Institutional Capacity Building

Review of financial and non-financial statements

Description

The twinning partners organized a 3-day webinar to provide assistance and guidance to SARAS in re-viewing financial and non-financial statements submitted to it annually by the reporting entities.

The webinar was led by invited specialists from HAASOB and the Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC), who delivered a presentation to participants from SARAS and the National Bank of Georgia on the methodology for reviewing financial and non-financial information based on ESMA guidelines and the best local and international practices.

Prior to the presentation, the Georgian and Greek colleagues had carried out an examination of pub-lished financial and non-financial statements of two public-interest entities selected by SARAS on a risk-based approach. The examination involved exposing weaknesses in numerical as well as narrative disclosures, pointing out inconsistencies, identifying areas were information was not clear and would need further clarifications and transparency, clarifying how to cross reference topics identified and assess what accounts and disclosures they might affect, determining additional information that would be required by the entity’s management, etc.

A discussion and mutual exchange of views followed the presentation of the above-mentioned find-ings and the methodology used to obtain them. The partners also offered recommendations for the next steps in following up with a reporting entity and/or auditor on the work performed and the finan-cial statements submitted.

The last day of the webinar was dedicated to analyzing the implications of COVID-19 on global financial reporting under IFRS.

Another activity related to assistance in the review of financial and non-financial information, with the same scope, participants and outcomes, but a different set of financial and non-financial statements subject to review, was conducted later in July.  

Outcomes

Representatives of SARAS became familiar with the methodology for reviewing financial and non-financial statements, enhancing their capacity to examine the information presented in financial and non-financial statements of the reporting entities.