The International Sustainability Disclosure Standards – IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 – Best read

The International Sustainability Disclosure Standards – IFRS S1 and IFRS S2

On 26 June 2023 the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) released its first two International Sustainability Disclosure Standards (IFRS SDS or the Standards) that become effective for periods beginning on or after 1 January 2024. Together they mark the start of a new era of requiring companies to make sustainability-related disclosures.

The ISSB was launched by the IFRS Foundation at COP26 with the aim of improving the consistency and quality of sustainability reporting across the globe, by matching the importance of sustainability reporting with the current regulations around financial reporting. To reinforce this message, the ISSB sits alongside the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and is overseen by the trustees of the IFRS Foundation and the Monitoring board.

The International Sustainability Disclosure Standards – IFRS S1 and IFRS S2

The ISSB brings together the Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB) and the Value Reporting Foundation (VRF), the name behind the Integrated Reporting Framework and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Standards.

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IRR How to calculate

IRR How to calculate

The Internal Rate of Return (IRR) is the discount rate that makes the net present value (NPV) of a project zero. In other words, it is the expected compound annual rate of return that will be earned on a project or investment.

When calculating IRR, expected cash flows for a project or investment are given and the NPV equals zero. Put another way, the initial cash investment for the beginning period will be equal to the present value of the future cash flows of that investment. (Cost paid = present value of future cash flows, and hence, the net present value = 0).

Once the internal rate of return is determined, it is typically compared to a company’s hurdle rate or cost of capital. If the IRR is greater than or equal to the cost of capital, the company would accept the project as a good investment. (That is, of course, assuming this is the sole basis for the decision).

In reality, there are many other quantitative and qualitative factors that are considered in an investment decision). If the IRR is lower than the hurdle rate, then it would be rejected, if IRR is the only investment consideration.

Under IFRS 16 ‘Leases’, a similar calculation is used to calculate discount rates are used to determine the present value of the lease payments used to measure a lessee’s lease liability. Discount rates are also used to determine lease classification for a lessor and to measure a lessor’s net investment in a lease.

For lessees, the lease payments are required to be discounted using:

For lessors, the discount rate will always be the interest rate implicit in the lease.

The interest rate implicit in the lease is defined in IFRS 16 as ‘the rate of interest that causes the present value of (a) the lease payments and (b) the unguaranteed residual value to equal the sum of (i) the fair value of the underlying asset and (ii) any initial direct costs of the lessor.’

The lessee’s incremental borrowing rate is defined in IFRS 16 as ‘the rate of interest that a lessee would have to pay to borrow over a similar term, and with a similar security, the funds necessary to obtain an asset of a similar value to the right-of-use asset in a similar economic environment’.

The incremental borrowing rate is determined on the commencement date of the lease. As a result, it will incorporate the impact of significant economic events and other changes in circumstances arising between lease inception and commencement.

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Capitalisation of expenditure – 1 Complete answer

Capitalisation of expenditure

Capitalisation of expenditure is only possible when one of the following situations occur:

  • Capital expenditure (including equipment repairs and maintenance)
  • Recording lease contracts – Right-of-Use Assets
  • Capitalisation of borrowing costs
  • Capitalisation of cloud computing costs
  • Capitalisation of intangible assets
  • Capitalisation of internally capitalized intangible assets
  • Research & development costs
  • Prepaid expenses

Capital expenditure (including equipment repairs and maintenance)

The cost of an item of property, plant and equipment under IAS 16 Property, plant and equipment shall be recognised as an asset if, and only if:

  • it is probable that future economic benefits associated with the item will flow to the entity; and
  • the cost of the item can be measured reliably. (IAS 16.7)

Investment property

Certain properties which are used on rental are classified as an investment property in which case IAS 40 Investment property will apply. Only tangible items which have a useful life of more than one period are classified as property, plant and equipment as per IAS 16. But refer to the words “more than one period” as more than one accounting period of 12 months.

Also, an entity shall determine a threshold limit commensurate to its size for recognizing a tangible item as property, plant and equipment. For example, a tangible item of insignificant amount although satisfying the definition of property, plant and equipment may be expensed.

Initial recognition of indirect costs

Items of property, plant and equipment may be acquired for safety or environmental reasons. The acquisition of such property plant and equipment, although not directly increasing the future economic benefits of any particular existing item of property, plant and equipment, may be necessary for an entity to obtain the future economic benefits from its other assets.

