ICAI enhances investor confidence through sustainability initiatives

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has taken important steps in seeking greater transparency, accountability and investor protection in India. This highlights ICAI’s pivotal role in shaping the country’s financial environment and its commitment to fostering ethical and responsible practices within the business and finance sphere.

ICAI has continued to drive innovative change in the financial sector. ICAI is leading India into a new era of robust assurance and reporting on sustainability through groundbreaking initiatives such as Sustainability Reporting Maturity Model (SRMM) 2.0, Social Auditing Standards, Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting (BRSR) Certification Course and SSAE 3000.

ICAI’s Sustainability Reporting Standards Board (SRSB) has introduced version 2.0 of the Sustainability Reporting Maturity Model, a structured framework to assess and guide the evolution of sustainability reporting practices across organizations. This model allows organizations to self-assess their existing practices, identify areas for improvement, and set benchmarks for progress in their sustainability reporting efforts.

SRMM 2.0 serves as a roadmap to help organizations aligned with the BRSR guidelines improve their sustainability reporting practices over time, helping them move from simple compliance to more strategic and impactful reporting that aligns with business goals and contributes to a more sustainable future.

Additionally, ICAI’s establishment of social auditing standards strengthens ICAI’s mission to encourage responsible corporate behavior by providing organizations with a systematic way to assess and enhance their social impact.

The launch of the Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting (BRSR) certification course highlights ICAI’s commitment to developing professionals with practical skills to navigate the evolving landscape of sustainable business practices. This initiative prepares individuals to lead businesses to growth while maintaining responsible practices.

Recently, SEBI revised its Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting Formats and from FY 2023-24, mainly 150 listed companies will be required to provide reasonable assurance on the BRSR core, which will be gradually adopted across 1000 reporting companies by FY 2026-27.

In line with the pursuit of trustworthy reporting, ICAI introduced SSAE 3000 to establish benchmarks for assurance practices related to non-financial information, including sustainability reporting. This standard ensures reliability and consistency in reporting, increasing investor confidence in the accuracy of published data.

Collectively, these actions highlight ICAI’s commitment to promoting transparency, accountability and investor protection. These important efforts transform the investment landscape and highlight India’s leadership in non-financial reporting and assurance.

About ICAI

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is a statutory body established by an Act of Parliament under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 to regulate the profession of Chartered Accountants in India. ICAI, an organization under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, is one of the world’s largest professional accountancy organizations with over 7.83 million students and 3.78 million members and a tradition of service to the nation. Currently, ICAI has an extensive network of five regional councils and 168 chapters in India. It has 47 overseas branches and 34 representative offices and is present in 81 cities and 47 countries around the world.