction of the ISSB Standards globally.

Adoption of the ISSB Standards is happening through two key routes.

First, jurisdictions around the world are already taking steps to adopt or otherwise use the ISSB Standards in their legal and regulatory frameworks to support the provision of globally consistent and comparable sustainability-related information for capital markets.

To support regulators as they design and plan their journey to adopt the ISSB Standards, the IFRS Foundation has published the Preview of the Inaugural Jurisdictional Guide for the adoption or other use of ISSB Standards.

The Preview aims to support transparency for capital markets, regulators and other stakeholders by setting out the features of jurisdictional approaches to adoption. The IFRS Foundation is also making publicly available a list of ongoing and completed jurisdictional consultations for stakeholders’ awareness.

Regulators from Brazil and Japan are joining the Symposium to share insights into how these jurisdictions are adopting or otherwise using the ISSB Standards.

Second, companies around the world are opting to voluntarily apply the ISSB Standards in response to investor demand for consistent, comparable and decision-useful sustainability-related information.

ISSB Standards are designed to enable companies to apply the requirements irrespective of which financial accounting standards they use so that they can produce more comprehensive and streamlined general purpose financial reports that meet the needs of investors globally and domestically. ISSB Standards also build on other investor-focused standards and frameworks that investors and companies around the world already support and widely use, including the TCFD recommendations, SASB Standards and the Integrated Reporting Framework.

The high degree of alignment in climate-related disclosure requirements in ISSB Standards and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards, as well as the interoperability mechanisms established between the Standards, reduce complexity and duplication for companies required or choosing to apply both sets of standards, with the ISSB Standards facilitating targeted, decision-useful information specifically for capital markets enabling global comparison for investors.

Senior business leaders are joining us at the Symposium to address the real need for global consistency in sustainability-disclosure requirements.

Brian Moynihan, Chair of the Board and CEO, Bank of America said:

The ISSB is delivering a global reporting standard that is being accepted or considered in jurisdictions around the world.  This will allow for transparency and comparability for issuers and investors wherever we operate, which is just what we’ve been seeking for sustainability-related disclosure. I think preparers should think of the ISSB Standards as a “no regrets” option. I commend Emmanuel and his team for their thoughtful, collaborative approach to this work.

Fiona Basset, CEO, FTSE Russell said:

Markets need comparable, investment-grade data on sustainability to better integrate financially material sustainability risks into investment decisions. This will enable markets to function effectively, investors to allocate capital, and provide data and analytics providers with a consistent basis of quality data to build into tools like benchmarks. That’s why FTSE Russell, an LSEG business, supports the work of ISSB and their efforts to drive adoption of their disclosure standards by policy makers and corporate issuers around the world.

Andrew Liveris former Chairman and CEO, The Dow Chemical Company said:

The 21st century is demanding new rules and standards. The playbook going forward has to drive towards common standards that are set with a planetary viewpoint in mind. The ISSB standards do just that for capital markets. Lifting us all to the higher standard that our future generations demand and deserve.