The Society of Incorporated Accountants, founded in 1885 as the Society of Accountants, was a professional association of accountants in England. It was known from 1908 to 1954 as the Society of Incorporated Accountants and Auditors, and from 1954 to 1957 as the Society of Incorporated Accountants.
The Society of Accountants was established in 1885, initially in reaction to the restrictive practices of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), founded in 1880. [1] Members were known as 'Incorporated Accountants'. [2] Initially, members were mainly elected by the Society's Council, but in 1889 examinations were introduced and the Society established itself as an examining body. [3]
In 1889 the Society began publishing a quarterly journal Incorporated Accountants' Journal, which became a monthly in 1895 and was renamed Accountancy in 1938. The Society was housed at Two Temple Place from 1928 to 1959. In 1957 it merged with the ICAEW. [2]
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Accounting or 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 users, including investors, creditors, management, and regulators. Practitioners of accounting are known as accountants. The terms "accounting" and "financial reporting" are often used as synonyms.
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, or Registered 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 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.
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. At the end of 2020, it has over 189,000 members and students in 147 countries. 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 is the Global Chartered Accountants' body. 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 ACCA also works in India, China and Pakistan. ACCA India has organized a nationwide 'Financial Literacy Drive' with the collaboration of Indian Ministries of Finance and Education.
The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), South Africa’s pre-eminent accountancy body, is widely recognised as one of the world’s leading accounting institutes. The institute provides a wide range of support services to more than 48 000 members and associates who are chartered accountants, as well as associate general accountants and accounting technicians.
Myanmar Institute of Certified Public Accountants is a professional body of Certified Public Accountants in Myanmar. It was first formed in 2003 in association and permission of the Ministry of Home Affairs of Myanmar. The function of the body is to communicate with international accountancy bodies and to distribute information to its members. MICPA was founded under the Myanmar Accountancy Council (MAC), a policymaking body of accountants and auditors.
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 Pakistan is a professional accountancy body in Pakistan. As of December 2018, it has 9989 members working in and outside Pakistan. The institute was established on July 1, 1961 to regulate the profession of accountancy in Pakistan. It is a statutory autonomous body established under the Chartered Accountants Ordinance 1961. With the significant growth in the profession, the CA Ordinance and Bye-Laws were revised in 1983.
Accountancy in Hong Kong is regulated by the HKICPA under the Professional Accountants Ordinance. The auditing industry for limited companies is regulated under the Companies Ordinance, and other Ordinances such as the Securities and Futures Ordinance, the Listing Rules, etc.
The Accountant is the "oldest accountancy publication in the world". It was initially developed as a journal of accountancy issues in the UK, but has since expanded to cover broad global issues. Today, The Accountant is published monthly and reports on a range of topics, including changes in accounting standards, corporate reporting, audit quality, staff shortages, technology, IFRS, succession planning, tax and auditor liability.
Herbert Jeffrey "Jeff" Wooller is an English accountant and educationalist. He is noted for his accountancy tuition initiatives, and for campaigning for reform of his professional institute, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. The institute eventually excluded him from its membership because of his association with the Irish International University, Irish University Business School and International University Business School. Wooller has founded several educational institutions such as the Jeff Wooller College, Institute of Professional Financial Managers and Irish University Business School.
Saffery Champness is a Top 20 firm of chartered accountants in the UK, based on the Accountancy Age Top 50+50 Survey 2018, with a turnover of over £80 million.
Michael Izza is CEO of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).
Sir Frederick John Alban was a chartered accountant, administrator, and writer.
Bertram Nelson CBE (1905–1984) was a senior partner at Lithgow Nelson & Co and as President of the Society of Incorporated Accountants played a leading role in its amalgamation with the ICAEW in 1957. His wide variety of roles reflected his interest in supporting the development of the accountancy profession as well as business, education and the arts in Liverpool :
Chartered Accountants' Hall is a Grade II* listed building located at 1 Moorgate Place in the City of London. It is the headquarters of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW). The Hall is one of the richest examples of late Victorian architecture in the City and has been praised for its seamless integration of sculpture.
Mary Harris Smith was an accountant and entrepreneur. She became the first woman to complete the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales qualification but was denied membership because she was a woman. When the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act was passed in 1919, Harris Smith became the world's first female Chartered Accountant.