As part of the Center for Audit Quality’s (CAQ) ongoing effort to keep members and stakeholders informed on significant public policy and accounting matters, we are pleased to offer the Public Policy and Technical Alert (PPTA). Each month, the PPTA highlights and examines the regulatory, standard-setting, legislative, and broader financial reporting developments impacting the public company audit profession. Please note that the PPTA is intended as general information and should not be relied upon as being definitive or all-inclusive. The CAQ encourages member firms to refer to the rules, standards, guidance, and other resources in their entirety at the hyperlinks provided below. All entities should carefully evaluate which requirements apply to their respective organizations.
In This Issue
SEC Division of Examinations Announces 2026 Priorities
The SEC’s Division of Examinations released its 2026 examination priorities. For fiscal year 2026, in addition to conducting examinations in core areas such as fiduciary duty, standards of conduct, and the custody rule, the Division will also examine for compliance with new rules, such as the 2024 amendments to Regulation S-P.
SEC Announces New Date and Time for Roundtable on Financial Surveillance and Privacy
The SEC’s Crypto Task Force rescheduled its Financial Surveillance and Privacy Roundtable, previously scheduled for October, to Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. The roundtable will be held at the SEC’s headquarters. The event will be open to the public and webcast live on the SEC’s website.
SEC Investor Advisory Committee Meeting on Regulatory Changes in Corporate Governance, the Tokenization of Equity Securities
The SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee held a virtual public meeting on December 4, 2025. The committee hosted two panels:
- Regulatory Changes in Corporate Governance
- Tokenization of Equities: How Issuance, Trading, and Settlement Would Work with Existing Regulation
The full agenda is available on the committee’s webpage.
FASB Improves Guidance on Purchased Loans
The FASB published an Accounting Standards Update (ASU) that improves the accounting for purchased loans. The new ASU expands the population of acquired financial assets accounted for using the gross-up approach. The ASU, including transition and effective date information, is available at www.fasb.org.
Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council (FASAC) Meeting Recap: September 18, 2025
The FASB posted the recap of FASAC’s most recent quarterly meeting, held on Thursday, September 18, 2025. At the meeting, the FASB Chair provided highlights on FASB activities, and staff members from the SEC and PCAOB, and the AICPA Auditing Standards Board Chair commented on current issues and activities. Council members also discussed the Agenda Consultation and the Post-Implementation Review — Current Expected Credit Losses.
FASB Issues Post-Implementation Review Report for Its Leases Standard (Leases PIR)
The FASB issued the report on Post-Implementation Review: Leases (Topic 842). The report discusses how the FASB staff conducted the Leases PIR process and, using what was learned during the PIR process, describes improvements that were made to the leases standard and, more broadly, areas of improvement for future standard-setting.
FASB Issues New Standard to Improve Hedge Accounting Guidance
The FASB published an ASU to clarify and improve hedge accounting guidance. The ASU enables entities to apply hedge accounting to a greater number of highly effective economic hedges in the following five areas:
- Similar Risk Assessment for Cash Flow Hedges
- Hedging Forecasted Interest Payments on Choose-Your-Rate Debt Instruments
- Cash Flow Hedges of Nonfinancial Forecasted Transactions
- Net Written Options as Hedging Instruments
- Foreign-Currency-Denominated Debt Instrument as Hedging Instrument and Hedged Item (Dual Hedge)
The ASU, including transition and effective date information, is available at fasb.org.
AICPA, State CPA Societies Urge Department of Education to Recognize Accounting Programs as Professional Degree Programs
The AICPA and state CPA societies strongly oppose any proposal that fails to recognize accounting as a professional degree program. The organizations are calling on the U.S. Department of Education to explicitly include accounting programs in the regulatory definition of “professional degree programs.”
Financial Reporting Council (FRC) Takes Steps to Support Quality and Consistency in the Assurance of Sustainability Reporting
The FRC issued International Standard on Sustainability Assurance (ISSA) (UK) 5000, General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements, which provides U.K. companies, investors, and assurance providers with a consistent, internationally aligned assurance standards for voluntary use in sustainability assurance engagements. ISSA (UK) 5000 is a U.K. version of the global benchmark standard for sustainability assurance, developed by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB).
