14/09/2023 - EFRAG publishes its Briefing Summary on Climate-related Risks in the Financial Statements
EFRAG has issued a Briefing Summary on the IASB's project on Climate-related Risks in the Financial Statements.
The Briefing Summary highlights key findings from EFRAG’s outreach and other reviews of European companies’ related reporting.
The Briefing Summary highlights key findings from EFRAG’s outreach and engagement with stakeholders on the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) project on Climate-related Risks in the Financial Statements (CRFS).
The findings in this Briefing Summary draw upon and integrate the following:
Findings from EFRAG’s outreach that was carried out from June to July 2023. The feedback was obtained from the responses to a survey that was sent to EFRAG stakeholders and from input received during meetings with some of EFRAG’s technical expert and advisory working groups;
Constituents’ views expressed during the 2021 EFRAG agenda consultation;
Learnings from EFRAG’s participation in stakeholder meetings addressing the topic; and
A review of concerns flagged in publications that have reviewed European companies’ reporting of climate-related risks in financial statements.
These findings are pertinent for both the IASB CRFS project and the EFRAG research project on the connectivity between financial and sustainability reporting information.
The Briefing Summary has findings on the following:
Nature and prevalence of concerns related to the reporting of climate-related risks in the financial statements – Although an improving trend in the reporting of climate risk in financial statements, there are still several areas of concern including the disconnect between the information inside and outside the financial statements.
Causes of concerns –The concerns arise due to a perceived lack of full compliance with existing requirements of IFRS Accounting Standards including by some entities excluding material information. There are also limitations of existing IFRS Accounting requirements and the current IASB educational material. Other causes are challenges in the quantification of climate risk and the expectation gaps on the financial statements in part due to new types of users.
Suggested IASB actions – Stakeholders have suggested the issuance of illustrative examples, application guidance on challenging reporting areas, enhancement of the IASB educational material and limited amendments to some IFRS Accounting Standards.
Suggested scope of the IASB project – Mixed views have been expressed on the scope of the project with some stakeholders suggesting a climate-risk first approach while others support broadening the scope to encompass other long-term risks.
Access the Briefing Summary here.