Such items of property plant and equipment qualify for recognition as assets because they enable an entity to derive future economic benefits from related assets in excess of what could be derived had those items not been acquired.

Subsequent recognition of indirect costs

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Determining a leases discount rate

Determining a leases discount rate

The definition of the lessee’s incremental borrowing rate states that the rate should represent what the lessee ‘would have to pay to borrow over a similar term and with similar security, the funds necessary to obtain an asset of similar value to the right-of-use asset in a similar economic environment.’ In applying the concept of ‘similar security’, a lessee uses the right-of-use asset granted by the lease and not the fair value of the underlying asset.

This is because the rate should represent the amount that would be charged to acquire an asset of similar value for a similar period. For example, in determining the incremental borrowing rate on a 5 year lease of a property, the security for the portion of the asset being leased (i.e. the 5 year portion of its useful life) would be likely to vary significantly from the outright ownership of the property, as outright ownership would confer rights over a period of time that would typically be significantly greater than the 5-year right-of-use asset contained in the lease.

In practice, judgement may be needed to estimate an incremental borrowing rate in the context of a right-of-use asset, especially when the value of the underlying asset differs significantly from the value of the right-of-use asset.

An entity’s weighted-average cost of capital (‘WACC’) is not appropriate to use as a proxy for the incremental borrowing rate because it is not representative of the rate an entity would pay on borrowings. WACC incorporates the cost of equity-based capital, which is unsecured and ranks behind other creditors and will therefore be a higher rate than that paid on borrowings.

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Leveraged buyout IFRS 3 best reporting

Leveraged buyout IFRS 3 best reporting – In corporate finance, a leveraged buyout (LBO) is a transaction where a company is acquired using debt as the main source of consideration. These transactions typically occur when a private equity (PE) firm borrows as much as they can from a variety of lenders (up to 70 or 80 percent of the purchase price) and funds the balance with their own equity. Leveraged buyout IFRS 3 best reporting

1 The process and business reason

The use of leverage (debt) enhances expected returns to the private equity firm. By putting in as little of their own money as possible, PE firms can achieve a large return on equity (ROE) and internal rate of return … Read more

The best 1 in overview – IFRS 9 Impairment requirements

IFRS 9 Impairment requirements

forward-looking information to recognise expected credit losses for all debt-type financial assets

 

Under IFRS 9 Impairment requirements, recognition of impairment no longer depends on a reporting entity first identifying a credit loss event.

IFRS 9 instead uses more forward-looking information to recognise expected credit losses for all debt-type financial assets that are not measured at fair value through profit or loss.

IFRS 9 requires an entity to recognise a loss allowance for expected credit losses on:

IFRS 9 requires an expected loss allowance to be estimated for each of these types of asset or exposure. However, the Standard specifies three different approaches depending on the type of asset or exposure:

IFRS 9 Impairment requirements

* optional application to trade receivables and contract assets with a significant financing component, and to lease receivables

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Need for accounting measurement the big 1

Need for accounting measurement

Need for accounting measurement provides a summary of the measurement bases in use in Financial Reporting
and the concepts behind these measurement bases.
The measurement bases that will be considered here are

All these bases are forms of accrual accounting – that is, they are intended to measure income as it is earned and costs as they are incurred, as opposed to simply recording cash flows. The last four are all forms of current value measurement.

In forming a judgment on the appropriateness of measurement bases, in literature, the overriding tests has been identified to be their cost-effectiveness and fitness for purpose. However, in the absence of direct evidence on these matters, it is usual to argue in terms of various secondary characteristics that ought to be relevant in assessing the quality of information (see the key indicators in What is useful information?).

The most important of these characteristics are generally considered to be relevance and faithful representation / reliability (older term).

For each basis, an outline is given of how it works and the relevance and faithful representation of the resulting measurements. The question of measurement costs is also considered briefly. In reading the analyses that follow, the following comments should be borne in mind.

Bases of measurement in financial reporting are not carved in stone. Different people have different views on how each basis should work, and meanings evolve as practice changes. Some readers may therefore find that the way a particular basis is described does not match how they understand it.

This does not mean either that their understanding is wrong or that the description in the report is wrong; views on these things simply differ.

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Primary users of general purpose financial reports

primary users of general purpose financial reports that are existing and potential investors, lenders and other creditors who use that to make finance decisions

Individual or collective assessment for impairment – Which 1 is best varies per case

Individual or collective assessment for impairment - An entity should normally identify significant increases in credit risk and recognise lifetime ECLs