FRC Publishes Practical Insights to Help Smaller Listed Companies Improve Corporate Reporting Quality
The FRC published practical insights to help smaller listed companies improve the quality of their corporate reporting and make the most of their resources. Thematic review: Reporting by the U.K.’s smaller listed companies focuses on four key areas where investors pay close attention and where the FRC has historically identified room for improvement:
- Revenue recognition
- Cash flow statements
- Impairment of non-financial assets
- Financial instruments
IAASB Publishes New Illustrative Reports to Support ISSA 5000 Implementation
The IAASB published a new set of illustrative practitioner’s assurance reports to further support the implementation of International Standard on Sustainability Assurance (ISSA) 5000, General Requirements for Sustainability Assurance Engagements. While ISSA 5000 includes four illustrative reports that reflect the baseline requirements of the standard, this new publication provides more specific examples to help practitioners apply the standard in real-world scenarios.
October 2025 International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) Update and Podcast Now Available
The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation announced that the October 2025 IASB update and podcast are now available.
November 2025 IASB Agenda, Meeting Papers, and Summary Now Available
The IFRS Foundation announced that the agenda, papers, and meeting summary of the November 2025 IASB meeting are now available. The IASB update and podcast are also available here.
December 2025 IASB Agenda and Meeting Papers Now Available
The IFRS Foundation announced that the agenda, papers, and meeting summary of the December 2025 IASB meeting are now available.
IASB Issues Amendments for Translating Financial Information Into Hyperinflationary Currencies
The IASB issued amendments that clarify how companies should translate financial statements from a non-hyperinflationary currency into a hyperinflationary one. These narrow-scope amendments aim to improve the usefulness of the resulting information in a cost-effective manner. The amendments to IAS 21, The Effects of Changes in Foreign Exchange Rates, are effective for annual periods beginning on or after January 1, 2027. Companies can choose to apply them earlier.
IASB Issues Illustrative Examples on Reporting Uncertainties in Financial Statements
The IASB issued illustrative examples demonstrating how companies can apply IFRS Accounting Standards when reporting the effects of uncertainties in their financial statements. The examples use climate-related scenarios as practical illustrations, but the underlying principles apply more broadly to all uncertainties.
International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) Board Meets in Madrid; Issues Four New Publications
The IOSCO published the following reports:
- Final Report on Pre-Hedging;
- Final Report on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Indices as Benchmarks;
- Consultation Report on Recommendations for Secondary Market Disclosure;
- Statement on the Importance of High-Quality Valuation Information in Financial Reporting
These publications are products of the 2025 workplan and part of the outcomes of the recent board meeting that took place in Madrid.
IOSCO Publishes Final Report on Financial Asset Tokenization
The IOSCO published its Final Report on the Tokenization of Financial Assets. Key findings include:
- Tokenization is growing but remains nascent.
- Efficiency gains are uneven.
- Risks are familiar but evolving.
- Regulatory approaches vary.
Fall 2025 Audit Partner Pulse Survey
The CAQ posted the results of its Fall 2025 Audit Partner Pulse Survey. Highlights of the report include:
- Economic Outlook: Economic Sentiment Stabilizing, but Cautious
- Business Trends: Regulatory Uncertainty Reshaping Strategy and Artificial Intelligence as an Opportunity Amid Austerity
The Center for Audit Quality is a nonpartisan public policy organization serving as the voice of U.S. public company auditors and matters related to audits of public companies. The CAQ promotes high quality performance by U.S. public company auditors; convenes capital market stakeholders to advance the discussion of critical issues affecting audit quality, U.S. public company reporting, and investor trust in the capital markets; and using independent research and analyses, champions policies and standards that bolster and support the effectiveness and responsiveness of U.S. public company auditors and audits to dynamic market conditions. Based in Washington, DC, the CAQ is affiliated with the American Institute of CPAs. For more information, visit www.thecaq.org.
The CAQ Public Policy and Technical Alert (PPTA) is intended as general information and should not be relied upon as being definitive or all-inclusive. As with all other CAQ resources, this is not authoritative and readers are urged to refer to relevant rules and standards. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. The CAQ makes no representations, warranties, or guarantees about, and assumes no responsibility for, the content or application of the material contained herein and expressly disclaims all liability for any damages arising out of the use of, reference to, or reliance on such material. This publication does not represent an official position of the CAQ, its board, or its members.
Questions and comments about the Public Policy & Technical Alert can be addressed to Donnie Heinerichs, Manager, Professional Practice (dheinerichs@thecaq.org) or Annette Schumacher, Senior Director, Professional Practice (ashumacher@thecaq.org).