PLEASE NOTE: On 17 August 2023, the FSCA agreed by email to ‘allow additional time’ for comments on these proposals. No deadline was provided.
The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) gazetted a notice on 28 July calling for input within 14 days on proposals for removing auditor accreditation from Johannesburg Stock Exchange equity listing and debt listing requirements.
The notice referred stakeholders to documents that were unfortunately only posted on the FSCA website ten days later – leaving only four days for public comment on what is planned.
According to an explanatory memorandum on the proposals, ‘significant changes’ have occurred since the JSE’s auditor accreditation model was introduced in 2009. As a result, audit standards and quality, governance and regulatory oversight have improved. In that context, reference is also made to the Companies Act and the role of the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors.
It is against that background that the JSE proposes removing the auditor accreditation model, which also applies to audit firms, reporting accountants, reporting accountant specialists and International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation advisors.
The FSCA has not responded to a request for comments on the possibility of an extension to the deadline.
Published by SA Legal Academy Policy Watch