What Changed in Accounting? A Look at the April 2025 IASB Meeting

In April 2025, the International Accounting Standards Board met to discuss updates to the rules companies follow in their financial reports.

These rules are called IFRS.

What Are IASB and IFRS? IFRS stands for International Financial Reporting Standards.These are the accounting rules used in over 140 countries, especially in Europe, Asia, and many parts of South America and Africa. The IASB — International Accounting Standards Board — is the organization that writes and updates these rules. It is independent and based in London. Together, IFRS and IASB help make financial reports consistent and easy to compare across countries and industries.

1. Business Combinations

When a company buys another company, investors want to know how that deal is going.

Right now, many companies don’t explain this well.

The Board wants companies to give more details about what they expected from the deal and how it turned out.

That way, people can understand if the deal worked or not.

For example, if Company A buys Company B because it expects to grow sales by 20%, it should later report whether that goal was reached.

This would include figures like the profit or loss made by the acquired company, and whether the purchase helped the business grow.

Companies would also need to explain how they measured that success, like using sales, customer growth, or cost savings.

This change would help investors see if management is making smart choices — or just guessing.

2. Tuition Fees and Revenue

Some schools or training companies collect fees before classes begin.

The question is: when should they count that money as revenue?

The answer is — spread it out over the course period.

This shows a more accurate picture of what the company is earning as it teaches.

Let’s say a student pays €3,000 in January for a course that runs from February to April.

Instead of putting the full €3,000 in January's revenue, the company would show €1,000 in each of the three months.

This makes the financial report match the service being provided — learning spread over time.

It also avoids overestimating earnings in one month and underestimating them in others.

3. Climate-Related Spending

Companies are spending more on things like clean energy and carbon credits.

Should these be listed as assets or just expenses?

The Board is working on giving clearer rules for this.

That way, companies can show these efforts properly in their reports.

An “asset” is something the company expects to use or benefit from over time.

If a company buys a license to emit fewer pollutants over the next five years, that might be considered an asset.

But if it just pays a one-time fee to plant trees as compensation, that may be an expense.

Right now, companies treat these things in different ways, which makes it hard to compare them.

The IASB wants to fix that, so investors can see which companies are truly investing in sustainability.

4. Uncertainties from Climate and Other Risks

Climate change brings new risks — like floods, fires, or sudden rule changes.

Companies need to explain these risks better in their reports.

Investors want to know what could go wrong and how the company plans to handle it.

For example, a company with factories near the coast should explain what would happen if there’s severe flooding.

Would production stop?

Would they lose customers?

What’s the plan?

The Board wants these types of risks to be clearly listed, with examples and possible outcomes.

That way, a reader of the report knows not just what the company owns and earns — but also what dangers it’s facing.