An accountant is a practitioner of accounting or accountancy. Accountants who have demonstrated competency through their professional associations' certification exams are certified to use titles such as Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certified Accountant or Certified Public Accountant. Such professionals are granted certain responsibilities by statute, such as the ability to certify an organization's financial statements, and may be held liable for professional misconduct. Non-qualified accountants may be employed by a qualified accountant, or may work independently without statutory privileges and obligations.
The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) is a UK based professional body offering training and qualification in management accountancy and related subjects. It is focused on accountants working in industry, and provides ongoing support and training for members.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) is a professional membership organisation that promotes, develops and supports chartered accountants and students across the world. In 2019, it has over 181,000 members and students in 148 countries. In 2018, 8,821 students joined the ICAEW - the highest ever figure. The ICAEW was established by royal charter in 1880.
Chartered accountants were the first accountants to form a professional accounting body, initially established in Scotland in 1854. The Edinburgh Society of Accountants (1854), the Glasgow Institute of Accountants and Actuaries (1854) and the Aberdeen Society of Accountants (1867) were each granted a royal charter almost from their inception. The title is an internationally recognised professional designation; the certified public accountant designation is generally equivalent to it. Women were able to become chartered accountants only following the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919 after which, in 1920, Mary Harris Smith was recognised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and became the first woman chartered accountant in the world.
Founded in 1904, the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants(ACCA) is the global professional accounting body offering the Chartered Certified Accountant qualification (ACCA). ACCA's headquarters are in London with principal administrative office in Glasgow. ACCA works through a network of over 104 offices and centres in 52 countries - with 323 Approved Learning Partners (ALP) and more than 7,300 Approved Employers worldwide, who provide employee development.
The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) is a professional institute for accountants working in the public services, national audit agencies, in major accountancy firms, and in other bodies where public money needs to be managed. It has 14,000 members. It is the only UK professional accountancy body to specialise in public services. Its qualifications include a professional qualification for public sector accountants as well as a postgraduate diploma for people already working in management.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is the national professional accounting body of India. It was established on 1 July 1949 as a statutory body under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 enacted by the Parliament to regulate the profession of Chartered Accountancy in India. ICAI is the second largest professional Accounting & Finance body in the world. ICAI is the only licensing cum regulating body of the financial audit and accountancy profession in India. It recommends the accounting standards to be followed by companies in India to National Financial Reporting Authority and sets the accounting standards to be followed by other types of organisations. ICAI is solely responsible for setting the Standards on Auditing (SAs) to be followed in the audit of financial statements in India. It also issues other technical standards like Standards on Internal Audit (SIA), Corporate Affairs Standards (CAS) etc. to be followed by practicing Chartered Accountants. It works closely with the Government of India, Reserve Bank of India and the Securities and Exchange Board of India in formulating and enforcing such standards.
The Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) is one of the three legally recognised professional bodies for accountants in Australia. The IPA represents more than 35,000 members and students working in industry, commerce, government, academia and professional practice.
The Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICAI), previously known as The Institute of Cost & Works Accountants of India (ICWAI), is a premier statutory professional accountancy body in India with the objects of promoting, regulating and developing the profession of Cost & Management Accountancy. It is the only licensing cum regulating body of Cost & Management Accountancy profession in India. It recommends the Cost Accounting Standards to be followed by companies in India to which statutory maintenance of cost records applicable. ICAI is solely responsible for setting the auditing and assurance standards for statutory Cost Audit to be followed in the Audit of cost statements in India. It also issues other technical guidelines on several aspects like Internal Audit, Management Accounting etc. to be followed by practising Cost Accountants while discharging their services. It works closely with the industries, various departments of Government of India, State governments in India and other Regulating Authorities in India e.g. Reserve Bank of India, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority, Securities and Exchange Board of India etc. on several aspects of performance, cost optimisation and reporting.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia was the professional accounting body representing Chartered Accountants in Australia before it merged with the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants to become Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand.
The New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants (NZICA) was the operating name for the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand. The Institute represented over 33,000 members in New Zealand and overseas. Most accountants in New Zealand belonged to the Institute.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) is a professional accountancy body in Nigeria. It is one of the two professional accountancy associations with regulatory authority in Nigeria, the other being the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN). The relationship between the two organizations has been tense. In 2007 ICAN attempted to have the bill establishing ANAN declared void.
The Association of International Accountants (AIA) is a professional accountancy body. It was founded in the UK in 1928 and since that date has promoted the concept of ‘international accounting’ to create a global network of accountants in over 85 countries worldwide.
Pakistan Institute of Public Finance Accountants (PIPFA) is an autonomous body recognized mainly in the government sector and established under license from the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan by the authority given under section 42 of the Companies Ordinance, 1984.
A Chartered professional is a person who has gained a specific level of skill or competence in a particular field of work, which has been recognised by the award of a formal credential by a relevant professional organization. Chartered status is considered a mark of professional competency, and is awarded mainly by chartered professional bodies and learned societies. Common in Britain, it is also used in Ireland, the United States and the Commonwealth, and has been adopted by organizations around the world.
The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) of Nigeria was established in 1990 vide Companies and Allied Matters Act no 1 (CAMA) 1990 as amended, now on Act cap C20 Laws of federation of Nigeria. It is an autonomous body charged with the responsibility to regulate the formation and management of companies in Nigeria. It carry out its functions through accredited members of Association of National Accountants of Nigeria, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN) and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). It is headed by a Registrar-General. Prior to the enactment of CAMA, these activities were carried on under the Companies Act 1968.
Chartered Professional Accountant is the professional designation which united the three Canadian accounting designations that previously existed:
The Chartered Institute of Cost and Management Accountants (CICMA) is a Nigerian – based professional accounting body offering Accounting education and professional qualifications in cost and management accountancy and related subjects, focus on accounting, business and government operations. The head office of the institute is in Kaduna. The institute also has regional offices at Abuja, Kano, Jos and Port Harcourt. As at September 2015, it had 8,200 members working in and outside Nigeria. It also has 4,500 registered students.
The Institute of Forensic Accountants is a professional body representing and providing professional certification for forensic accountants in Nigeria. As of September 2015 it had 4,300 members and 1,800 registered students. The institute was established in March 2007 to regulate the profession of forensic accountancy in Nigeria. The head office of the institute is in Kaduna. The institute also has regional offices in Abuja, Kano, Jos and Port Harcourt.
Ahmed Abdullahi Sumaila' is a Nigerian lawyer and counsel to the Central Bank of Nigeria in some of its most infamous garnishee order cases. In 2018, he, urged customers to report any bank that sells above N360 to $1 or imposes charges and commissions, sparking a torrent of complaints against Nigeria's commercial banks.
