Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non-financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "language of business", measures the results of an organization's economic activities and conveys this information to a variety of stakeholders, including investors, creditors, management, and regulators. Practitioners of accounting are known as accountants. The terms "accounting" and "financial reporting" are often used as synonyms.
The International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) was founded in June 1973 in London at the initiative of Sir Henry Benson, former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. The IASC was created by national accountancy bodies from a number of countries with a view to harmonizing the international diversity of company reporting practices. Between its founding in 1973 and its dissolution in 2001, it developed a set of International Accounting Standards (IAS) that gradually acquired a degree of acceptance in countries around the world. Although the IASC came to include some organizations representing preparers and users of financial statements, it largely remained an initiative of the accountancy profession. On 1 April 2001, it was replaced by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), an independent standard-setting body. The IASB adopted the extant corpus of IAS which it continued to develop as International Financial Reporting Standards.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) is the world's first professional body of Chartered Accountants (CAs). It is a regulator, educator, influencer and thought leader.
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). It has 240,952 members and 541,930 future members worldwide. ACCA's headquarters are in London with principal administrative office in Glasgow. ACCA works through a network of over 110 offices and centres in 51 countries - with 346 Approved Learning Partners (ALP) and more than 7,600 Approved Employers worldwide, who provide employee development.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is India's largest professional accounting body under the administrative control of Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India. It was established on 1 July 1949 as a statutory body under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 enacted by the Parliament for promotion, development and regulation of the profession of Chartered Accountancy in India.
The Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) is one of the three legally recognised professional bodies for accountants in Australia. The IPA represents more than 40,000 members and students working in industry, commerce, government, academia and professional practice.
The Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICMAI), which was also known as The Institute of Cost & Works Accountants of India (ICWAI) is a professional accountancy body in India. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Corporate Affairs of the Government of India. It has as its prime responsibility to contribute to the cost and management accounting profession at the global level.
British qualified accountants are full voting members of United Kingdom professional bodies that evaluate individual experience and test competencies for accountants.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka is a professional accountancy body in Sri Lanka. The Institute was established by Act of Parliament, No. 23 of 1959 as the sole organisation in Sri Lanka with the right to awarding the Chartered Accountant designation. The Institute is responsible for setting Accounting and Auditing Standards in Sri Lanka, and is considered the National Body of Accountants' in the country.
The accountancy profession in Malaysia is regulated by the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) through the powers conferred by the Accountants Act, 1967. The MIA is an agency under the Ministry of Finance and reports directly to the Accountant General Office. As at 4 February 2016, MIA has 32,618 members of which 68% are involved in commerce and industry, 22% in public practice and 10% in government and academia. Selangor and the Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory have the largest concentration of MIA membership with 13,125 and 7,351 members respectively. https://web.archive.org/web/20150725035639/http://www.mia.org.my/new/members_statistics_state.asp
The Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA) is the national accountancy body of Singapore. It was established in 1963 and has over 33,000 members.
Moore Kingston Smith is an accountancy firm located in the United Kingdom. The firm has six offices in London and south-east and is the London member of the Moore Global Network. In 2022 the Moore UK network ranked 10th in the list of Accountancy Age magazine's "UK Top 50 Accountancy firms". The firm has over 75 partners and more than 700 people based in and around London and is the biggest UK member of the Moore Global Network. The Moore Global Network is made up of over 30,000 people across more than 100 countries and is ranked by the International Accounting Bulletin (IAB) as the 11th largest accountancy network in the world.
International Accounting Bulletin is a monthly accountancy trade magazine that covers the global accounting business. It is also known under the acronym IAB.
The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. Founded in 1977, IFAC has 180 members and associates in 135 jurisdictions, representing more than 3 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce. The organization supports the development, adoption, and implementation of international standards for accounting education, ethics, and the public sector as well as audit and assurance. It supports four independent standard-setting boards, which establish international standards on ethics, auditing and assurance, accounting education, and public sector accounting. It also issues guidance to encourage high-quality performance by professional accountants in small and medium business accounting practices.
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) develops and promotes the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants. The IESBA also supports debate on issues related to accounting ethics and auditor independence.
An accounting network or accounting association is a professional services network whose principal purpose is to provide members resources to assist the clients around the world and hence reduce the uncertainty by bringing together a greater number of resources to work on a problem. The networks and associations operate independently of the independent members. The largest accounting networks are known as the Big Four.
CPA Ireland, formerly the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland, is one of the main Irish accountancy bodies, with 5,000 members and students.
The Institute of Certified Management Accountants of Sri Lanka, is a professional body offering qualification in management accountancy in Sri Lanka.
Morison Global is a global association of professional service firms. The association has over 150 member firms in more than 80 countries. Morison Global's status as an association is in accordance with the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) audit code and the EU Statutory Audit Directive 2006/43/(EC). Morison Global is ranked by the International Accounting Bulletin as the 10th largest accounting association in the world. In January 2021, the combined revenue of all member firms was USD978m.
