The International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) is in talks with delegates from five Southeast Asian countries to set up a regional committee under the patronage of IIRC chairman Mervyn King, The Accountant has learned.
IIRC chairman Mervyn King told The Accountant, Singapore is very keen to lead the initiative, which would include Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and Cambodia.
"We are talking about a very serious discussion happening. As we speak we are talking with these five countries to form a committee called the South East Asian Integrated Reporting Committee, which will promote integrated reporting in these five countries," King said.
King explained Singapore is very supportive of integrated reporting (IR) because it accepts that corporate reporting is no longer fit for purpose for the country’s "critical" stock exchange, where 80% of listed companies are not from Singapore.
In September King held meetings with the leadership of the Singapore Accountancy Commission, a body that promotes the accounting profession in the country and has shown interest in transforming Singapore into the hub of IR in South-East Asia.
"They want to start immediately. If everybody agrees should be led by Singapore. They asked me if I would become the patron of such a movement. I said, once it’s set up, I will think about it," King said.
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