Editorial

2021 has been a year that many of us will not forget, much as we may wish to do so. As Covid-19 continues on its course in every continent, it is clear that its impact on national economies and individual businesses alike has been been vast, and will be long lasting. But nevertheless, the cycle of corporate life continues, and the work of financial regulators remains as important as ever. This year has seen a continued focus on improving the quality of audit, amid rising concerns about company failures as government support measures are gradually withdrawn. The European Union (EU) has recently completed the process of adopting IFRS 17, Insurance Contracts, into law, but has made a key feature of the standard optional. This is a significant event since over nearly 20 years of adopting international standards, the EU has made few changes to standards issued by the IASB. The optional feature relates to a requirement that contracts should be grouped together into annual cohorts, which the EU considers would not reflect the underlying economics of certain contracts and would be costly to apply since it does not reflect how such contracts are managed in practice; a review of the regulation has been scheduled for 2027.